Utah, Utah St. basketball: Stew Morrill says Utah-USU hoops series could be ending

LOGAN — When the Utah and Utah State basketball teams play tonight at the Spectrum, it could be the final game, at least in Logan, between the two longtime rivals for a long time.

According to Aggie coach Stew Morrill, the two schools may not be playing any more games because the Utes won't be willing to fit USU into its schedule when it leaves for the Pac-12 next year.

"It is the last time we will have them here in the foreseeable future," Morrill said. "That is unfortunate, but that is what we are being told."

Morrill said his team could probably play Utah in Salt Lake every year, but he won't go for that.

"We were scheduled to go there next year, but we are not going to schedule them unless it is home and home. Would you? It is the in-state school and the university of the state. Most often times, those two schools play in most states. They have got a right to do what they want to with scheduling but from a tradition standpoint it is really too bad."

Utah director of athletics Chris Hill said he hasn't talked to Morrill, but has talked to USU athletic director Scott Barnes and claims nothing has been decided.

"It's appropriate to take a step back and assess where we are with our new Pac-12 schedule next year," Hill said. "It is prudent for anyone in our position. We don't want to rush into anything."

The Utes will have two more league games in the Pac-12 and will be playing BYU every year as well as a tournament. The Utes will still have spots for several non-league games and the question will be whether they will have room for road games at Logan every other year.

Utah and Utah State have been playing each other for 102 years with 223 meetings. Utah has a 129-93 edge in the series.

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