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Utah Jazz happy to learn their tough lessons in a win

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Utah Jazz happy to learn their tough lessons in a win


After surviving a 154-148 overtime decision Wednesday against the now 3-31 Pistons, the Utah Jazz acknowledged how lucky they were.

Detroit shot 53.3% overall, made 19 of 41 tries from beyond the arc (46.3%), and buried a game-tying 3 at the regulation horn when Utah neglected to foul Alec Burks as he made his way up the court.

“You’d always rather win lessons after a win than a loss,” coach Will Hardy pointedly noted postgame.

He then rattled off a litany of miscues the team will hopefully learn from next time: breakdowns in coverages; failure to recognize personnel and locate shooters (as evidenced by Bojan Bogdanovic’s 15 3-point attempts); slippage in communication.

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Oh, and that failure of Collin Sexton to foul Burks after Lauri Markkanen made what looked like it’d be a game-winning 3 with 5.2 seconds to go and Detroit out of timeouts.

If the Jazz foul Burks as he races up the court, the game likely ends after 48 minutes. But because they didn’t and he made the shot, an extra five were on tap that could potentially have gone wrong.

Everyone acknowledged that the crazy circumstances of the situation contributed to the breakdown. And everyone conceded they were lucky that it didn’t wind up costing them a win.

“It’s something that we’ve worked on a good amount this year, it’s something that we’ve watched film on,” said Hardy. “But this is also a moment where, when the emotion is super-high and the building is going crazy, it’s easy to lose focus on the strategy part. Obviously, we would have liked to have fouled when Alec Burks ran the ball up the court.

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“… But this is part of learning how to win and learning how to become a really good team,” he added.

The players all took it to heart.

Asked when they realized they should have fouled, Markkanen quipped, “[When we] saw Will jumping on the sidelines. He was trying to yell, obviously, but we can’t hear anything. But we’ve just got to recognize it as players. That’s one big thing we can learn from.”

Sexton noted that he and Jordan Clarkson had a pretty immediate conversation about it.

“Me and JC was looking at it, and I’m like, ‘I should have fouled, right?’ And he was like, ‘No one told you,’” Sexton said. “But it’s all good — those are possessions and things that’s going to help us in the future.”

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Clarkson, who registered a game-high 36 points, including a couple huge buckets down the stretch in the fourth and again in OT, also took responsibility for the miscue.

“In those situations, you know, we’ve all gotta be communicating. And me being next to him in that play, I could have been screaming and telling him,” Clarkson said. “So I’ll take that on myself, just being one of the guys that’s older and has that experience to scream and say that.”

Everyone who spoke postgame acknowledged that it was not a banner effort.

Yes, they tied a franchise-record with their 154 points. No, they couldn’t really enjoy it, because they recognized that Detroit was also scoring at will for pretty much the entire game.

“Obviously it’s fun to score the ball, but I think it just puts a lot of pressure on our offense and execution. Because if we are not getting stops, we know that we have to get a score on the other end so it doesn’t get out of hand,” said Markkanen. “… We’ve definitely got to pick up the 148 part, but we’re happy with the 1-5-4.”

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He then noted Utah’s failure to properly account for the Pistons’ personnel in the game, letting 3-point shooters get off 3s, while chasing others off the line and, in turn, surrendering layups or free throws.

Still, it was Burks’ shot that most stuck with everyone.

Hardy used it as an opportunity to put some of the blame on his own shoulders, pointing out that he wound up second-guessing the information he prioritized conveying to the team in the timeout preceding Markkanen’s go-ahead bucket.

“This is where, as a coach, you always kick yourself: Could I have handled that 60 seconds differently? Could I have drawn our play and talked about multiple defensive scenarios?” Hardy said. “I don’t know. But that’s what I’ll be driving home thinking about. Is there things that I could have communicated better in that moment?”

And again, he gave his players some grace for not executing the situation ideally.

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“It all makes sense in a quiet film room. Like this, if we put the film up behind me right now, it would all make sense,” he said. “But you make a big 3 and there’s four seconds left and the whole building’s going crazy and everybody’s scrambling around trying to find their matchups and figure out what’s happening — those are learning moments for our team.”

The players acknowledged the difficulty of trying to perform perfectly amid such chaos, but the need to nevertheless be better at it.

“Yeah, it’s nothing like the game reps where you can work [it] out in practice; and obviously in the film room, you can pause the video and, ‘We should have done this and this,’” said Markkanen. “We will learn from it, but I think that’s a good experience for us to have in the game, so the next time we know what we should do.”

Sexton concurred.

“We’re gonna be in that same situation, we’ll see it soon — so we’ve got to just be prepared,” he said.

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Yeah, plenty of lessons to be learned.

But they feel a lot better with a 16-19 record than a 15-20 one.



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Penalties to be enforced if Trump’s face covered on national park passes, reports say

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Penalties to be enforced if Trump’s face covered on national park passes, reports say


SALT LAKE CITY — Those using a new national park pass who want to enjoy Utah’s “Mighty Five” better do so with President Donald Trump’s face perfectly intact, or you might pay a literal price.

The new annual park passes, which debuted on Jan. 1, feature Trump’s image alongside that of George Washington. At the same time as the release, the Department of the Interior reportedly updated its rules to ensure Trump’s face remains free and clear.

According to the Washington Post, the updated “Void if Altered” policy prohibits anyone from defacing the pass or covering up any images or information on the cards. Visitors found by rangers to have altered a pass by any means will be ordered to return it to its original condition or possibly be charged a regular entrance fee.

