Utah
Defensive Effort Fuels Utah's 74-67 Over No. 17 Kansas
SALT LAKE CITY—In their first-ever meeting at the Jon M. Huntsman Center, Utah pulls off the 74-67 upset over the No. 17 Jayhawks!
It was perhaps the best 40-minute performance by Utah this season. The effort level was pretty consistent and though there were significant scoring droughts, the Utes battled all game long.
Gabe Madsen led the Utes with 24 points on 7-of-18 shooting, as well as 5-of-5 from the line. Ezra Ausar added 12, and Jake Wahlin finished with 10 as the only other players in double-figures.
However, it was Utah’s defense that really made the difference in this one. for Kansas, as they ended the game 22-of-54 from the field. Hunter Dickinson was an inefficient 4-of-12 from the field for 12 points.
Starters for Utah against Kansas
Craig Smith stuck with the same starting five, which were as follows:
Mike Sharavjamts, Gabe Madsen, Jake Wahlin, Ezra Ausar, and Lawson Lovering.
First Half, Runnin’ Utes Vs. Jayhawks
The opening minutes were some of the strong minutes out of Utah this season. It started with a high-low action that started with a Lawson Lovering dish to Ezra Ausar for layup. Gabe Madsen knocked down a 3-pointer on the next possession. Two possessions later, Jake Wahlin knocked down a 3-pointer. Utah then got a defensive stop that led to a transition opportunity where Mike Sharavjamts threw a lob to Ausar, who properly threw it down with authority.
Utah jumped out to a 10-3 lead, which forced Bill Self to take an early timeout. After the break, Kansas then scored a but Gabe Madsen responded with his second 3-pointer of the game to give Utah a 13-5 lead at the first media timeout.
15:44 – After the break, Kansas got going a little bit. AJ Storr knocked down a 3-pointer, Flory Bidunga added a pair of free throws, and Hunter Dickinson added a dunk. It was 16-12 in Utah’s favor, then Jake Wahlin knocked down a much-needed 3-pointer to give Utah a 19-12 advantage at the second media timeout.
11:32 – Miro Little knocked down a 3-pointer, his first shot attempt of the game. On the next possession, Keanu Dawes hustled for two offensive rebounds before getting fouled on a putback attempt. He went to the line and converted both attempts. On the next possession, Dawes found Caleb Lohner underneath for an easy one. Lastly, Madsen knocked down a 3-pointer after missing one, and Lohner collected the miss. That gave the Utes a 29-19 edge at the third media break of the game.
8:25 – Kansas just continued to play their game and chip away at Utah’s lead. Utah added another Madsen 3-pointer but then went scoreless for over three minutes. That allowed the Jayhawks to trim Utah’s lead to 32-30 at the final media timeout.
Utah lost the aggressiveness they were playing with for the first 12 minutes of the game. As Kansas cut into the lead, the offensive execution became more and more unsettled. Utah scrambled for scoring opportunities instead of executing the offense like they had been.
3:46 – Unfortunately, the Utes were scoreless for five when Kansas tied it up, 32-32. Fortunately, the final two minutes, Utah found some offense with Ausar and Little combining for seven points to take a 39-37 lead into the locker room.
Second Half – Utah 39, Kansas 37
After Kansas scored five early points, Utah would go on a bit of a run. The Utes clamped down on the defensive end, which sparked some opportunities on the other end. Madsen and Sharvajamts each notched a steal that led to direct points in transition. Utah would go on a 10-3 run to rebuild a 52-45 edge by the first media timeout.
15:10 – Utah would continue to build their lead, as they got it to 58-49. Hunter Erickson knocked down a 3-pointer, Ausar went 1-of-2 from the line, and Lohner added a big layup through contact. As the two teams were exiting the floor for the second media timeout, Bill Self was whistled for a technical. Madsen converted the free throws after the break to give Utah a 60-49 lead.
11:37 – Utah would unfortunately go cold from the field for the next four minutes. A couple of misses and then a pair of turnovers allowed Kansas to claw their way back. By the next media break, the Jayhawks had it down to 60-54.
7:07 – After the timeout, Kansas’ David Coit knocked down a 3-pointer to cut it to 60-57. Then, a couple of possessions later, Bidunga got a layup to go to trim the lead down to one. Utah just continued to settle for bad shots, and their scoring drought extended to over six minutes.
Finally, after seven scoreless minutes, Ausar finally got a jump hook to roll over the rim and fall. That gave Utah a 62-60 lead at the 4:20 mark of the game and after a defensive stop and Kansas defensive foul, the Utes held onto that lead into the final media break.
3:31 – After the break, the Utes played with tremendous effort. They hustled for offensive rebounds, which led to a pair of free throws for Wahlin, which he converted to give Utah a 64-60 edge. Lovering was fouled and went to the line for two, but missed both.
