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Utah State kicks off the Jerrod Calhoun era with a 55-point victory

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Utah State kicks off the Jerrod Calhoun era with a 55-point victory


LOGAN — Having a couple more days to get acclimated to the elevation in the Beehive State clearly didn’t help Alcorn State. After losing at Utah by 41 points on Monday, the Braves were battered by Utah State Wednesday night at the Spectrum, 101-46.

The 55-point victory was the first at USU for new head coach Jerrod Calhoun, who was hired last spring after seven seasons at Youngstown State.

“I really wasn’t nervous,” Calhoun said of coaching his first official game on Stew Morrill Court. “I told the guys, ‘You’re nervous when you have bad players.’ And I’ve been nervous a lot of years. … But we had a great week of prep, and I really wanted to show our fans the kind of style we’re going to play.

“We’re going to try really, really hard to get stops. We’re going to let guys have freedom. We’re going to shoot 3s. We’re going to use our depth. And we’re going to wear teams down.”

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The Aggies (1-0) definitely did all of those things in the first half. After trailing 10-8 in the first five minutes, the home team reeled off 34 straight points over the next 11:15 to the delight of the crowd of 8,131.

The 34-0 spurt was the longest by a USU team since putting together a 37-0 run over two halves at Idaho in 2006.

“I’ve been doing this for 13 years, and I worked for a Hall of Fame coach in Bob Huggins, who is maybe the best defensive coach of all time in college. And that was as good as I’ve ever seen,” Calhoun declared. “There was a 10-minute stretch there they couldn’t score. And I think that’s because the attention to detail from our team all week was really, really good.”

The standout athlete for Utah State was senior center Aubin Gateretse, who played his first 30 minutes as an Aggie without missing a shot. The transfer from Stetson finished 11 for 11 from the floor and 2 for 2 from the free-throw line on his way to scoring a team-high 24 points.

“He’s been a guy who kind of struggled in our two scrimmages,” Calhoun said of Gateretse. “So, he was a guy who had an attitude this week. He was very determined and did a lot of extra work with Coach (Mantoris) Robinson.”

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Gateretse, who did most of his damage off of lobs from teammates and offensive putbacks, came one made field goal away from tying USU’s all-time shooting record for a game. Mike Santos went 12 for 12 against Idaho State on Jan. 12, 1978.

“It was just so fun,” Gateretse said. “I know that if I do my job of setting screens really hard that my teammates are going to make the right reads because we’ve been working so hard on it. We’re still a new team, but we’ve worked so hard together since the summer, and everyone is locked in and willing to share the ball.”

The Aggies racked up 28 assists on 37 field goals while committing just nine turnovers.

Calhoun played 13 different players, 11 of whom scored at least one basket. Sophomore forward Pavle Stosic was the only player on the roster not to see time, and Calhoun said he is planning to redshirt the transfer from Gonzaga this season.

Graduate guard Ian Martinez and sophomore wing Tucker Anderson each scored 12 points for Utah State, while junior center Isaac Johnson ended up with 11 points and seven rebounds. The Aggies shot 51.4% as a team, including a 12-for-31 performance from 3-point range.

“It was a great game, man,” Gateretse proclaimed. “The team came out ready, which really started with the last week of preparation. Everybody was locked in and bought into the coaching, so we just came out and tried to have fun and execute the game plan.”

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Alcorn State (0-2), which trailed 50-31 at halftime against the Utes before falling 100-59, fared even worse at the Spectrum. The Braves connected on just 5 of 27 field-goal attempts (18.5%) in the first half and trailed 52-14 at intermission.

“We played against a really good basketball team tonight, and in a brutal environment,” ASU head coach Landon Bussie said. “It was a tough game. I think we started the game up 10-8, and the next thing you know the score was 50-12. I was just happy get out of Utah.”

Senior guard Keionte Cornelius (11 points) and sophomore guard Jalyke Gaines-Wyatt (10 points) were the only players to score in double figures for the Braves, who shot 29% for the game and committed 20 turnovers.

Calhoun pointed out that the game was already on USU’s schedule before he was hired to replace Danny Sprinkle, who left for Washington after one extremely successful season at the helm of the Aggies.

“I talked to their coach before the game, and he said one big reason they came to Logan and Utah is because they wanted to play in one of the best environments in college basketball to get his team ready for conference play.

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“… So, the respect factor nationally for the Spectrum, and The HURD, and our season-ticket holders and the environment we create is second-to-none. And it’s why I value this job with such high regard. It really fits me and my family, and I just feel very, very humbled to be the coach here.”

The Aggies, who open the season with four straight home games, will host Charlotte Saturday afternoon.



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911 recordings detail hours leading up to discovery of Utah girl, mother dead in Las Vegas

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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.

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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.

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“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.

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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”

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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.

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“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:

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“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.

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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.

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The investigation remains ongoing.

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Ban on AI glasses in Utah classrooms inches closer to passing

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Ban on AI glasses in Utah classrooms inches closer to passing


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.

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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.

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“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.

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Kalshi sues Utah over efforts to stop prop betting in the state

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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.”

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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.”

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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.



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