Crews recover a body from the Jordan River near the International Peace Gardens, 1100 W. Fremont Ave. in Salt Lake City, on Sunday, Jan. 31, 2021. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
SALT LAKE CITY — A group of kayakers spotted a dead body while floating the Jordan River Sunday afternoon.
The group called police about 1:15 p.m. after seeing the body on the east banks of the river, just west of the International Peace Gardens, which is located at 1100 W. Dalton Ave.
Salt Lake Police Lt. Steve Woolridge said it is too early to tell what happened to the man, whom he identified only as an adult male. A cause of death remains under investigation.
Police, local fire and state lands officials responded to the call. Woolridge said drownings aren’t common in the area.
Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
A crime scene investigator photographs a body and the surrounding area as crews recover a body from the Jordan River near the International Peace Gardens, 1100 W Fremont Ave. in Salt Lake City, on Sunday, Jan. 31, 2021. Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
Crews recover a body from the Jordan River near the International Peace Gardens, 1100 W. Fremont Ave. in Salt Lake City, on Sunday, Jan. 31, 2021.
The Capitol in Salt Lake City is pictured on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020. | Spenser Heaps, Deseret News
LGBTQ advocates call bill ‘misunderstanding of transgender youth health care’
SALT LAKE CITY — A southern Utah lawmaker wants to prohibit doctors from offering any gender reassignment treatment to minors.
“These are young kids ... these are minors that — and I do have a lot of empathy for maybe kids feeling like they’re a male in a female body or vice versa — but these puberty blockers that they take can have permanent effect on their bodies,” said bill sponsor Rep. Rex Shipp, R-Cedar City.
Under HB92, physicians and surgeons would be restricted from performing gender reassignment treatment on those under 18, including internal surgeries and facial feminization or masculinization surgeries. The bill would also prevent doctors from prescribing hormone therapy for minors who are considering transitioning.
Similar bills have been proposed this year in Alabama, Montana and Indiana.
Most states don’t have specific laws guiding transgender care for minors, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
In Utah, current law prohibits genital mutilation of children but does not address gender reassignment for minors, Shipp noted. His bill would make it unprofessional conduct for physicians or surgeons to offer gender reassignment treatment to minors, at the penalty of potentially losing their medical license.
The bill drew early criticism from LGBTQ advocates who called it a “government intrusion.”
“Parents should make decisions about the health care for transgender youth in accordance with evidence-based, medical best practices, which are well-established,” Troy Williams, executive director of Equality Utah, an LGBTQ advocacy group, said in a statement to the Deseret News.
“Guidelines for transgender health have been clearly affirmed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association and many more. Our state leaders should be finding ways to manage the pandemic and pull us together, rather than entertain legislation designed to harm transgender youth,” Williams added.
In a separate news release, Williams said the bill “represents a fundamental misunderstanding of transgender youth health care.”
Shipp said he hopes to help protect kids from making decisions at a young age that could cause permanent damage. A person’s brain also isn’t fully developed until they reach their early 20s, Shipp noted, explaining that those who want to transition should wait until they’re at least 18 to make the decision. In the meantime, children can socially transition, he said.
Shipp said he’s read material that emphasizes the success rate of counseling and therapy to help children with gender dysphoria.
“But the fact of the matter is these drugs like lupron for the puberty blocking, once they start on that for that purpose and they go to the cross-sex hormone, it’s damaging their bodies, you can’t go back and go through puberty once you’ve blocked it,” Shipp said.
Prohibiting treatment of minors with hormone therapy could prove the more controversial part of the bill, as that treatment is accepted by the medical field and recommended for some children as a safe way to begin their transition.
Michelle McOmber, executive director of the Utah Medical Association, declined to comment on the bill, stating she needed to speak to the sponsor first.
The American Academy of Pediatrics says that pubertal suppression can reduce distress and “allow for gender-affirming care.”
“It reduces the need for later surgery because physical changes that are otherwise irreversible (protrusion of the Adam’s apple, male pattern baldness, voice change, breast growth, etc.) are prevented,” according to the academy.
Gonadotrophin-releasing hormones — which the bill would prohibit in minors — can be used in adolescents who experience gender dysphoria to prevent them from developing secondary sex characteristics up to age 16. If the treatment stops, regular puberty will resume, the academy says.
Exemptions in the bill would include those who are born with external biological sex characteristics that are “irresolvably ambiguous,” those who are intersex; those with both ovarian and testicular tissue; and with other related conditions.
SALT LAKE CITY — Mental health days would be excused absences from Utah schools under a bill endorsed by a legislative committee Friday.
The House Education Committee voted unanimously to send HB81 to the House of Representatives for further consideration.
Other states that have made this allowance have experienced a reduction in youth suicide, according to HB81’s sponsor, Rep. Mike Winder, R-West Valley City.
“Here in the state of Utah, where we’re at sixth in the nation for youth suicides, anything we can do to save a life is important, especially in this pandemic where our kids are under pressure unlike ever before,” Winder said.
He said the bill is supported by the Utah chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the Utah School Counselor Association and the Libertas Institute.
Some committee members questioned why a change is needed after state lawmakers added mental illness as an excused absence from school three years ago.
“Some people, many people, have mental illnesses, but not all people. But we all have mental health don’t we, just like we all have physical health. It’s important that we maintain our physical health from hitting the breaking point just like it’s important we maintain our mental health from hitting the breaking point,” Winder said.
Winder’s daughter, Jessica Lee, spoke in support of the bill.
“Sometimes things might happen in life and it all gets bumpy for everyone, where our mental health might decrease and we might need to, you know, take a day to cope and to deal with that in a healthy way,” said Lee, who is a youth advocacy chairwoman for Utah’s NAMI and works at a behavioral health center as a technician.
“We all face failure, rejection. Many have faced death of loved ones or other things that would necessitate this, even if they didn’t have a diagnosed mental illness or a mental health condition.”
In a related matter, the committee also approved HB116, which would do away with a public school requiring students to produce notes from a medical professional when they are absent due to injury or illness, physical or mental.
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Adam Robertson, R-Provo, said such requirements place onerous burdens on families, particularly those that do not have insurance or access to health care providers.
School districts and charter schools have policies on school absences. Some do not require health care provider notes, but Rep. Carol Spackman Moss, D-Holladay, a retired schoolteacher, said notes can help ensure that an ill or injured student gets sufficient time to complete missed schoolwork.
Robertson said HB116 is also a nod to parental rights.
“I think it puts the parental role of giving excused absences enshrined where it should be and it also prevents inadvertently hurting those who are most vulnerable, where this would be a huge financial impact to their families,” Robertson said.
Moss said, unfortunately, “there will always be some that will take advantage of this.”
When she taught high school, students would tell her that their families were leaving the state for vacation and ask, “Can I have the work for the next two weeks?”
That’s a different situation than working to accommodate a student who is ill or injured, she said. “You certainly feel more sympathy and are willing to spend time with a student helping them when they’ve been sick.”
But Moss agreed that such a requirement would be difficult for people who are medically uninsured, do not have a primary health care provider or for working parents.
Rep. Dan Johnson, R-Logan, also a retired educator and administrator, said he did not recall a single instance in his career when a note was required.
Ideally, school secretaries, administrators and teachers cultivate relationships with parents so they know what is going on with students at their school, he said.
“Honestly, I don’t think in 50 years I ever had someone have to bring a note from a doctor because we were way ahead of a note from the doctor,” Johnson said.
