Utah Cancels Annual Rivalry Game With BYU

In a sport like college basketball, rivalries are a sacred thing. Next year, however, Utah and BYU won’t meet on the hardwood.

The two schools have been playing against each other annually since 1909. The only time they did not meet was during World War Two, when the match-up took a one year hiatus.

The decision comes on the heels on an incident during this year’s game when BYU guard Nick Emery threw a punch at Utah’s Brandon Taylor.

“The events that have occurred in our recent games with BYU led me to ask (Utah athletic director) Dr. (Chris) Hill several weeks ago if we could take a cooling off period and put the rivalry on hold,” Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak said. “The level of emotions has escalated to the point where there is the potential for serious injury. Chris said he would support me in canceling next year’s scheduled game against BYU. I called and let Coach [Dave] Rose know our intentions a few days after our game (on Dec. 2).”

As for Rose, he is not a fan of Utah’s choice.. “I disagree with the decision,” he said in a press release. “I know our students, our players, our fans and college basketball fans in the intermountain area want to see this long-standing rivalry continue.”

Photo: Utah guard Jakob Poeltl, left, scores against Stephen F. Austin forward Clide Geffrard during the first half of an NCAA college basketball second-round game in Portland, Ore., Thursday, March 19, 2015. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)