UNIVERSITY OF UTAH

Five days after the cancellation of the next Utah-BYU basketball game became public, Utes coach Larry Krystkowiak defended his decision citing a “highly venomous and toxic environment” in the rivalry that he feels has put his players at risk. Krystkowiak said he saw an “escalating pattern of behavior” with rough-and-tumble incidents in Utah’s most recent three games with BYU, all of which Utah won. The Cougars have been cited for two flagrant fouls in the past three years, and Krystkowiak said another incident in the 2014 game in Provo (which was not called) set him on a course to cancel the series for the 2016 match-up — a decision supported by Utah athletic director Chris Hill and school president David Pershing. While he acknowledged he’s taken a lot of flak and for making the call to cancel, he cited his responsibility as a coach to protect his players’ well-being — a belief he holds so strongly, he’s paying out of pocket to buy out of the game, which would’ve been played in December. -Kyle Goon, The Salt Lake Tribune– Read More