Then, Utah forced a Kansas turnover, as Wahlin intercepted an entry pass to Dickinson. Utah brought it the other way and eventually, Madsen found himself open for a 3-pointer, which he converted to give Utah a 67-60 lead, and also become the school’s all-time leader in 3-point makes.
After free throws from Sharavjamts, Madsen, and Erickson, the Utes hold onto their upset bid and knock off the Jayhawks 74-67!
UP NEXT – Kansas State Vs. Utah
It’ll be a quick turnaround for the Runnin’ Utes this weekend as they’ll get just one day to prepare for Kansas State, who will come into the Jon M. Huntsman Center on Monday, Feb. 17, for a 7 p.m. (MST) tip-off on ESPN2. Roxy Bernstein will be joined alongside Sean Farnham as to call the action as Utah and Kansas State square off for the first time since Nov. 25, 1983 – a 63-53 affair in favor of the Utes in Rosemont, Ill., at the Tribune Classic.
Steve Bartle is the Utah insider for KSL Sports. He hosts The Utah Blockcast (SUBSCRIBE) and appears on KSL Sports Zone to break down the Utes. You can follow him on X for the latest Utah updates and game analysis.
Take us with you, wherever you go.
Download the new & improved KSL Sports app from Utah’s sports leader. You can stream live radio, video and stay up to date on all of your favorite teams.
Utah
911 recordings detail hours leading up to discovery of Utah girl, mother dead in Las Vegas
CONTENT WARNING: This report discusses suicide and includes descriptions of audio from 911 calls that some viewers may find disturbing.
LAS VEGAS — Exclusively obtained 911 recordings detail the hours leading up to the discovery of an 11-year-old Utah girl and her mother dead inside a Las Vegas hotel room in an apparent murder-suicide.
Addi Smith and her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, lived in West Jordan and had traveled to Nevada for the JAMZ cheerleading competition.
The calls show a growing sense of urgency from family members and coaches, and several hours passing before relatives learned what happened.
MORE | Murder-Suicide
Below is a timeline of the key moments, according to dispatch records. All times are Pacific Time.
10:33 a.m. — Call 1
After Addi and her mother failed to appear at the cheerleading competition, Addi’s father and stepmother called dispatch for a welfare check.
Addi and her mother were staying at the Rio hotel. The father told dispatch that hotel security had already attempted contact.
“Security went up and knocked on the door. There’s no answer or response it doesn’t look like they checked out or anything…”
11:18 a.m. and 11:27 a.m. — Calls 2 and 3
As concern grew, Addi’s coach contacted the police two times within minutes.
“We think the child possibly is in imminent danger…”
11:26 a.m. — Call 4
Addi’s stepmother placed another call to dispatch, expressing escalating concern.
“We are extremely concerned we believe that something might have seriously happened.”
She said that Tawnia’s car was still at the hotel.
Police indicated officers were on the way.
2:26 p.m. — Call 5
Nearly three hours after the initial welfare check request, fire personnel were en route to the scene. It appeared they had been in contact with hotel security.
Fire told police that they were responding to a possible suicide.
“They found a note on the door.”
2:35 p.m. — Call 6
Emergency medical personnel at the scene told police they had located two victims.
“It’s going to be gunshot wound to the head for both patients with notes”
A dispatcher responded:
“Oh my goodness that’s not okay.”
2:36 p.m. — Call 7
Moments later, fire personnel relayed their assessment to law enforcement:
“It’s going to be a murder suicide, a juvenile and a mother.”
2:39 p.m. — Call 8
Unaware of what had been discovered, Addi’s father called dispatch again.
“I’m trying to file a missing persons report for my daughter.”
He repeats the details he knows for the second time.
3:13 p.m. — Call 9
Father and stepmother call again seeking information and continue to press for answers.
“We just need some information. There was a room check done around 3:00 we really don’t know where to start with all of this Can we have them call us back immediately?”
Dispatch responded:
“As soon as there’s a free officer, we’ll have them reach out to you.”
4:05 p.m. — Call 10
More than an hour later, Addi’s father was put in contact with the police on the scene. He pleaded for immediate action.
“I need someone there I need someone there looking in that room”
The officer confirmed that they had officers currently in the room.
Addi’s father asks again what they found, if Addi and her mother are there, and if their things were missing.
The officer, who was not on scene, said he had received limited information.
5:23 p.m. — Call 11
Nearly seven hours after the first welfare check request, Addi’s grandmother contacted police, describing conflicting information circulating within the family.
“Some people are telling us that they were able to get in, and they were not in the hotel room, and other people saying they were not able to get in the hotel room, and we need to know”
She repeated the details of the case. Dispatch said officers will call her back once they have more information.
Around 8:00 p.m. — Press Conference
Later that evening, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police held a news conference confirming that Addi and her mother, Tawnia McGeehan, were found dead inside the hotel room.
