Utah

Utah State knocks off No. 19 San Diego State

Published

2 years ago

February 21, 2024

Utah State knocks off No. 19 San Diego State

There was no storming of the court this time after the Aggies knocked off a ranked opponent at the Spectrum. But make no mistake, Tuesday night’s 68-63 win over 19th-ranked San Diego State was absolutely worthy of a celebration.

“I know we’re not getting ice cream, but they should just give everybody ice cream anyway after this one,” proclaimed USU head coach Danny Sprinkle, referencing the Culver’s promotion that rewards Aggie fans anytime their team scores 80 or more points.

“I’m obviously super proud of our team the way they responded against a team that was the national runner-up last year, with a lot of players back.”

The Aggies (22-5, 10-4), who were tied for first place in the Mountain West with the Aztecs (20-7, 9-5) coming into the game, had a woeful performance at Colorado State last Saturday. Utah State lost to the Rams by 20 points in Fort Collins after beating then-13th ranked CSU at the Spectrum on Jan. 6.

Utah State looked like a very different, much more determined team on Tuesday while taking over sole possession for first place and becoming just the third Aggie team ever to beat two or more ranked opponents in the same season. The 1959-60 team beat three teams in the AP Top 25, while the 2006-07 squad beat two ranked opponents.

“I think a lot of times people hit the panic button on us when things go bad,” noted graduate senior guard Darius Brown II. “But we knew this whole week that if we defended, rebounded and limiting their second-chance points that we’d be fine.

“I know this team. I know we’re fighters. And I knew we’d fine.”

Brown certainly backed up that confidence by leading all scorers with 25 points in 39 minutes in a winning effort. The Southern California native went 8 of 13 from the field, including 5 of 9 from 3-point range, and delivered some of the biggest plays of the game for the Aggies.

“Darius is from Pasadena, right up the road from San Diego State, and watched them growing up,” Sprinkle noted. “I’m really proud of his effort, and all the guys. I told them before the game that this was a chance to show how great they are. ‘This is why you came to play in the Mountain West, on national TV against a national runner-up. Go show who you are.’ And they did.”

The Aggies, who lost at San Diego State, 81-67, on Feb. 3, also got 17 points from Brown’s former Montana State teammate, Great Osobor. The junior forward scored 13 of those points in the second half, while also adding seven rebounds and seven assists.

Sprinkle definitely enjoyed watching his leading scorer go toe-to-toe in the paint with SDSU’s top scorer Jameson LeDee, who led the Aztecs with 23 points on 8 of 13 shooting.

“That was like two big hogs, just literally mud wrestling the entire game,” Sprinkle said of the Osobor vs. LeDee matchup. “I mean, those are two of the best bigs in the country going at it for 40 minutes on offense and defense, and it was fun to watch.”

Utah State, which also got 10 points from freshman guard Mason Falslev, ended up shooting 49% as a team for the game, including a 7-for-22 effort from 3-point range.

San Diego State won the rebounding battle, 34-31, and the Aztecs shot 42.9% for the game. But a 3-of-19 performance from beyond the arc certainly hurt their chances of sweeping the season series from the Aggies.

“Darius Brown was sensational. 8 for 13, 5 for 9 from 3, 4 for 4 from the foul line. He played sensational,” SDSU head coach Brian Dutcher said. “And (Great) Osobor does what he does. Solid game. Two-for-two at half. We were doubling when he was passing it out, did a good job moving the ball. But we didn’t make enough timely plays.

“As uninspired as we looked like we played at times, we just couldn’t get over the hump.”

Utah State opened the game with a confidence-building 6-0 burst as the Aztecs missed their first six shot attempts and didn’t notch their first field goal until nearly four minutes into the contest. San Diego State rebounded to lead by as many as three points midway through the first half, but the Aggies closed out the half with an 8-1 run that left the hosts up 31-26 at halftime.

Brown, who scored the final bucket of the first half, then opened the second half with a 3-pointer that ended up as a five-point play for the Aggies when Isaac Johnson turned a SDSU foul into a layup that left USU suddenly up by 10 points.

“That was huge,” Sprinkle said of the 5-0 second-half start. “And that was due to an effort play by Fish (Johnson), who was tackled when going to the offensive glass.