Ben Horsley, communications director for the Granite School District, said the bill “codifies existing practice in many school districts to accept that as a valid excuse for absence.”
Hopefully it will bring “normalization to the fact that we all need a little bit of time every once in a while.”
Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, left, drives to the basket as Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell, front right, and center Rudy Gobert defend in the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 31, 2021, in Denver. | David Zalubowski, Associated Press
The Utah Jazz’s 11-game win streak ended on Sunday with a 128-117 loss to the Nuggets in Denver.
The Utah Jazz’s 11-game win streak ended on Sunday with a 128-117 loss to the Nuggets in Denver.
High Notes
Nikola Jokic had 22 points by the end of the first quarter and 33 of his 47 points by halftime. It was clear very early on that the Jazz were not going to be able to stop him or even slow him down much. He was hitting from everywhere and in all ways, just a really impressive performance.
The Nuggets played the best defensive game of any Jazz opponent this season, rotating onto shooters with speed and getting into passing lanes. It’ll be good game tape to go back and watch for the Jazz to look at what the Nuggets were doing to disrupt them so much.
The Jazz’s third quarter was the most balanced and they were able to cut the Nugget’s lead to single digits with more focused defense and scoring across the roster.
“I think we just pretty much just played with more energy on the defensive end. We tried to make it tougher for Jokic, obviously, and for their guards and we got some key stops. On offense we were moving the ball, making the extra pass and guys were making 3s and getting to the line and attacking the basket. I think in the third quarter we just picked up the energy.” — Derrick Favors
Despite the loss there are a couple of good things to point to from the Jazz. They were able to get to the line quite a bit and actually shot well from the free throw line going 33-of-39 compared to the Nuggets 16-of-19.
Bojan Bogdanovic had a second straight game looking more comfortable. He shot the ball well and was aggressive in playing through contact, getting to the line more than any other Jazz player and going 8-of-10 from the charity stripe en route to a 29-point outing.
Low Notes
The Jazz were down 14 at the end of the first, which is not horrible, but they came into the second quarter looking completely out of sorts. Their offense looked broken on multiple possessions and Donovan Mitchell was settling for tough contested 2s more often than the team was looking to drive and kick.
Once the Jazz cut the Nuggets lead in the third quarter they really had a chance to make a game of it, but they fell back off on the defensive end. On the offensive side there wasn’t much of a push. The Jazz’s main rotational players took just 12 shots in the fourth.
Flat Notes
In his first game back after missing two due to the NBA’s concussion protocol, Mitchell had a rough day on the court going just 3-of-12 from the field and finishing with 13 points. He said that he was feeling fine and there weren’t any lingering effects from the concussion and credited Denver’s defense for doing a good job.
The Jazz tried multiple defensive looks on Jokic including Bogdanovic, Royce O’Neale, Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors, but there wasn’t anything that they were doing effectively enough that made much of a difference.
More than anything there was a lack of urgency and effort that was visible from the Jazz on Sunday and that’s the worst part about this loss.
“It’s on us to make sure we come out and make them feel us even more be a little more physical.” — Rudy Gobert
Brigham Young Cougars guard Alex Barcello (13) drives against Pacific Tigers guard Daniss Jenkins (4) at the Marriott Center in Provo on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021. | Spenser Heaps, Deseret News
For stretches during the first half against Pacific, BYU’s stagnant offense was an eyesore. On two separate occasions, the Cougars went about five minutes without scoring. And they made just 18 of 28 free throws, including misses late in the game that could have cost them.
This week, BYU heads back out on the road with games at San Diego (Tuesday) and Portland (Thursday).
For stretches during the first half against Pacific, BYU’s stagnant offense was an eyesore. On two separate occasions, the Cougars went about five minutes without scoring.
They made just 18 of 28 free throws, including misses late in the game that could have cost them. They also gave up 14 turnovers.
During the second half, there were times when BYU couldn’t stop the Tigers from scoring.
But ultimately, the Cougars (14-4, 5-2) made the offensive and defensive plays they needed in order pull out a dramatic victory.
“The perfect way to explain that game is a roller-coaster ride ... That’s the game of basketball,” said guard Brandon Averette, who scored a game-high 24 points, including 5 of 8 from 3-point range. “You have ups and downs but it’s all about how you respond. We responded great as a team. Those are the games you remember and they’re my favorite type of games to play in.”
Guard Alex Barcello finished with 23 points and collected a career-high nine rebounds and added seven assists. He scored 21 of his points after halftime.
“I was proud of our group as a whole,” Barcello said. “We handled the game well and what it brought to us — physicality and down the stretch.”
Knowing that a home loss to Pacific could have severely damaged BYU’s NCAA Tournament resume, Barcello understands what the victory means.
“Every win means a lot to us,” Barcello said. “We had a sense of urgency coming into this game. In the second half, and as the overtimes progressed, you could see our guys were still there, ready to fight and hungry. Our coaches instill that into us every day. Being present in the moment is our main focus.”
Pope was pleased with the way his players filled their roles to produce the outcome.
“We went through our whole lineup and everybody found a way to contribute in different ways,” he said.
Matt Haarms scored 13 points and pulled down eight rebounds, with six of his points coming in the second overtime.
BYU’s three seniors, Haarms, Barcello and Averette, combined for 60 points.
“We’re following their lead and they’re doing a terrific job so far,” Pope said of the seniors.
Richard Harward ended up with eight points and six rebounds. Late in the second half, he scored six straight points for the Cougars on hook shots.
Connor Harding had seven points, hit a pair of 3s, and recorded three steals. And Caleb Lohner grabbed eight rebounds to go along with four points.
By the second overtime, three of Pacific’s big men had fouled out and BYU’s defense clamped down on the Tigers. The Cougars outscored Pacific 20-12 in the second OT.
“We said the same thing coming into every huddle,” Barcello said. “‘We need to stay hungry. Eventually, they’re gonna to break. We’re not gonna to break. We’re too tough and we work too hard to break.’ They’re a talented team. They hit some tough shots down the stretch.”
“They kind of got a little tired and we took it to another level on the defensive end,” Averette said. “We made a few adjustments coming into the second overtime.”
Despite the frustration and adversity, Pope liked the way his team responded.
“We did a good job,” Pope said, “of saying, ‘We are not going to relent.’”
Utah guard Alfonso Plummer (25) in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021, in Boulder, Colo. Utah posted a come-from-behind, 77-74 victory. | David Zalubowski, Associated Press
Improbable victory on CU’s home floor moved Utah into the top 100 of the NET rankings, gave Utes momentum for this week’s games against Arizona schools
Utah’s thrilling 77-74 come-from-way-behind win over Colorado in Boulder on Saturday afternoon proved what the Utes’ coaches and players have been saying for more than a month now.
When this team is dialed in, it can hang with almost any team in the country. When it loses focus, it is susceptible to puzzling losses, especially in Pac-12 games.
Defense has been Utah’s constant this season; When the Utes are sharing the ball, cutting down on turnovers and keeping opponents off the offensive glass, like they did the last half of the second half Saturday, they are dangerous.
After the victory, Utes coach Larry Kyrstkowiak purposefully positioned himself for a Zoom meeting with reporters in front of the locker of a Colorado women’s volleyball player by the name of Zoe Neverdowski.
His tongue-in-cheek message: there was never a doubt that Utah was going to pull out the game.
“I think SportsCenter could have some fun with that,” said the coach who is also of Polish descent, referring to ESPN’s nightly sports wrap-up show.