SFGate reported the policy originally prohibited any alteration of the signature portion of the pass, with the updated policy including the front of the card, with a warning that “writing on it or adding stickers or other coverings” is no longer allowed.

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Anti-DEI mandates at national parks include Zion gift shop:

‘History deserves honesty,’ anti-DEI mandates at national parks include Zion gift shop

Many believe the updated policy is in direct response to the large pushback over the inclusion of Trump, leaving people to share creative ways to hide the president’s image from passes, including stickers and sleeves.

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Along with the suggestions on how to hide Trump’s image, a nonprofit environmental group has filed a lawsuit claiming its design did not comply with legislation that requires public participation in the selection.





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Two killed, six wounded in shooting outside Mormon church in Utah

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Two killed, six wounded in shooting outside Mormon church in Utah


Two people were killed, and at least six were wounded when gunfire erupted outside a funeral at a Mormon church in Utah on Wednesday night, according to authorities and reports.

Eight people were hit by gunfire when shots rang out outside The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Redwood Road in Salt Lake City around 7:30 p.m., Salt Lake City Police Department spokesperson Glen Mills told the Salt Lake City Tribune.

Two people were killed, and six people were injured in the shooting that occurred outside in the church’s parking lot as dozens were attending a funeral service inside.

Of the six wounded, three individuals are in critical condition, the Salt Lake City Police Department posted on X. All of the victims were adults.

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Police stand outside the Salt Lake City church where at least eight people were shot, including two fatally on Jan. 7, 2026. AP
People hug outside the church after the shooting in Salt Lake City, Utah. AP

There were no suspects in custody as of late Wednesday night, and it is not immediately clear if there were multiple gunmen involved. A motive was also unknown.

However, police said they have obtained solid leads in the investigation and are working to locate individuals involved in the shooting.

“We believe this was not a random incident,” Salt Lake City Police Chief Brian Redd told reporters. 

The shooting was not believed to be targeting a religion, Redd clarified. 

Roughly 100 law enforcement vehicles swarmed the area in the aftermath of the gunfire as helicopters flew overhead. 

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The area around the Mormon church remained closed into the evening as authorities urged the public to stay clear of the still active scene.

Funeral attendees walk out of the meetinghouse of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Jan. 7, 2026. AP

“This should never have happened outside a place of worship. This should never have happened outside a celebration of life,” said Mayor Erin Mendenhall.

The Salt Lake City Police Department did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.

The incident remains under investigation.

With Post wires.

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Kevin Love Admits He Didn’t See Jazz Trade Coming

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Kevin Love Admits He Didn’t See Jazz Trade Coming


The Utah Jazz’s experiment to bring in 18-year league veteran Kevin Love thus far into the 2025-26 campaign has been a pretty solid success in the first two-plus months of the season.

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Love has been a positive voice in the locker room as the most tenured NBA veteran on the roster, he’s been vocal about enjoying his time and role with the organization, and for his time on the floor throughout the first 30 or so games of the regular season, he’s nestled into a consistent rotational player as the Jazz’s backup center as Walker Kessler has been out with a shoulder injury.

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But when he first arrived in Utah via a three-team trade from the Miami Heat, packed within the deal that sent John Collins to the LA Clippers, Love didn’t quite know what to expect out of his experience; he didn’t even anticipate being traded to the Jazz in the first place.

“I didn’t know what to expect when I got here, but I’ve been very pleasantly surprised from everything, from ownership, and Ryan Smith to the front office to the coaching staff, players all the way through,” Love said of the Jazz on The Old Man and the Three. “It’s been a blessing in my 18th year to be a part of this team and some place, I mean, you never know where you’re going to end up.”

“I did not expect to be traded but as far as a landing spot goes and just saying, yeah, so many people are saying ‘Oh what if it doesn’t work out? What if it doesn’t work out?’ I’m like ‘What if it does?’, right?And I think just adding value whether I’m playing or not is something that’s given me a lot of happiness and a lot of joy this late in my career. And I think that has allowed me to see a lot of the good and what this team has been able to bring and move forward.”

Kevin Love Settling in Nicely With Utah Jazz

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Love’s value stretches both on and off the floor for the Jazz, which makes sense for why the veteran big man has been loving his time since being on the roster. The 2016 NBA champion was vocal before the season about his desire to be a value add for wherever that may be, including Utah, and he’s been able to carve out just the right role for himself at this point in his career. 

During his 20 games played for the Jazz this season, Love has averaged 7.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, and shooting 41.1% from the field in just over 17 minutes a night when he plays, and has proven he can still be a guy worthy of a few minutes down the rotation to fill out an NBA frontcourt, as he has for the year in Utah so far.

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Dec 15, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Caleb Martin (left) speaks with Utah Jazz forward Kevin Love (right) before the game at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

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It remains to be seen just how long Love’s time in Utah will last. There’s not even a guarantee that the 37-year-old will finish the regular season on the roster, depending on how the next few weeks transpire around the trade deadline and as the buyout market begins to gain some traction. But, for the time that he is in Salt Lake City, he’s made it into a nice home for what’s now the fourth roster he’s been on through nearly two decades in the league.

Be sure to bookmark Utah Jazz On SI and follow @JazzOnSI on X to stay up-to-date on daily Utah Jazz news, interviews, breakdowns and more!



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