Utah Utes forward Riley Battin (21) dribbles the ball around Idaho forward Jake Bruner (3) during a basketball exhibition game at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018. Battin had entered the transfer portal but will return to the Utes. | Qiling Wang, Deseret News
With new head coach Craig Smith now in place, the University of Utah men’s basketball team got some good news on the transfer portal front Tuesday.
On March 23, it was reported by Verbal Commits that forward Riley Battin, a rising senior, had entered the portal, but on Tuesday evening, Battin posted a short video on Twitter with a message indicating that he’s returning to Utah after all.
Smith agreed to become Utah’s new coach late on March 26 and met with his new team the next morning.
Battin, a California native who is listed at 6-foot-9 and 230 pounds, started nine of 25 games in the 2020-21 season and averaged 6.6 points and 3.4 rebounds per contest.
Matt McCluskey, left, wipes his eyes as he and his wife, Jill, listen to a speaker on the two-year anniversary of their daughter Lauren McCluskey’s death at the McCarthey Family Track and Field Complex in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020. The parents sought to dismiss their federal lawsuit Tuesday against the school and others. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News
The parents of murdered University of Utah student Lauren McCluskey sought to dismiss their federal lawsuit Tuesday against the school and others after apparently receiving payment from a settlement agreement reached last fall.
Attorneys for Jill and Matt McCluskey filed the motion in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City noting the agreement provided that Jill and Matt McCluskey would dismiss their claims no later than 15 days after payment of the settlement amount. That deadline was Tuesday.
The McCluskeys and the U. announced last October that they had reached a $13.5 million settlement in their two lawsuits — a federal civil suit and a wrongful death suit in state court — against the university.
The state, through its risk management agency and insurance provider, paid $10.5 million to the McCluskeys. Another $3 million was paid by the university in the form of a donation to the Lauren McCluskey Foundation.
U. President Ruth Watkins acknowledged the university failed in its duty to help McCluskey, and the school concedes that her murder was a “brutal, senseless and preventable” tragedy.
On Oct. 22, 2018, McCluskey, a 21-year-old communications major and track athlete from Pullman, Washington, was shot and killed on campus near her dorm by Melvin Shawn Rowland, 37, after weeks of being stalked and harassed by Rowland. Rowland fatally shot himself hours later as police were closing in to make an arrest.
In the weeks that followed McCluskey’s death, it was learned that she had sought repeatedly to get help from campus police without success.
The lawsuit is being dismissed with prejudice, meaning it could not be filed again.
Matt McCluskey, left, wipes his eyes as he and his wife, Jill, listen to a speaker on the two-year anniversary of their daughter Lauren McCluskey’s death at the McCarthey Family Track and Field Complex in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020. The parents sought to dismiss their federal lawsuit Tuesday against the school and others. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News
The parents of murdered University of Utah student Lauren McCluskey sought to dismiss their federal lawsuit Tuesday against the school and others after apparently receiving payment from a settlement agreement reached last fall.
Attorneys for Jill and Matt McCluskey filed the motion in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City noting the agreement provided that Jill and Matt McCluskey would dismiss their claims no later than 15 days after payment of the settlement amount. That deadline was Tuesday.
The McCluskeys and the U. announced last October that they had reached a $13.5 million settlement in their two lawsuits — a federal civil suit and a wrongful death suit in state court — against the university.
The state, through its risk management agency and insurance provider, paid $10.5 million to the McCluskeys. Another $3 million was paid by the university in the form of a donation to the Lauren McCluskey Foundation.
U. President Ruth Watkins acknowledged the university failed in its duty to help McCluskey, and the school concedes that her murder was a “brutal, senseless and preventable” tragedy.
On Oct. 22, 2018, McCluskey, a 21-year-old communications major and track athlete from Pullman, Washington, was shot and killed on campus near her dorm by Melvin Shawn Rowland, 37, after weeks of being stalked and harassed by Rowland. Rowland fatally shot himself hours later as police were closing in to make an arrest.
In the weeks that followed McCluskey’s death, it was learned that she had sought repeatedly to get help from campus police without success.
The lawsuit is being dismissed with prejudice, meaning it could not be filed again.
The Salt Lake Bees announced plans for fan attendance at Smith’s Ballpark, planning to host approximately 3,200 fans — about 22% of the ballpark’s 14,511 capacity — at games to start the season.