It was a feel-good win and “well-deserved” for the Utes, who “have been through an awful lot,” Krystkowiak said, while also mentioning that almost every team in the country has been on a COVID-19 roller-coaster ride the past six months.
The bounce-back win after last Sunday’s deflating 83-79 loss at Washington was just one of several positive developments for Utah (7-7, 4-6 Pac-12) over the weekend.
The first good news came Friday, when it was announced that Utah wouldn’t have to travel to Tempe, Arizona, on Tuesday for a makeup game with Arizona State. The Utes won’t have to play another of those four-games-in-eight-days scenarios after all.
Instead, they will play the Sun Devils on “another mutually agreeable date,” most likely in the week leading up to the Pac-12 Tournament, scheduled to begin March 10 in Las Vegas. Utah’s next game is Thursday vs. Arizona at the Huntsman Center (5 p.m., FS1).
“Well, I don’t know that there is a place to squeeze it in (before the first week of March), if you look at our schedule after Thursday,” Krystkowiak said. “There is quite a gap between our last game and the Pac-12 Tournament. I am confident we will be able to fit it in, and hopefully we can get all 20 (games) in before that.”
Speaking of the conference tournaments, several college basketball coaches around the country have questioned whether they should be played this year, due to the pandemic. A recent survey conducted by CBS Sports showed that of 41 head coaches who were polled, 27% said conference tournaments should not be held this year.
No Pac-12 Tournament would not be good for Utah, which will not go to the Big Dance if it does not win its conference tournament because the Utes are not even close to the bubble. The big win over Colorado bumped Utah’s NET ranking from 107 to 97 and improved Utah’s Quad 1 record to 1-4, but the Pac-12 is quite mediocre this season and no other opportunities for Quad 1 wins currently exist.
More good news for the Utes came Saturday night when Pac-12 reporter Jon Wilner of the Mercury News reported that during a meeting last week the Pac-12’s athletic directors “showed no interest in canceling” the tournament.
So there is a path to the NCAA Tournament for the Utes, arguably the best .500 team in the country.
Beating Colorado, whose NET ranking fell from 17 to 20 with the upset loss on its home floor, “is a good start for us to keep winning,” said Utah senior guard Alfonso Plummer. “We beat a top-five team in the Pac-12. It was a rally important win today. We are happy.”
Plummer was unquestionably the star of the game, having scored all 23 of his points in the second half when the Utes overcame a 19-point deficit, but other players had their moments that kept Utah from being swept by the Buffs.
For instance, Riley Battin came off the bench to score nine points, while freshman Pelle Larsson put the clamps on CU point guard McKinley Wright, a Pac-12 Player of the Year candidate.
“Well, there were a lot of guys that stepped up,” Krystkowiak said. “I thought Miki (Jantunen) a light bulb kinda flipped on with him.”
Jantunen had nine points, six rebounds and two big assists.
“We got a little bit of momentum, and you felt that magic of what it is like to have the ball popping,” Krystkowiak said. “And when it coincides with shots going in, that gave us an awful lot of confidence.”
Pam Henderson looks over her belongings as she begins moving out of the apartment she shared with her husband in South Salt Lake on Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021. The Hendersons were evicted from their apartment. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
Low-income tenants allege retaliation for reporting pests and other problems
SALT LAKE CITY — Doug Henderson knows his odds of surviving the coronavirus are slim.
On Jan. 7, three days away from a court-ordered deadline to move out of his South Salt Lake apartment, he wanted to be sure a judge knew it, too. Henderson has asthma, diabetes and a chronic lung disease, but he believes that being evicted poses the most immediate threat to his health.
Henderson emailed Salt Lake City’s 3rd District Court, filing a motion for more time to find a new apartment that would accept vouchers from Section 8, the federal program for low-income, disabled and older people. A supporting note from his doctor said if forced to leave, Henderson’s “medical health and even his life are at risk.”
But a judge had already granted several extensions and issued a court order Jan. 11 directing Henderson and his wife, Pam Henderson, to leave the Townhomes at Mountain Ridge immediately.
The pandemic has worsened the already difficult reality for low-income renters facing eviction and scrambling to find a new place to stay in a housing crunch.
A federal moratorium allows tenants to remain in their homes if they can’t cover rent because they lost work in the pandemic or their out-of-pocket medical expenses have soared. Yet other Utah renters, including some with health risks like Henderson, don’t qualify for the protection. The state allowed its own six-week moratorium to expire in May.
“I’m the poster child for not making it on COVID,” said Henderson, 60. “And what they’re doing right now is cruel.”
He collects a small Social Security check each month, and Pam Henderson, 54, is his full-time caregiver. They are now staying in a hotel but worry about potential exposure to the coronavirus there, and where they will stay next. Their share of the rent had been $111.
Did complaints lead to eviction fight?
The Hendersons allege the property owners sued to evict them in retaliation after the Housing Authority of Salt Lake City, which administers their Section 8 vouchers, withheld monthly payments due to failed inspections at the home in 2019.
The agency does so if a property owner misses deadlines to fix the problems, and paused payments for three months last year as the Hendersons dealt with cockroaches, mice and a soggy downstairs bathroom ceiling due to a leak.
The complex owners alleged in court filings that the couple fell $2,300 behind on rent and fees, then later missed payments as the court case dragged on. But the Hendersons have maintained that number was too high and their efforts to get an accurate accounting of the money they owed were unsuccessful. The couple countersued, but courts don’t review such claims until after deciding how long tenants get to stay in the home.
The couple said they would have left if they could. They applied to other complexes and disclosed their eviction history, they said. Over the summer, one apartment building signed a contract with the federal housing program and directed the couple to put utilities in their name, only to deny them a lease at the final stage.
Physician King Udall wrote in his letter to the court that his patient “is literally at risk of life-threatening consequences of being forcefully removed from a property that wants him to leave but will not allow him to when he finds a new property to move to.”
But remaining in the South Salt Lake apartment also proved hazardous for Henderson, who was mostly bedridden “due to the dangerous layout of the property and every trip down the stairs is a major fall risk,” the doctor wrote.
Henderson uses a power wheelchair to move about, but a ramp at the door was too steep and narrow for the device. On Sept. 9, 2018, his physical therapist saw the chair tip and nearly force Henderson to fall, she wrote in a letter to the apartment complex.
But the company informed the Hendersons in a letter they shared with the Deseret News that the property is exempt from a federal law requiring reasonable accommodations for those with disabilities.
“They get you to the point where you just give up. You feel helpless,” Doug Henderson said in an interview last year. “You complain and they just wear you down to where you just curl up in a ball like an armadillo so they don’t hurt you anymore.”
A constable delivered a copy of the court’s order on Jan. 12 as the Hendersons sorted the last of their belongings. A volunteer group of Latter-day Saint missionaries helped load a moving truck full of furniture.
Attorney Kirk A. Cullimore, owner of the law firm representing the property company, declined to speak about the case in detail. By Cullimore’s own estimate, his attorneys file the majority of evictions in the state — about 70%.
“I am not sure that rehashing that situation is either fruitful or helpful to any of the parties,” Cullimore wrote in an email, referring to the Hendersons’ eviction. “The landlord worked with the tenant and his church to assist in the final move. It was an unfortunate situation for all parties with no ‘winner.’”
He said there are many property owners who have provided significant help to tenants, sometimes covering their bills, helping thousands apply to rent relief programs and applying on their behalf “at no cost to the tenants but a significant cost to the landlords.”
