It’s been a busy day on the transfer portal front for Utah.

After receiving commitments from Missouri punter Orion Phillips and Garden City cornerback Jeremiah Caldwell, the Utes made moves to shore up their linebacker room.

Jaxson Jones, a freshman linebacker at Oregon who redshirted this season, announced his intentions to transfer to Utah on Saturday night.

The 6-foot-3, 230-pound Jones was a four-star recruit out of high school, and the Utes offered him back then, per his 247Sports page. The second time is the charm for the Utes, who needed depth in the linebacker room after Sione Fotu and Josh Calvert transferred out.

Jones is the son of Daniel Jones, who was a receiver at Utah from 1997-1998.

In his senior year at Yuma Catholic High in Arizona, Jaxson Jones recorded 46 tackles, nine sacks and forced two fumbles.

Associated Press

Utah State Aggies (1-9) at Idaho Vandals (6-2)

Moscow; Sunday, 4 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Idaho hosts Utah State after Rosie Schweizer scored 21 points in Idaho’s 76-54 win over the Saint Thomas Tommies.

The Vandals have gone 3-0 in home games. Idaho is the top team in the Big Sky in team defense, allowing 55.8 points while holding opponents to 33.3% shooting.

The Aggies are 0-5 on the road. Utah State has a 0-7 record against opponents over .500.

Idaho’s average of 7.1 made 3-pointers per game this season is just 0.6 more made shots on average than the 6.5 per game Utah State allows. Utah State averages 8.4 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.8 more made shots on average than the 5.6 per game Idaho gives up.

TOP PERFORMERS: Schweizer is scoring 13.6 points per game with 7.1 rebounds and 0.8 assists for the Vandals.

Mia Tarver is shooting 34.0% from beyond the arc with 1.8 made 3-pointers per game for the Aggies, while averaging 10 points and 2.4 steals.

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

SALT LAKE CITY – With both teams shooting well over 50 percent in the opening quarter, temperatures inside Delta Center starkly contrasted with the cold outside. The Jazz led Phoenix 39-38 after the two teams combined to hit 15 threes in the first 12 minutes.

The Jazz (5-18) are hosting the Phoenix Suns (12-11) at Delta Center on Friday, December 13.

Kessler Opens Game With Back-To-Back Corner Threes

Lauri is 3/3 from three and all we have to say to that is “Tervetuloa takaisin” 😏🇫🇮#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/otCLRdzSPk

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) December 14, 2024

Five Jazzmen hit threes, led by Lauri Markkanen’s 3-for-3 performance. Walker Kessler surprised everyone with back-to-back threes, while Jordan Clarkson returned from a seven-game absence with a three and seven points.

Devin Booker led Phoenix, hitting five of eight shots and two triples. Kevin Durant added seven points in his return after missing three games with an ankle injury.

Utah shot 57 percent while Phoenix hit 65 percent of their attempts.

Jazz and Suns rested following an extended break

Utah returns to the court after a rare four days off following their 141-97 blowout loss at the hands of the Sacramento Kings.

The Suns also want to bounce back from a loss after falling 115-110 on the road to the Orlando Magic on Sunday.

The @utahjazz mailbag: Is Will Hardy good at developing the team’s youth? #takenote https://t.co/dScOJFbByF

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) December 12, 2024

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Phoenix looks to snap a six-game road losing streak when they travel to Utah, having dropped games in Sacramento, Oklahoma City, Minnesota, New Orleans, and Miami before Sunday’s loss.

The Suns’ last road win came in Utah on November 12.

All six Suns road losses have come without superstar Kevin Durant, who has dealt with calf and ankle injuries over the last month.

Follow the Utah Jazz with KSL Sports

Tonight’s game against the Suns is being televised on KJZZ, streamed on Jazz+, and heard on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone.

Ben Anderson is the Utah Jazz insider for KSL Sports and the co-host of Jake and Ben from 10-12p with Jake Scott on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. Find Ben on Twitter at @BensHoops, on Instagram @BensHoops, or on BlueSky. 

Find KSLSports.com coverage of the Utah Jazz here.

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Brian Preece is a KSLsports.com insider covering Locals in MLB and Salt Lake Bees. Follow Brian’s Bees and Beehive baseball coverage here.

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