Tickets at Smith’s Ballpark will be socially distanced, with ticket groups of two, four or six available to purchase. Masks are required to be worn in the ballpark, except when people are eating or drinking in their seats.
Other safety measures include hand sanitizer stations, contactless mobile ticketing and cash-free concessions. Common spaces such as elevators, retail stores and restrooms will also be subject to reduced capacity.
Single game tickets for the month of May go on sale starting on April 8 at 10 a.m. Fans can purchase tickets by going to slbees.com or calling 801-325-2337.
Utah basketball coach Craig Smith in the Huntsman Center on Saturday, March 27, 2021. | University of Utah Athletics
‘We just had a disagreement on where things stood with the program’: Why Utah athletic director Mark Harlan made a change two weeks ago and led to his hiring of Utah State’s successful coach
In what could easily be described as the two most important weeks in Mark Harlan’s nearly three-year tenure as the University of Utah’s director of athletics, the 50-year-old graduate of the University of Arizona made the two biggest decisions during his time so far in Salt Lake City.
Harlan sat down with men’s basketball coach Larry Krystkowiak on March 16, and, “after a healthy conversation, completely professional,” told the 10-year coach that the U. was releasing him of his duties.
“We just had a disagreement on where things stood with the program,” Harlan told the Deseret News on Monday. “We shook hands at the end, and he wished me the best of luck, and I said the same to him. He loves the Utes.”
Krystkowiak declined an interview offer the night of his firing, but issued a heartfelt thank-you message on March 24 via Twitter for his time at the U. He referenced the AD who hired him in 2011, Chris Hill, but made no mention of Harlan.
“It was a very difficult process, but obviously more so for Larry, and I am very cognizant of that,” Harlan said. “It is not so much about me. He is such a great person, great father, great coach, great man. Nothing changes in this transition.”
“It was certainly a process that as you would expect with Larry, very professional,” Harlan said. “But the thing about our business is that sometimes you have to part ways with really, really good people. And sometimes it is really, really hard to do that. I have such great respect for Larry, and I know whatever he chooses to do next, he will be very successful.”
As the process to replace Krystkowiak unfolded, Harlan said nothing caught him off guard, but he was struck by the amount of interest in the opening from the Utah fanbase, which was seemingly losing interest with each passing year of the Krystkowiak tenure.
Associated Press
Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak talks to players, including guard Parker Van Dyke (5), during the second half of the team’s NCAA college basketball game against Washington State on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2018, in Pullman, Wash. Utah won 77-70.
“What was impactful for me, and certainly validating, was the incredible interest that everyone had in the process, which was great,” Harlan said. “That’s what you want of any fanbase, to be highly engaged, who cares tremendously, that has great passion. … That just kinda gave us that extra jump in our step to just be really, really thoughtful in the way that we handled this search.”
“Since I arrived here, which is about the same time Craig arrived in Logan, it has been hard not to notice the incredible success the Utah State basketball program has had,” Harlan said. “When you come into a (tough) situation and win conference championships and conference tournament championships, and certainly get entrance into the Big Dance, that is going to get anyone’s attention, much less mine. So I have always admired that success from afar.”
“There were some things that became apparent, and that is what a great person he is, what a great family man he is, and also what a keen ability he has to develop deep relationships with people, whether they were people within the department, whether they were people he coached, basically anybody he surrounded himself with at his multiple stops,” Harlan said. “All of it just made a lot of sense and as such made him very attractive to me.”
Utah State athletic director John Hartwell said in a conference call Monday that Smith called him around 9 p.m. Friday with the news.
A few hours before that, Smith’s legal representatives, led by coaching agent Bret Just, of Chicago-based WME Sports, had met with Utah senior associate athletic director for business and chief financial officer Steve Smith and hammered out a contract. Harlan said his deputy ADs, Scott Kull and Charmelle Green joined him in the negotiations.
“We have a great team here at Utah, and Craig’s representatives are terrific as well,” Harlan said. “I have worked with them before with other clients that they have. So there was a lot of trust on both sides. We came out with a really fair deal for both sides.”
Craig Smith and his family drove to Salt Lake City Saturday morning and toured the basketball facilities, then met with Utah’s players in a meeting that was supposed to go 10 minutes but lasted nearly an hour.
Harlan said every player attended the meeting except a walk-on who was out of town, even players who had expressed their intentions to enter the transfer portal or already had: Lahat Thioune, Jordan Kellier, Riley Battin and Timmy Allen. Monday, shooting guard Alfonso Plummer announced on Twitter that he will “test the waters” by entering the NBA draft, but also said he will enter the transfer portal to keep his options open if he chooses to return to college ball.