“There is no other industry that has been called upon during this pandemic to forgo financial gain while still being obligated to pay for that opportunity,” Cullimore said.
Reaching a deal, and then pandemic hits
A year ago, the Hendersons struck a deal with their property management company, with the help of a tenant’s rights attorney working at no cost.
The lawyer secured them an extra month and a half in their South Salt Lake apartment on the condition they move out by March 18 and cut a $1,600 check within two weeks. The couple sold their car to cover the cost.
“I don’t think we actually owe it, but it was either do that, or take a chance of the judge saying, ‘move,’” Pam Henderson said. “I have broken down and cried over this stuff.”
The pair searched for a new home but couldn’t manage to lock in to a new lease as the pandemic raged. Third District Judge Su Chon granted several extensions, over the objections of a lawyer representing Next Wave Property Management.
Attorney David Todd, with the Law Offices of Kirk A. Cullimore, expressed growing frustration on behalf of the owners in July, urging Chon to grant an order turning over possession of the apartment to the company at a July court hearing.
But Chon found the pandemic amounted to extenuating circumstance. She implored the couple to keep looking for housing.
At that time, Utah was reporting an average of 544 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 per day, with a 9.5% positive test rate. By Jan. 12, the day the couple moved out, the daily average was 2,946, with 29.3% of tests coming back positive.
Next Wave, the California-based company that owns the couple’s apartment, bought the complex roughly two years ago, but the buildings were in worse condition than it originally believed, according to Jordan Fisher, principal investor with Next Wave.
“They were really problems that we inherited. We try to be good owners. Our job is to provide them a safe, comfortable place to live,” Fisher told the Deseret News last year. “I think we’ve made a lot of progress, but it takes time. And you know, we’re doing our part to make it livable. We need people to do their job and pay the rent.”
He said his business doesn’t make money when apartments turn over, and the complex, home to many tenants that receive housing assistance, tries to work with them when they’re short on cash. Fisher didn’t respond to recent messages seeking comment.
The Section 8 program covered the majority of the couple’s rent, also called Housing Choice. The Hendersons were among more 10,934 households in the state receiving the vouchers, for a total of 23,908 people, said U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development spokeswoman Shantae Goodloe.
Helping hand set up for landlords
In 2017, at the urging of the Utah Apartment Association, state lawmakers considered a proposal to take away a legal protection shielding those renters from discrimination in Utah, one of a minority of states to do so. Many of the state’s landlords saw the program’s rules as cumbersome and wanted to be able to opt out of renting to those tenants, said Paul Smith, the association’s executive director.
But after housing advocates opposed the move, the Legislature instead created a $500,000 fund available to landlords who rent to those in the federal program, allowing them to recoup expenses including attorney fees if the tenants cause damage or break a lease.
“It’s been a wonderful tool for us to encourage landlords that otherwise wouldn’t take these programs, to take them,” Smith said.
In July, at the urging of Sen. Kirk Cullimore Jr., a Republican state lawmaker from Sandy and an attorney with the eviction law firm led by his father, the state set aside another $500,000 for the fund.
June Hiatt, with Utah Renters Together, said the taxpayer-funded grants Cullimore had a role in extending bolstered his business and illustrate a conflict of interest.
She said the money could be better used to offer direct help to tenants like case management for those Section 8 tenants struggling with mental health and addiction.
“Unfortunately that funding is just going to further incentivize the eviction of Section 8 tenants who need the most housing support in our state,” Hiatt said.
“We are seeing this funding go from taxpayer dollars into a fund that’s supposed to support, promote, develop and enhance affordable housing opportunities in our state,” Hiatt said.
Cullimore noted the creation of the fund predated his run for Legislature.
“This was a program supported and proposed as a compromise,” with housing advocates he said, and it expands the availability of rental housing. “Many landlords, prior to this, were just saying, ‘Yeah, I’m not going to deal with Section 8.’”
Tenant rights attorney Marty Blaustein, who’s representing the Hendersons, said the program caught him by surprise.
If landlords can recoup those expenses, he argued at a July 27 court hearing, there would be no harm in allowing the couple to remain there until they can find a new apartment.
“That has to be part of the calculation to be kicking this very disabled man out,” Blaustein said. “I think (Todd) is dealing from the bottom of the deck, your honor.”
Todd countered he had not done anything improper. He said the fund was known among attorneys who work in debt collection, and he noted in court documents the fund helped cover costs associated with a prior eviction case against the Hendersons.
Todd emphasized that landlords can’t tap into the money until a judge awards damages, which hasn’t happened in the case yet.
“There’s many, many people that have been aware of this,” Todd said. “And it has nothing to do with this case.”
He unsuccessfully sought recusal of the judge, saying she had demonstrated bias in allowing the couple to stay in the apartment after they had agreed to move in March, but 3rd District Associate Presiding Judge Laura Scott declined to take Chon off the case, writing in an August order that the allegations didn’t support conflict of interest or bias.
“Rather, plaintiff simply disagrees with Judge Chon’s decisions,” Scott wrote. Chon appeared to be trying to strike a balance between the property owner’s legitimate interest in evicting tenants who haven’t complied with a lease against Doug Henderson’s health problems.
The timeline for eviction can be fast
In most civil proceedings in Utah, a person has three weeks to file paperwork in response. In eviction cases, a tenant has three business days after receiving a summons from the property owner. A person can find themselves out of a home as quick as in 10 days.
Overall, Utah courts adjudicated nearly 4,700 eviction cases in 2020, compared to about 6,300 a year earlier, court data shows. While lawyers represented just 9% of tenants last year, up from 5% a year earlier, landlords had much greater legal representation, at 92%.
Those representing renters say some cases don’t meet legal standards for an eviction, but without legal know-how, everyday people likely won’t persuade a judge. With counsel, others could work out a payment plan or raise a defense that code violations justify nonpayment.
Property owners and attorneys working on their behalf told the Deseret News the numbers aren’t alarming. A complicated case like the Hendersons, they said, and a judge’s order typically is their last resort after exhausting all other attempts to work with tenants.
Hiatt, with Utah Renters Together, said it’s not uncommon for Section 8 tenants to become tangled in a web of state and federal requirements. But they typically don’t have the money or time to challenge the eviction cases that may follow under Utah’s quick timeline.
“The people who go to the housing authority for the most help often become the people dealing with the most complex housing problems, because they’re matching Utah state law with landlord requirements — and the fact that the landlord has basically all the power — with the administrative rules the housing authorities are bound to,” Hiatt said. “And now you have a tenant caught in the middle just trying to find a place they can afford to sleep at night.”
Dixie State University in St. George is pictured on Sunday, Oct.11, 2020. In the background is the Jeffrey R. Holland Centennial Commons. | Ravell Call, Deseret News
It is time to move into a newer, brighter future and change the Dixie name.
The Dixie name has been questioned for several years, and it is becoming increasingly apparent that the name is affecting students. As the student executive council, we love our university and are extremely proud to be attending this school. In order for students to be successful in their current and future endeavors, the name of our institution needs to change. The passing of the bill during this legislative session will be crucial for Dixie State University and its students.
One example comes from a former Trailblazer:
“As a 2020 graduate, I have been asked in each of my seven post-grad interviews, ‘Where is Dixie?’ I’ve worked for three companies: SAIC (on an Air Force contract), eBay and most recently Amazon. All are companies with primary hiring managers in Utah, and every single time I interviewed for these positions, the topic as to ‘where Dixie actually was’ came up. While thus far I have not been turned down from any place I’ve interviewed, there is a big question mark over the places that I simply sent a resume into and never heard back from.
