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SALT LAKE CITY -- Kyle Kuzma posted career highs with 23 points and 19 rebounds as Utah defeated Northwest Nazarene 81-37 in its season opener Saturday evening.Utah fans got their first full glimpse of the new-look Utes and their roster consisting of just two legitimate contributors from last season.This morning, I was just extra turned up, Kuzma said. I dont for whatever reason. Its game day.I tried to bring energy. I think that was the biggest thing. When we have energy-givers, then everybody feeds off of that.The Utes struggled mightily for the first 16 minutes of the first half until a 17-3 run basically put the game away after they led 36-20 at halftime. Utah shot under 40 percent most of the first half as the offense seemed to have no real direction.Kuzma started passively, like the rest of the team, but picked up the aggression and finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds in the first half alone. He highlighted the 17-3 stretch with a spinning floater while being fouled. Teammate Tyler Rawson added 13 points.Its a starting point for us, Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak said. We had guys that tried to push the issue a little bit too much. Didnt trust the offense. We cleaned it up a little bit and got some composure in the second half.Some of its jitters. Got to find some consistency and some roles.Northwest Nazarene, which was playing a back-to-back after defeating Simpson University 92-67 on Friday, shot just 16.4 percent from the field and 1 for 25 from behind the arc. Maurice Jones scored 11 points. The 37 points are the fourth fewest Utah has allowed since 1982.Obviously, we played a team that was much bigger and more talented to their level, Northwest Nazarene coach Scott Flemming said. I never would have thought we would shoot the ball so poorly tonight. We have a really good shooting team. We hit eleven 3s last night against different competition.Even the open looks we got, I think that was the biggest problem. Now when youre not making shots, all of the other things kind of are obvious, too -- their rebounding, their size, all those kind of things. It hurts in transition. It still is a good game for us to have.BIG PICTURENorthwest Nazarene: No harm, no foul for the Crusaders. As a Division 2 member of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, the loss doesnt count toward their regular-season record. Plus, they have to feel pretty good about the early parts of the first half against a Pac-12 program that has reached the NCAA Tournament the last two seasons.Utah: Theres lots of work to do for a Utah team with just two returners having played significant minutes. The offense had no flow for much of the game outside of the spurts when Kuzma took over. The defensive intensity came and went. The Utes must improve before Pac-12 play or they will live up (or down) to their preseason pick of finishing No. 8 in the league.SHORT STAFFEDUtah will be without newcomers David Collette and Sedrick Barefield until the Utes play face Prairie View A&M on Dec. 17. The two will miss the first eight games due to transfer rules, but are expected to be starters once they return. Sophomore Parker Van Dyke, freshman Devon Daniels and redshirt freshman Jayce Johnson started alongside returning starters Kuzma and Lorenzo Bonam.BALL CONTROLThe Utes had 19 turnovers, including seven from Bonam, who had six at halftime. Krystkowiak said the goal was 12. Bonam struggled all around with just five points and going 0 for 4 after making his first basket.UP NEXTNorthwest Nazarene: The Crusaders face Portland Bible in Caldwell, Idaho, in the Taco Bell Shootout.Utah: The Utes host Concordia on Tuesday and Coppin State on Friday as they open the season with three games in six days.Joey Wendle Rays Jersey . Thousands of Southern California fans enveloped the Trojans to celebrate an improbable win secured by an interim coach, an inconsistent kicker and a thin defence that wouldnt break. Emilio Pagan Jersey . Louis Blues teammates who would also be participating in the Olympics, Alex Pietrangelo felt right at home, no different in some ways to the travel experience of any old road trip – save for the length of the journey, that is. https://www.cheapraysonline.com/676i-brent-honeywell-jersey-rays.html . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Charlie Morton Rays Jersey . LOUIS -- Cardinals cleanup hitter Allen Craig says hes recovered from a foot injury and ready to be put on St. Michael Perez Jersey . Haas said he "felt a lot of pain" in his right shoulder when he slammed his racket to the ground in frustration after losing his serve at 3-3 in the first set.ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Harry Douglas is correct in his argument that his low hit on Chris Harris Jr. is permissible. Hes mistaken in his contention it was clean.Tennessees journeyman wide receiver -- known now in Denver as the Titans goon -- was blocking toward his opponents goal line, not away from the ball. And the play was still live, albeit nowhere near where Harris was standing.So, legal, yes.But also dirty.I have never had a player try to end my career like that, Harris said. That was dirty and he should be fined. Thats not football.The one facing a fine is Aqib Talib, who jumped on Douglas on the next play, scuffling around in what quickly became a scrum on the Tennessee sideline. Talib lost his helmet and was penalized for unnecessary roughness when an ejection might have been in order.So, Talib stayed in the game and Harris returned and played the rest of the way, which Denver lost 13-10, but Talib was just as angry after the game .It was a dirty play by a sorry player, Talib said, adding they have the same agent, so when I see his ass in Atlanta, Im going to beat his ass.Talib said Monday hed moved on to the Patriots upcoming visit, but he didnt back off having his teammates back.Were going to play for each other, Talib said. Thats what we do every day. Thats why we play the game. We play for our checks and we play because we love to be around each other.Broncos coach Gary Kubiak watched the cringe-worthy play on film and said, First off, Im just so thankful Chris is OK. ... I disagree with the play. But Ill take my opinion to the league and deal with it from that standpoint.Kubiak said he understood Talibs reaction.First off, weve got a strong team. Weve got each others back. Youd better have each others back in this business, in what we do, Kubiak said. But you also got to be smart and you cant hurt your team.Douglas decision to take out Harris right knee was one of the worst moves of Week 14.Other calls backfired spectacularly, like San Francisco coach Chip Kellys decision to go on fourth-and-2 at the Jets 37 in overtime, only to watch Carlos Hyde -- who had run for a career-high 193 yards -- get stuffed. The Jets then drove for the winning score.Kelly said the 49ers were 3 yards shy of kicker Phil Dawsons range -- hed already missed two field goals -- and he didnt want to punt.I didnt want to give the ball back to them, Kelly said. I thought with a yard that we had a shot the way Carlos was running.Colts tight end Dwayne Allen had a double-whammy, failing to stop Jadeveon Clowney from a sack-strip of Andrew Luck at the Houston 5-yard-line, then compounnding the problem by trying to pick up the ball instead of pouncing on it like the Texans did.ddddddddddddThe NFL saved face by reversing itself and allowing the Browns and Titans, who were off last week for the leagues My Cleats, My Cause campaign, to go ahead and wear their customized cleats in Week 14.Speaking of cleats, if Harris doesnt pull his right leg back just after contact, his knee, and maybe his career, gets cratered.Douglas, a ninth-year pro who had one catch for 10 yards Sunday, vigorously defended his low block.First of all, thats a clean play, Douglas argued. It was a run play with me and him looking at each other and I cut blocked him.Just because what he did was legal doesnt mean it was clean, suggested NFL Network analyst Steve Mariucci.When the corners lined up in front of you, you can block them down there, Mariucci said. It just appeared to be kind of a cheap shot at the knee and the way it hit, it couldve affected Harris season and career.Thats a cheap shot, NBC analyst Rodney Harrison said, mincing no words. And I understand why Aqib Talib is so frustrated right now. But in the same respect, you have to keep your poise.Harris, who missed Super Bowl 48 with a torn ACL in his left knee, stayed down for a couple of minutes and slowly walked off the field. He said afterward he was sore and in pain.Harris sent a series of tweets Sunday night:Thank God for covering me cuz I thought my knee was gone.Cant get open so lets just take 25 out of the game.Douglas set his Twitter account to private after the game.Von Miller said even if Douglas actions were within the rules, they broke the unwritten rule of risking another mans livelihood. Miller pointed to the NBA as a league where players look out for one another, like when they forego a hard foul on a dunk.Theyre playing hard and the superstars are going to be superstars, but theyre always taking care of each other, Miller said. Theres never crazy, hard fouls that can lead to somebody getting hurt. That stuff happens in basketball, but its never intentional.In basketball, they take care of each other. Football is a more physical sport. But weve got to start doing that. Weve got to take care of each other to continue to make our game great.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---AP NFL Writer Teresa M. Walker and AP Sports Writer Josh Dubow contributed.Follow Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton ' ' '