More notable 2008 stories

• Bittersweet year for Ute hoops — While the Runnin' Ute men could brag about winning a game in the CBI to end Jim Boylen's first season — OK, brag might be the wrong word — the women ended the year on a sour note. They went 16-0 in the MWC's regular season only to lose to an 0-16 Colorado State team in the first round of the conference tournament. That led to a lower-than-expected seeding and a tough first-round matchup-turned-early-exit at Purdue.

• A buzz at the ballpark — The Salt Lake Bees opened the '08 season in record fashion. Their 21-1 record marked the best-ever start in minor- league baseball history. Unfortunately, they lost much of their sting by the end of the summer — winning their third straight division title but then losing in the first round for the third year in a row.

• Utes bump, set, spike way to Sweet 16 — Utah's women racked up a slew of individual honors — including MWC co-player of the year for standout Lori Baird and coach of the year for Beth Launiere — en route to making a nice run through conference action and well into the NCAAs.

• Go watch it on The mtn. — DirecTV finally won (or lost?) a leg wrestle with negotiators of the network that carries the MWC, giving subscribers of this satellite system the opportunity to watch Wyoming and New Mexico play to their hearts' content. People who didn't make the jump from the Dish Network or become Comcastic still need to find or make friends and family members with the hard-to-get channel.

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E-mail: jody@desnews.com