“My first day at each of these jobs has been explaining the Dixie name as quickly as possible and only getting neutral or negative responses to the name of the university. A common response I’ve heard about the school’s name is, ‘it’s weird that they would pick a name like that.’ The only time I’ve not had to explain the school name thus far has been during my graduate program at University of Utah, where my adviser wondered out loud on a Zoom call when DSU would change its name.
“In consideration of these experiences, for at least my own sake, I am in favor of the name change as the name at the very best evokes confusion and at the worst, makes me wonder what jobs I’ve been disqualified from by a name with poor connotations.”
Sadly, this is just one of many experiences that demonstrates how the institution’s name has affected our students. This is something that cannot be ignored, and as the university’s student representatives, it is our mission to be inclusive and make sure everyone is welcome.
After educating ourselves on the impacts of the name and formulating our own opinions on the matter, we each feel that there is no question that this recommendation is in the best interest of the students and university moving forward. We, as an executive council, made a unanimous decision to recommend a change of the Dixie name. Although we accept and respect that people have different attitudes, values and beliefs than ours, we still find it imperative that everyone understand the effects of the name Dixie.
To ensure that our fellow students understand the impacts of the Dixie name, we held a student forum where Cicero Group presented the data it collected through interviews and surveys. DSU’s Institute of Politics also held a community forum with panelists representing students, community members and administration. Both events were held with the goal of bringing everyone together to come to a similar understanding. Unfortunately, this goal was not met at these meetings.
The executive council, along with several other students on campus, met with our local legislators to discuss how important this is, and how the name has impacted past, current and future students. As students, we are the university’s most important stakeholders, and the reason that our institution carries on. This is why we felt it necessary to organize this discussion with the legislators. Although we greatly appreciate the legislators taking time to meet with us, we were disappointed by many of their stances at the end of the meeting, and fear our experiences and feelings may have fallen on deaf ears. The name change is not yet official, as the recommendation is currently in the hands of our state legislators. After meeting with them, we feel underrepresented by our local legislators and are concerned by their lack of support.
We feel as though the name should be consistent with the goals and mission of the institution. Dixie State wants every student to have equal opportunities. However, as we move forward to becoming an open, inclusive, comprehensive, polytechnic university, this name may prevent some students from having equal opportunities.
The word Dixie has a national meaning that ties it to the South and the confederacy, which we recognize is vastly different from the local understanding of the term. We understand and value the history of DSU and St. George, and will continue to fight to preserve it. Our heritage is important to us, but the future of the students should not be jeopardized by the university’s name.
We cannot and should not wait for every community member to be an advocate for the name change, as this is an issue that is affecting students here and now. Although, we will continue to help them understand why the name change recommendation is necessary.
We are the constituents impacted by the name; with that, we hope our legislators consider past, current, and prospective students’ success when they cast their vote this legislative session. It is time to move into a newer, brighter future and change the Dixie name.
Penny Mills is the student body president and Cory O’Bray is the vice president of marketing on Dixie State University’s Student Executive Council. Other members of the council contributed to this op-ed: Riley Randall, vice president of academics; Kodi Jo McKinlay, vice president of clubs and organizations; Oliver Martinez, vice president of student life; and Abigail Scherzinger, chief of staff.
Maile O’Keefe performs her performs her beam routine as Utah and Washington compete in an NCAA gymnastics match at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021. #4 Utah won 197.475 to 193.300. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
The Red Rocks defeated the Huskies 197.475 to 193.500 to improve to 5-1 on the season, 2-0 in the Pac-12
Following Utah’s victory over Arizona last weekend, sophomore Maile O’Keefe was not even a little bit shy about it. As good as the Red Rocks were against the GymCats — Utah scored its first 197 of the season in the win — they knew they could be better.
“We are really happy because this was the highest team score of the season, though obviously not our best,” O’Keefe had said. “It is a good step.”
Saturday night at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City, with a smattering of family and friends in attendance, Utah gymnastics took an even better step.
Utah defeated Washington 197.475 to 193.300, improving to 5-1 on the year and 2-0 in the Pac-12. The Red Rocks dominated from start to finish in what was their best and most complete outing of the season.
It also happened to be the best score by any team in the country this season not named Florida.
“Another big step for the program,” Utah head coach Tom Farden said. “We thought that there were some big shining moments.”
None were bigger than the perfect 10 scored by O’Keefe on balance beam, the first perfect score of her career. O’Keefe also won the all-around and has quickly become Utah’s most valuable gymnast in only her second season.
She wasn’t alone on Saturday, though. There were standout performances aplenty. Senior Sydney Soloski won floor for the third consecutive week thanks to a career-high 9.975. Cristal Isa claimed the uneven bars title with a 9.925, while Alexia Burch scored a season-high 9.925 on vault to win that event.
Other Red Rocks, such as Lucy Stanhope and Abby Paulson, set or matched their career-highs.
It was just that kind of night for Utah.
“It was another strong performance,” Farden said.
Defining moment
This one is about as self-explanatory as they come.
Perfect routines that are rewarded with a perfect score are a rarity in college gymnastics. Last season, only two Red Rocks — Paulson and Kim Tessen — managed to earn a perfect 10. The year before, only Makenna Merrell-Giles and MyKayla Skinner did it.
Perfect 10s just don’t happen all that often, so when they do, they outshine just about everything else.
That was the case with O’Keefe’s beam routine. Utah didn’t need perfection from its sophomore star, but she obliged anyway with the best routine of her career, both in terms of the execution of her skills, which are about as difficult as are found in collegiate gymnastics, and in her performance.
IT'S A 10.0 ON BEAM FOR MAILE What a routine by our sophomore!!
“I would argue (it was my best routine ever) because my performance quality was a lot better throughout my dance,” O’Keefe said. “It was little things like looking at the judges, smiling, just being a tad bit more confident.”
Farden added aggressive to that list, something he believed his entire beam lineup showed after senior Emilie LeBlanc fell in the leadoff position.
“I didn’t see any tentativeness,” he said. “We couldn’t be prouder with how aggressive and determined (they were) after a setback. There is a lot of self-satisfaction that our athletes are performing at this level.”
Area for improvement
In a meet in which Utah finished with a score that was better than what any other team in the country has managed this season, save for No. 1-ranked Florida, it might feel a little callous to focus on the need to improve.
But, as good as the Red Rocks were, there is room to be even better. Specifically, it is the middle of the bars and floor lineups that could use some work.
Both rotations began with brilliant performances by Paulson (more on her in a bit), who scored a career-high 9.85 on bars and career-high 9.90 on floor. Immediately afterward, though, Utah got worse, not better, which is the opposite of how lineups are supposed to work.
Abby getting us going on bars with a 9.85 in the leadoff!
Ideally, rotations get stronger as they go, with scores rising, not falling. And yet, after Paulson’s routines, the Red Rocks took multiple steps back on both events before the gymnasts in the latter part of the rotations turned things around.
(You could argue a similar thing happened on beam too, though an event score of 49.575 kind of eliminates any room for critique).
Momentum is of incredible importance in a meet, particularly when a team is trying for even higher scores, and multiple times Saturday night Utah threw it away.
“It does hinge on those interior lineup athletes to keep that momentum going,” Farden said. “That is something that is learned.”