“We always talk about winning the last four minutes of the first half, and the first four minutes of the second half because a lot of teams lose games in those eight minutes of a game.”

San Diego State eventually ended up trimming USU’s lead down to just one point at 59-58 with just over five minutes left, but an offensive putback by Johnson helped steady the ship and the Aggies ended up never trailing in the second half.

The biggest shot of the game was delivered by Brown with two minutes left. Working down low, Osobor had his shot attempt come up short, but Falslev flew into the paint to tip the rebound out to Brown on the perimeter.

“Shout out to Mason for crashing. We were talking about rebounding and Mason came in and crashed and got a tip. I happened to be right in the area and it landed right to me,” Brown recalled. “I saw the shot clock was close to two seconds, so I knew I just had to put the shot up. Luckily when Mason tipped it, I caught it in perfect rhythm.”

Brown knocked down the 3-pointer to stake the Aggies to a 64-58 lead that forced Dutcher into using a timeout.

The crowd of 9,233 then weathered a couple of tense minutes that included Osobor blocking away a key shot attempt by LeDee and two clutch free throws by Falslev that all but secured the victory for the Aggies, who now control their own destiny with four games left to play. Utah State has this weekend off before returning to action Feb. 27 at Fresno State.

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Utah

Utah lawmakers fast-track controversial court expansion bill to the governor

Published

17 hours ago

January 30, 2026

Press Room

Utah lawmakers fast-track controversial court expansion bill to the governor

The Utah Legislature is sending the courts expansion bill to Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, making it one of the first bills to make it to his desk for the 2026 session.

The bill, SB134, passed after a vote on the House floor Friday morning, 57 to 18. Once Cox signs the bill, as expected, it will mark the first time since 2016 that a state has increased the number of judges on its Supreme Court bench.

The court expansion bill, headed by Sen. Chris Wilson, R-Logan, adds two more judges to the state Supreme Court’s five-person bench. It also adds judges to the Court of Appeals, and one district court judge each in Salt Lake City, St. George and Provo.

So much of the feedback given through public comment during the bill’s circulation in the legislature was focused on opposition to the two additional Supreme Court justices.

Wilson’s bill, and others focused on overhauling the judiciary this session, have been accused of court packing, ignoring the requests made by the state’s judiciary and trying to breach the independent separation of powers between the two governing bodies.

When asked during Senate availability what it says about the House and Senate’s priorities to be sending this bill so quickly through the Legislature, Senate President Stuart Adams said, “It tells you we value the courts.”

Wilson added that SB134 is the “biggest commitment” Utah lawmakers have made to their law-interpreting counterparts. During the House floor vote, the bill’s floor sponsor, Rep. Casey Snider, R-Paradise, said he hopes that public perception sees the bill as “in the spirit with which it is offered, which is that of one in hopes of being helpful.”

Utah Democrats oppose Utah court expansion, but GOP says it’s overdue

Despite GOP lawmakers’ intentions, the bill was largely opposed by their Democratic colleagues. Rep. Grant Amjad Miller, D-Salt Lake City, said that though he favored some of what the bill offered, he ultimately voted against it because it doesn’t prioritize the needs of the public. He also noted “the great expense” it would cost the state to expand the Supreme Court alone.

“The courts have issued a wish list to us,” Miller said during the House floor vote. “At the top, they have asked for support for their staff and for their judiciary clerks and assistants. Nowhere in their wish list have they asked for two Supreme Court justices.”

Rep. Andrew Stoddard, D-Sandy, added that he believes adding more judges to the bench would further complicate the process.

“I don’t think that this is the route if we want to speed up our cases,” he said. “The hold up is in the district court and occasionally in the court of appeals, but is not the Supreme Court.”

Despite their opposition, Wilson said that “it’s a great bill” and “a great step forward … ”Looking at the number of filings, looking at the case complexity, it’s obvious, in my opinion, with the data and evidence, that it’s long overdue.”

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Utah

Oklahoma State visits Utah after Dawes’ 23-point outing

Published

1 day ago

January 30, 2026

Press Room

Oklahoma State visits Utah after Dawes’ 23-point outing

Oklahoma State Cowboys (14-6, 2-5 Big 12) at Utah Utes (9-11, 1-6 Big 12)

Salt Lake City; Saturday, 6 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Utah takes on Oklahoma State after Keanu Dawes scored 23 points in Utah’s 91-78 loss to the BYU Cougars.

