The Century Game - The Birth of the Rivalry

This season marks the 100th anniversary of the BYU vs. Utah rivalry in men’s basketball. With the Utes coming to Provo on Saturday at 3 p.m. in the Marriott Center, here is a look at how the series got started.

BYU’s greatest and longest standing rivalry—with the University of Utah—did not start on the football field or the basketball court. On May 18, 1895, the Brigham Young Academy played the first-ever intercollegiate event in Utah against the Utes on a baseball diamond. The game ended in a 0-0 tie and a bench-clearing brawl.

But what about basketball? When did the Cougars start hoops play against the Utes? The year 2009 marks the 100th year of the BYU vs. Utah basketball rivalry—Saturday will determine if BYU can start and end the 100 years with a win.

Dr. James Naismith (1861-1939), the father of basketball, originally formed the sport with 13 rules in 1891, most of which are still used today with some variation. The first collegiate basketball game in the US was played in 1896, only five years after Naismith wrote the rules. Chicago beat Iowa 15-12.

Just 12 years after basketball was a proclaimed sport, Brigham Young University adopted the sport, playing nine games in 1903. After six seasons of play, BYU faced the University of Utah for the first time in history on Jan. 23, 1909.

With two players in double-figures, BYU held off Utah 32-9 at home. Ben Meldrum scored three field goals for BYU and four free throws, bringing his point total to 10. John Christensen also posted 10 points in the game on five field goals.

Ellis Chamberlain and Clarence Jones finished out the scoring for BYU with eight and four points, respectively. Chamberlain and Jones were also members of the BYU track team and established several school records. Jones set the quarter-mile school record in 1908 at 53 seconds, although Chamberlain would break it in 1909 with a time of 52 seconds. Chamberlain would also go on to set the school record in the half-mile run (2:03 in 1909 and 2:02 in 1910).

Homer Christensen and Oliver Franklin Steed also played for BYU in the first rivalry game, posting no points.

On Utah’s side of the court, Edward Horsfall posted five points from free throws while Spencer Felt tallied four points from the field.

Low-scoring games were a regular occurrence as the sport of basketball was in its infancy. BYU and Utah wouldn’t both score over 40 points in the same game until 20 years later on Jan. 19, 1929 when BYU beat its rival 49-45.

The Cougars dominated the series early on, winning the first eight meetings. Utah then won six of eight and now the series is almost dead even with the Utes holding a 125-122 advantage.

BYU (9-4) will host Utah (10-2) in the Deseret First Duel on Saturday, Feb. 28, at 3 p.m. Tickets are available at the Marriott Center Ticket Office or BYUtickets.com. The doors will open to the Marriott Center at 1:30 p.m.