Lineups are still in flux, but with February just around the corner, there is an expectation that they will become more solidified. That could — the Red Rocks hope should — have a positive effect on the middle of lineups.
“There are still opportunities for athletes,” Farden said, “and we have to do a better job on some of those interior athletes.”
Area for excitement
Utah’s beam team is back.
Last season, the Red Rocks were one of the nation’s best teams on beam, No. 2 to be exact. The lineup of LeBlanc, Burch, Adrienne Randall, Isa, O’Keefe and Paulson was as deadly as they come.
After all, it was Utah’s beamers that propelled the team to road wins over rival UCLA and later Washington in the meet that determined the inaugural Pac-12 regular season championship.
Through the first three meets of this season, however, Utah’s excellence on beam was lacking. Against Oklahoma, the Red Rocks all but collapsed on the event.
Against the Huskies, though, Utah finally looked like itself on beam, with five athletes scoring a 9.85 or better, led by O’Keefe’s perfect 10 and a 9.95 from Paulson.
Lexi comes back after a fall in the leadoff to post a season-high 9.90
“Wow, that was incredible,” Farden said. “Emilie had a little mistake tonight, an uncharacteristic one, but then the next five... To see Maile get a perfect 10 and then Abby have one judge give her a 10, that was really great.”
As great as Utah was on beam — the 49.575 was the second-highest score on beam by any team this season — Paulson’s overall performance might have been even better, or at least more important.
Through the first three weeks of the season, Paulson hadn’t looked like herself. An All-American on beam, she was expected to be one of Utah’s best gymnasts this year, but prior to Saturday, she hadn’t been. Beam is her strongest event, and in back-to-back weeks, she’d struggled.
We approve of this slow-mo Abby scores a 9.90 on floor to lead us off!
That changed against Washington, as Paulson was at her best on every one of her three events.
It was a long time coming and a much needed change for the Red Rocks.
“She did an incredible job,” Farden said. “Abby was really determined tonight. The chip on her shoulder was a little bit bigger and she was aggressive and determined. Thats the Abby that we need to have every weekend.”
A photovoltaic solar panel installation north of Milford, Beaver County, is pictured on Friday, Jan. 15, 2021. Environmental researchers note there are few incentives to recycle solar panels, as the cost of recovering the materials outweighs the costs of extracting what can be recycled. | Spenser Heaps, Deseret News
What happens to old solar panels, windmills and high tech batteries?
Wind farms and massive arrays of solar panels are cropping up across public and private landscapes both in the United States and abroad as users increasingly turn to “green energy” as their preferred flavor of electricity.
President Joe Biden, in fact, has directed the Interior Department to identify suitable places to host 20 gigawatts of new energy from sun, wind or geothermal resources by 2024 as part of a sweeping effort to move away from a carbon-based economy and electrical grid.
But how green is green?
Although countries are feverishly looking to install wind and solar farms to wean themselves off carbon-based, or so-called “dirty” energy, few countries, operators and the industry itself have yet to fully tackle the long-term consequences of how to dispose of these systems, which have their own environmental hazards like toxic metals, oil, fiberglass and other material.
A briefing paper released by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency predicts these startling global numbers for countries by 2050 just for solar waste:
United States, 10 million tons.
Germany, 3 million tons.
China, 20 million tons.
Japan, 7.5 million tons.
India, 7.5 million tons.
Solar arrays have a life cycle of about 30 years, but the rapid adoption of solar in the United States and elsewhere has the problem of disposal creeping up in the rearview mirror — faster rather than later.
Green waste growth
In 2019, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, the United States surpassed 2 million solar installations, just three years after it hit the milestone of 1 million installations.
The paper points out that the growth of solar waste is already straining recycling and disposal capabilities, with some panels improperly ending up in municipal landfills or stacking up in warehouses while the wait continues for more inexpensive routes to recycling.
Research underscores there are few incentives to recycle solar panels, as the cost of recovering the materials outweighs the costs of extracting what can be recycled — even without adding in transportation expenses.
The issue foreshadows the potential for the creation of a new class of hazardous waste sites under EPA Superfund designations as clean energy operators walk away from a large volume of materials that contaminate the soil and groundwater.
“It is foreseeable that the same kind of practices could occur with respect to (solar) panels in the absence of very effective programs for the collecting and recycling of PV panels available where PV panels are used,” the paper said.
The problem is not limited to large-scale solar utility farms but also to individual households and businesses that over the years have opted to install rooftop solar panels.
“More homeowners are installing solar panels as they have become cheaper, but those modules have less potential for recycling and recovery of materials due to their smaller size and lower number of panels versus commercial installation,” the paper noted.
The disposal of hazardous waste is regulated and monitored under Utah law, and landfill operators are trained on what material to look for that poses potential threats to the environment, said Brian Speer, solid waste manager for the Utah Department of Environmental Quality.
“Certainly these wastes are on our radar, but we are currently not seeing a demand to dispose of these wastes in any significant quantity,” he said.
That specter of demand is just a couple decades away as some of the early photovoltaic modules reach their end of life and homeowners, businesses and utility-scale operators face the prospect of safe disposal.
Speer said he is hopeful that the research being done by the U.S. Department of Energy and the EPA will provide an environmentally safe pathway for proper disposal.
“The capacity issue is one we hope is answered before the need arrives,” he said.
Kate Bowman, Utah Clean Energy’s renewable energy program manager, said there needs to be more research on how to safely recycle high-value materials such as cobalt and lithium.
The research, she added, will help address the waste problem.
Cost hiccups
The solar industry is looking to use fewer precious metals and other elements in the manufacturing process, decreasing the amount of silver in panels by 70% since 2010.
While using less silver is economically attractive up front and less labor intensive, it makes recycling the solar panels less attractive. The cost decrease in the panels themselves has the potential to backfire, the paper warns, and some of these newer panels are more fragile and likely to break, hastening the need for their disposal.
The report notes that “not much has been done in the United States to address the PV waste issue,” and most novel policies in this arena are emerging from Europe.
In 2017, the state of Washington became the first in the nation to require recycling for these systems and to mandate a “take back” program for manufacturers at no cost to the homeowner. Utah, at this point, does not have such a mandate and it remains to be seen how effective the law will be. The EPA notes that such a law still does not address issue of where the waste winds up.
Spenser Heaps, Deseret News
Wind turbines that are part of the Milford Wind Corridor Project north of Milford, Beaver County, are pictured on Friday, Jan. 15, 2021. As turbines or other “green energy” products such as solar panels wear out, they are creating a new class of hazardous waste that must be dealt with.
Tilting at windmills
Wind power also is taking off as a clean energy resource, but the EPA notes that windmills are the least energy producing and most physically difficult renewable energy waste stream to address.
The sheer size of the windmills and the difficulty of disposing of them at recycling stations led the agency to conclude that each new wind farm is a “towering promise of future wreckage.”
While there is a market for second-hand windmills in Eastern Europe, Asia and Latin America, the tactic of shifting used windmill components to other countries simply delays the waste disposal problem and puts it on the shoulders of countries less equipped to deal with the challenge, it noted.
Like coal mining or other natural resource extraction, certain entities in Utah and elsewhere have addressed the afterlife issues of wind and solar farms by requiring environmental remediation or the posting of a reclamation bond to ensure proper cleanup and disposal.
“This is something we have thought a lot about,” said Keli Beard, general counsel with the Utah School and Institutional Trust Land Administration.