The Utes are 8-3 on their home court. Utah is 2-5 in games decided by at least 10 points.

The Cowboys have gone 2-5 against Big 12 opponents. Oklahoma State scores 86.2 points and has outscored opponents by 5.8 points per game.

Utah makes 46.6% of its shots from the field this season, which is 2.5 percentage points higher than Oklahoma State has allowed to its opponents (44.1%). Oklahoma State averages 86.2 points per game, 4.7 more than the 81.5 Utah allows.

The Utes and Cowboys face off Saturday for the first time in conference play this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Terrence Brown is scoring 22.2 points per game with 2.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists for the Utes. Don McHenry is averaging 18.5 points over the last 10 games.

Kanye Clary is averaging 9.6 points and 4.9 assists for the Cowboys. Anthony Roy is averaging 18.3 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Utes: 2-8, averaging 78.7 points, 28.5 rebounds, 13.5 assists, 5.7 steals and 2.6 blocks per game while shooting 46.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 84.3 points per game.

Cowboys: 5-5, averaging 82.5 points, 32.1 rebounds, 14.4 assists, 8.3 steals and 2.6 blocks per game while shooting 46.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 83.5 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

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New Utah County school districts officially name inaugural superintendents

Published

2 days ago

January 29, 2026

Press Room

New Utah County school districts officially name inaugural superintendents

PROVO, Utah (KUTV) — Superintendents for the three new Utah County school districts have officially been selected by their respective school boards.

Dr. Joel Perkins was sworn in as the superintendent for Aspen Peaks School District, Dr. Vicki Carter was named the superintendent for the Lake Mountain School District, and Dr. Joseph N. Jensen was selected as the superintendent for Timpanogos School District.

The three school districts will officially begin operating in July 2027 after voters approved breaking the existing school district – The Alpine School District – into three new ones in 2024.

The Aspen Peaks School District will oversee schools in Lehi, American Fork, Highland, Cedar Hills and Alpine. Lake Mountain covers schools in Saratoga Springs, Eagle Mountain, Cedar Valley, Cedar Fort and Fairfield. The Timpanogos School District will be made up of schools in Lindon, Pleasant Grove, Orem and Vineyard.

MORE | Alpine School District

Eye On Education (Graphic: KUTV)

Dr. Perkins, who serves as the current associate superintendent in the Alpine School District, will continue to serve in his role until June 30 of this year. Aspen Peaks officials said Perkins will then work with the school board to hire staff, determine funding, and consider school boundaries.

“This is my community. I have lived here and worked here for the last 27 years. My family and I have invested our hearts and souls into the schools in this area,” said Perkins. “I love the students, families, and employees here. It is the honor of a lifetime to partner with this community to build the new Aspen Peaks School District.”

Meanwhile, Dr. Vicki Carter was named as the inaugural superintendent for Lake Mountain after an “exhaustive search” with over 20 applicants. The Lake Mountain school board described Dr. Carter as a veteran educator with 35 years of experience who is dedicated to building trust, respect and academic excellence.

The Lake Mountain School Board also named Dr. Amanda Bollinger, who has 25 years in Utah education, as deputy superintendent.

“We are proud to launch our district with such a distinguished team,” said Lake Mountain Board President Julie King. “They are seamlessly aligned with our vision for innovation and student success.”

In the Timpanogos School District, the school board said Dr. Joseph Jensen brings decades of educational leadership experience that was “deeply rooted” in the school district’s communities. His career has seen him serving students and families in Oak Canyon, Orem High, Orem Junior High and Timpanogos High, most recently as the Alpine School District’s Director of Administrative Development.

“I love the people in these communities. I lived in Pleasant Grove for ten years and spent my entire administrative career serving students, teachers, and families in Orem, Vineyard and Lindon,” said Dr. Jensen. “I have countless memories of exceptional teachers, coaches, and support staff who work tirelessly to develop young people – in classrooms, extracurricular activities, and programs.”

The Timpanogos School District said Jensen intends to visit all 29 schools in the district to “listen, learn, and connect with staff, parents and administrators.”

The three school districts now move on to the next step ahead of their 2027 launch, including filling additional roles such as business administrators.

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