The investigation remains ongoing.
______
Utah
Ban on AI glasses in Utah classrooms inches closer to passing
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — AI glasses could allow you to get answers, snap photos, access audio and take phone calls—and now a proposal moving through the legislature would ban the glasses from Utah school classrooms.
“I think it’s a great idea,” said Kizzy Guyton Murphy, a mother who accompanied her child’s class on a field trip to the state Capitol on Wednesday. “You can’t see inside what the student is looking at, and it’s just grounds for cheating.”
Mom Tristan Davies Seamons also sees trouble with AI glasses.
“I don’t think they should have any more technology in schools than they currently have,” she said.
Her twin daughters, fourth graders Finley and Grayson, don’t have cell phones yet.
“Not until we’re like 14,” said Grayson, adding they do have Chromebooks in school.
2News sent questions to the Utah State Board of Education:
- Does it have reports of students using AI glasses?
- Does it see cheating and privacy as major concerns?
- Does it support a ban from classrooms?
Matt Winters, USBE AI specialist, said the board has not received reports from school districts of students with AI glasses.
“Local Education Agencies (school districts) have local control over these decisions based on current law and code,” said Winters. “The Board has not taken a position on AI glasses.
MORE | Utah State Legislature:
Some districts across the country have reportedly put restrictions on the glasses in schools.
“I think it should be up to the teachers,” said Briauna Later, another mother who is all for preventing cheating, but senses a ban could leave administrators with tired eyes.
“It’s one more thing for the administration to have to keep track of,” said Later.
The proposal, HB 42, passed the House and cleared a Senate committee on Wednesday.
BE THE FIRST TO COMMENT
___
Utah
Kalshi sues Utah over efforts to stop prop betting in the state
SALT LAKE CITY — A prediction market is suing Utah over plans to regulate proposition betting that it says would run afoul of federal regulations.
Kalshi is a New York-based prediction market that allows users to place “event contracts” on future outcomes and earn a payout if they are correct. Those transactions are regulated through the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court, the company said Utah has plans to prevent the company from offering contracts in the state and asked the courts to block any enforcement that “interferes with the operation and function of plaintiffs’ futures market.”
“Plaintiff KalshiEX LLC believes the governor of Utah and the Attorney General’s Office of Utah will imminently bring an enforcement action against Kalshi with the intent to prevent Kalshi from offering event contracts for trading on its federally regulated exchange,” the complaint states. “Defendants have repeatedly represented that they believe Kalshi is operating unlawfully under Utah anti-gambling laws.”
The lawsuit points to a couple of posts from Gov. Spencer Cox and an op-ed written by Attorney General Derek Brown in the Deseret News on Sunday. After Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Mike Selig announced that his agency would “defend its exclusive jurisdiction” over prediction markets last week, Cox took to X calling the markets “gambling — pure and simple.”
“They are destroying the lives of families and countless Americans, especially young men,” he wrote. “They have no place in Utah. Let me be clear, I will use every resource within my disposal as governor of the sovereign state of Utah, and under the Constitution of the United States to beat you in court.”
He followed that up last Thursday, saying Utah is “ready to defend our laws in court and protect Utahns from companies that drive addiction, isolation and serious financial harm.”
In his op-ed, Brown argued that prediction markets are “the newest iteration of gambling” and said he didn’t see a difference between betting and trading futures.
“Although traditional sports betting apps are illegal under Utah law, these platforms argue that they merely allow users to hedge their risk,” he wrote. “But what is the real risk to hedge when you are simply predicting whether LeBron James will score more or less than another player? It’s simply a bet, dressed up in different clothing.”
The lawsuit also comes as the state Legislature is advancing a bill that would clarify that proposition betting — or betting placed on specific players or events during games — falls under the state’s definition of gambling, which is prohibited by the Utah Constitution. HB243 has passed the House and a Senate committee and is awaiting consideration on the Senate floor.
But Kalshi says its contracts are lawful thanks to a carveout in Utah’s anti-gambling laws that allows for “lawful business.” Its lawsuit claims Kalshi’s attorneys made “multiple attempts” to contact Brown about potential action against the company but were “met with silence, even though the Utah AG had previously been willing to communicate with counsel.”
Asked about the lawsuit on Tuesday, Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton, said he is “standing with the governor on this one.”
The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.
-
World2 days agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Massachusetts2 days agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Montana1 week ago2026 MHSA Montana Wrestling State Championship Brackets And Results – FloWrestling
-
Oklahoma1 week agoWildfires rage in Oklahoma as thousands urged to evacuate a small city
-
Louisiana4 days agoWildfire near Gum Swamp Road in Livingston Parish now under control; more than 200 acres burned
-
Technology6 days agoYouTube TV billing scam emails are hitting inboxes
-
Denver, CO2 days ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Technology6 days agoStellantis is in a crisis of its own making