The first wind project in Utah came online in Milford in 2009 and eventually expanded to a 306-megawatt facility in Beaver County.
Nine of the windmills are on school trust lands, with each of them accompanied by a reclamation bond required by the agency, Beard said.
For any of the renewable energy projects located on school trust lands, Beard said there is a requirement that the reclamation plan be conducted by an independent engineer to assure it appropriately repairs the landscape.
The contractural arrangement provides for operating agreements that can be extended over the life of the project, which Beard says gives them as the landowner a way to invoke new requirements as disposal technology advances.
“Often in that operations period there is an option to renew or extend the agreement,” she said. “We are concerned that at the end of life of these projects, the cost of recycling and removing them will be far more than the value of what is left on the land.”
Beaver County enacted environmental assessment and disposal requirements for solar farms within its boundaries.
Kyle Blackner, zoning administrator, said when a project is decommissioned the plant’s components and associated infrastructure would have to be removed to a depth of 36 inches from the site.
“Milford Solar (or the current owner) would salvage economically recoverable materials, and unsalvageable materials would be recycled/disposed of at a location authorized by Beaver County.”
The Bureau of Land Management, too, requires bonds sufficient to reclaim the land to its original state. But these reclamation requirements still don’t address the looming problem of what happens to these materials at disposal, and they don’t guarantee the operator won’t simply forfeit the bond and walk away regardless.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
An electric vehicle is charged at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2019. Concern is rising over what to do with “green energy” equipment — such as lithium ion batteries, solar panels and wind turbines — as they reach the end of their productivity lifespans and cannot be recycled.
Electric vehicles bring own challenges
As state fleets and the general public increasingly embrace electric vehicles, that “clean” move comes with its own environmental challenges.
The value of the materials recycled from lithium ion batteries is only about a third of the cost of the recycling operation — and the expense of extracting old lithium is about five times the cost of mining for lithium, according to the Institute for Energy Research.
There is some innovation playing out, however, with Japan’s Nissan repurposing batteries to power streetlights. In the United States, General Motors is backing up its data center in Michigan with used Chevy Volt batteries.
The EPA notes, however, that these sort of “adaptive reuses” still only delay the time for final disposal of the batteries and the need to deal with materials in the batteries that can cause fires or leach hazardous chemicals.
On the wind power front, GE announced last year it had reached a multiyear agreement with Veolia North America to launch the United States’ first wind blade recycling program, according to an article in Utility Dive.
Nearly 90 % of the blade material, consisting of fiberglass, would be repurposed for cement production, cutting carbon dioxide emissions from that source by 27%.
With the release of its paper, the EPA is calling on researchers, states, industry and other federal agencies to ensure green waste is sustainable from end to end and that gaps in renewable energy waste management are addressed.
“While consumers may purchase renewable energy or renewable energy-based products with good intentions, that does not prevent the unintended adverse environmental consequences of these products,” it said.
Spenser Heaps, Deseret News
A photovoltaic solar panel installation north of Milford, Beaver County, is pictured on Friday, Jan. 15, 2021. As solar panels or other “green energy” products such as wind turbines wear out, they are creating a new class of hazardous waste that must be dealt with.
Brigham Young Cougars head coach Mark Pope works the sideline during the game against the Pacific Tigers at the Marriott Center in Provo on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021. | Spenser Heaps, Deseret News
PROVO — Mark Pope’s 50th game as BYU’s head coach was a memorable one for many reasons.
In case you were wondering, the Cougars’ thrilling 95-87 double-overtime win over Pacific Saturday at the Marriott Center wasn’t elaborately orchestrated to commemorate the milestone moment.
“I’m always just trying to find a way for it to not be my last game as coach,” Pope joked. “If I can get through it and not have it be my last game, I’m super proud of that.”
Not only was it BYU’s first overtime game at home under Pope, but the Cougars were pressed into double OT before grinding out a hardscrabble win against a scrappy bunch of Tigers.
Seniors Alex Barcello, Brandon Averette and Matt Haarms combined to score 60 points. They each made huge plays down the stretch to lead BYU to victory.
And the Cougars were able to avoid its first losing streak with Pope as the head coach. They have never lost back-to-back games since he became the head coach in April of 2019.
Pope has amassed a 38-12 overall record for the Cougars.
“The game was so incredibly awesome because we won. I’m so happy about that. Fifty games — we’ve been together for a long time,” Pope said. “It seems like a lot longer than a year-and-a-half, doesn’t it? Fifty in the books, guys. It’s fun to win.”
Brigham Young Cougars players celebrate their win over Pacific Tigers in double overtime at the Marriott Center in Provo on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021. | Spenser Heaps, Deseret News
PROVO — For quite a while Saturday afternoon, and into the early evening for that matter, the tension was palpable in the nearly empty Marriott Center as BYU’s NCAA Tournament hopes precariously hung in the balance.
A loss to Pacific, at home, would have been double trouble for the Cougars, who desperately needed a win over a Tigers team that entered the day ranked No. 139 in the NCAA’s NET rankings. BYU, No. 37 in the rankings, was trying to bounce back after a disappointing loss at Pepperdine on Wednesday.
In the end, the Cougars outlasted Pacific 95-87 in double overtime.
“On not our best night, the guys gutted it out,” said coach Mark Pope. “It’s the identity of our team.”
Yes, this matchup with the Tigers was much tougher than anyone expected — 48 minutes of white-knuckle craziness.
Overcoming missed free throws, times when they couldn’t throw the ball into the Pacific Ocean from the beach, defensive liabilities, as well as other sundry struggles, the Cougars survived against Pacific.
Fortunately for BYU (14-4, 5-2), senior guards Alex Barcello and Brandon Averette carried their team on their backs when their season was teetering on the brink.
Barcello scored 23 points, grabbed a career-high nine rebounds and dished out seven assists in 44 minutes while Averette had a game-high 24 points and five assists in 42 minutes.
“Coming off of a loss, I wanted to do whatever I could to help my guys get the win,” Barcello said. “We kept telling ourselves, ‘We’re going to win this game.’ We know how it feels to lose a game like this.”
Certainly, a defeat would have been devastating to the Cougars’ at-large NCAA Tournament resume.
“We understand the situation we’re in now. The tough loss to Pepperdine kind of put us in a tough spot. It puts a lot of pressure on these types of games,” Averette said. “That definitely added to our spark to come out and keep battling. We weren’t going to give in. We weren’t scared to lose but we were going to battle to the end and be good with the outcome.”
“Every game is a must-win,” Pope said. ”It’s the same for every team in college basketball. Even more than thinking about seeding and tournament bids, I think these guys have found a way to care about right now, to believe that right now is going to be a defining moment in what they accomplish as basketball players.”
So how did BYU get in this tenuous, uncomfortable position Saturday?
Let’s flash forward to late in the second half, when Pacific led by three points with 3:47 remaining. Barcello put BYU back on top, 64-62, after a couple of free throws and a layup.
The Tigers tied the game again with 52 seconds remaining and Caleb Lohner drew a foul. He had a chance to win the game at the free throw line with 3.2 seconds left.
But Lohner missed both attempts, sending the game into the first OT. In the first extra session, the two teams traded baskets in a back-and-forth slugfest. A Barcello layup with 19.8 seconds remaining tied the game at 75 and sent the game into double overtime.
BYU made only 2 of 6 free throws in the first overtime period and, again, it almost cost it the game.
But in the second OT, the Cougars never trailed.