“They have to make choices on what they want to do, and I am going to respect those choices,” Harlan said. “I just asked them to (take) the opportunity to sit down with our new head coach, and have conversations before they make any decisions, to at least do that. I have been really, really proud of them for doing that.”
Harlan said he turned the time over to Smith and left the meeting, so he doesn’t know all that was said, but is hopeful a solid nucleus returns to the U.
“Everybody was at the team meeting (but the walk-on), right on time, and they were very engaged. … Now, again, some will go, and some will stay, and we will march forward with who we have,” he said. “But it is always really important for student-athletes to understand that the best thing for them is to get the full picture before they make decisions. And I believe that is what they are doing.”
Harlan said one of the things he discussed with Smith before Saturday’s 11:30 a.m. news conference announcing the hire was the need to get fans back in the seats at the 15,000-seat Huntsman Center. The upper bowl was curtained off last season, but it didn’t matter because no spectators were allowed anyway.
Harlan said interest in the job opening indicated to him that the “fanbase is still solidly with us and we can fill the place up again.’
Interestingly, there are incentives in Smith’s contract for attracting more fans to the arena. The coach gets $25,000 if gate receipts exceed $2 million, $35,000 if they exceed $2.25 million, $45,000 if they exceed that $2.5 million and $75,000 if they exceed $3 million.
Based on feedback he received throughout the weekend and Monday, Harlan believes he made the right choice to get the program going again.
“I believe we can be great here,” he said. “We have proved it before with the right mix of a great culture, with great players, great fan support. I see no reason why we can’t be in the conversation most years for the (NCAA) tournament and obviously in the top grouping in the Pac-12. We have certainly seen our conference rise, particularly in the last few years. We want to be a part of that, and we believe strongly there is no reason that we can’t be.”
This satellite image from Maxar Technologies shows the cargo ship MV Ever Given stuck in the Suez Canal near Suez, Egypt, Friday, March 26, 2021. | Maxar Technologies via Associated Press
With the recent Suez Canal blockage and after experiencing the COVID-19 global pandemic, the fragility of international trade and the global supply chain is being exposed. While international trade is good, is it time for America to have a backup plan for more uncertainties that certainly lie ahead to bolster its economy?
A solution could be to rely on what we have here on this side of the world. The United States currently has 14 trade agreements with 20 countries, but only 12 of those 20 countries are in the Americas. Why not expand that number?
The total population of the Americas is over 1 billion people, and its current total GDP equates to roughly $25.67 trillion — 32% of the world’s GDP. In the New World, there are only four main languages spoken (English, Spanish, Portuguese and French). Three of these languages are Latin-based, and the English vocabulary derives over 80% of its words from Latin. Another advantage the Americas has is its religion — both North and South America are predominantly Christian. The biggest advantages in the Americas are our location in the world, which makes establishing trade routes easy, and our rich resources.
What would the world be like if all the countries in North and South America entered into a comprehensive free trade agreement? We could start investing in our neighbors’ infrastructure and higher education systems in order to help economically strengthen our two continents. There is definitely room for economic progress here, and we could feel safer having a more stable supply chain closer to home.
The people living in the Americas have more in common than anywhere else in the world. It’s time to connect the land we live on, strengthen our economies, and prepare for stability.
Smith is hiring UNLV assistant coach DeMarlo Slocum to the staff, as reported by Sam Gordon of the Las Vegas Review-Journal and Alex Markham of Rivals.
UNLV assistant basketball coach DeMarlo Slocum is indeed joining Craig Smith’s coaching staff at Utah, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. @AMarkhamRivals was first to the news. Slocum was a Utes assistant from 2011-19 before his two-year stint with the Rebels.
Prior to two years with the Rebels, Slocum was a Ute assistant under Larry Krystkowiak from 2011-2019.
“It all starts with your staff and we’re going to have a staff that holds people accountable, that embraces what Utah basketball is all about and that’s having a great culture built on relationships and trust and integrity,” Smith said in his introductory press conference.
Utah State athletic director John Hartwell also said one of Smith’s assistants from USU — Austin Hansen, Eric Peterson or David Ragland — will be joining Utah’s staff.
John Hartwell says one of Craig Smith's assistants will be going with him to Utah but didn't say who
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Associated Press