Another BYU senior, Matt Haarms, who finished with 13 points and eight rebounds, scored on a hook shot, later made a putback and also grabbed an offensive rebound and made a pair of free throws after being fouled to propel the Cougars to an 88-81 lead with 1:55 left.
At the 1:18 mark, Averette buried a 3-pointer to make it 91-83 and essentially seal the win.
“When I got the ball, I looked at the shot clock. It was at like six or seven (seconds),” Averette said. “I was like, ‘I could miss, but either way, this one is going up. I’m going to make a play.’ I was lucky it enough that it dropped for me. I was glad to make a play to extend the lead and put the game away.”
Fittingly, Barcello buried a pair of free throws with 23.6 seconds left for BYU’s final points.
Pope praised his trio of seniors.
“Usually if your team is functioning well, then really the seniors’ DNA is imprinted on the team,” he said. “(Toughness) happens to be a particular skill and talent that those three guys have.”
Coming into the game, Pacific was last in the league in scoring and shooting percentage. The Tigers (5-4, 2-3) have played only half the number of total games BYU has this season due to COVID-19 issues.
It seemed like the kind of game the Cougars could take out their frustrations and right the ship after a frustrating loss at Pepperdine, but Pacific played with an edge all game long. Nothing came easy for BYU.
The Cougars opened the game looking like they had fixed some of their problems on offense, displaying good ball movement and knocking down a flurry of 3-pointers
With 12:06 left in the first half, Gideon George’s 3-pointer put BYU ahead 23-16.
But the Cougars then went more than five minutes without scoring while Pacific went on a 9-0 run to take the lead, 25-23. During that ugly stretch for BYU, the Cougars missed a bunch of shots, become stagnant and turned the ball over.
A pair of Barcello free throws and a 3-pointer by Spencer Johnson allowed BYU to re-take the lead, 28-25, but the Cougars subsequently went through another scoring drought that lasted nearly five minutes.
A 3-pointer by Averette with 37 seconds left in the half ended that dry spell, but Daniss Jenkins’ jumper with four seconds remaining gave the Tigers a 32-31 halftime lead.
In all, BYU opened the game going 8 of 13 from the field but it made just 2 of its final 16 field goals to end the half.
Pacific had four players score in double figures — Justin Moore (18), Jahbril Price-Noel (16), Jenkins (13) and Pierre Crockrell (12), but somehow, the Cougars were able to hold off the Tigers and keep their goal of getting to the NCAA Tournament alive.
“What this group cared about was winning this game, period, just like what they’ve cared about all season long,” Pope said. “They are skilled at being in the moment and not getting distracted or disappointed by what’s happened in the past or what might happen in the future.”
An out-of-bounds area near Canyon Village at Park City is pictured in this 2016 file photo. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
PARK CITY — One person was buried in an avalanche outside resort boundaries near Canyons Village at Park City Saturday and rescuers were unable to get to the area before nightfall.
The avalanche occurred at 3:26 p.m. in the backcountry area known as Square Top and was triggered by two skiers, Summit County Sheriff’s Lt. Andrew Wright said in a statement. One of the skiers was caught in the avalanche.
The friend was able to dig to the victim and attempted lifesaving efforts,” Wright said. “Because of the extreme avalanche danger in the area, the friend had to leave.”
Rescue crews attempted to go to the area, but the dangerous conditions prevented them from getting there before nightfall. Wright said rescue operations will resume Sunday morning.
Utah Avalanche Center officials said the area, which is steep and rocky, is known for producing avalanches.
No other details were provided.
“The Summit County Sheriff’s Office reminds people to use extreme caution when entering the backcountry. People should check avalanche conditions at the Utah Avalanche Center, avoid areas where there is avalanche danger, and be prepared with the proper equipment,” the lieutenant said.
Brigham Young Cougars head coach Mark Pope works the sideline during the game against the Pacific Tigers at the Marriott Center in Provo on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021. | Spenser Heaps, Deseret News
In an intense, back-and-forth battle most of the night, the BYU Cougars finally pulled away from the Pacific Tigers in double overtime Saturday night at the Marriott Center in Provo and ultimately won, 95-87.
Here are three keys from the game.
After a second half and first overtime that saw neither team get a lead larger than four points, BYU scored the first five of the second extra session to gain some separation. The Cougars scored 20 in all over the final five minutes and the Tigers couldn’t keep pace.
The BYU backcourt of Brandon Averette and Alex Barcello combined for 47 points on the night, including 11 in double overtime. Averette scored 24 on the night and Barcello 23.
On the night, the Cougars won the rebounding, assists and steals battles to help them come away with the victory.
Utah guard Alfonso Plummer looks at the bench for direction late in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Colorado, Saturday, Jan. 30, 2021, in Boulder, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) | AP
Runnin’ Utes trailed Colorado Buffaloes by 19 points in the second half before Plummer and his teammates rallied back to hand the home team a stunning loss
That phone call Utes guard Alfonso Plummer receives from his father after every game is going to be a little more joyful than usual this time.
Plummer, the 6-foot-1 senior from Fajardo, Puerto Rico, by way of Arizona Western College almost singlehandedly gave the struggling Utes a 77-74 upset win over Colorado on Saturday afternoon at CU Events Center in Boulder, Colorado.
As he described how he scored all 23 of his points in the second half to help Utah (7-7, 4-6 Pac-12) overcome a 19-point deficit with under nine minutes remaining, Plummer mentioned that he was able to keep his head in the game despite not scoring at all in the first half because that’s what his father, Rénan Plummer, taught him to do.
“Yeah, he probably is going to call me in like, 10 minutes,” the player teammates refer to as “Fons” said as he participated in a Zoom call from Utah’s bus a half-hour or so after one of the best single-half performances in school history. “He always watches the game. He is never satisfied. I could score 40, and he could find something to say I could get better at.
For him, it is not, ‘good game.’ It is like, ‘here’s a step to keep getting better.’”
A starter until the Jan. 9 loss to Oregon, Plummer entered the game with 14 minutes, 33 seconds remaining in the first half and Utah trailing 11-8. But he picked up an offensive foul the first time he touched the ball, then got a defensive foul seconds later and promptly headed to the bench, not to be seen again until after the first stoppage of the second half.
His first basket came with 14:10 remaining, but he missed his next three attempts. Shortly after Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak picked up a technical foul and the Utes fell behind 65-46, Fons caught fire.
“Our guys didn’t quit. Fons came in and hit a bunch of big shots,” Krystkowiak said. “We are not going to throw in the towel until we are certain that we don’t have a chance, and there was plenty of optimism along the way.”
Fueled by Fons.
Plummer’s 3-pointer from the wing in front of Utah’s bench with 3:25 left tied the game at 69-69, and his subsequent free throw gave the visitors the lead. His driving layup moments later completed a 21-2 Utah run.
“My dad’s words always stay with me,” Plummer said. “Every time we went into (a game), I feel like my dad is in the (stands) screaming, ‘Hey, play hard, don’t quit.’ The reason I am playing is because of my dad. He (taught) me how to be a dog. And every time on the court, I show out for my dad. That’s what I did.”
The shooting display was reminiscent of the Pac-12 Tournament game last March when Plummer hit a tournament-record 11 3-pointers en route to 35 points. Plummer finished shooting 8 of 13 from the field, 4 of 6 from the 3-point line and 3 of 3 from the free-throw line.
“For sure a flashback,” Plummer said. “People were calling it deja vu, so yeah, it (was similar).”
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Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
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