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It's remarkable what can happen when all the fellas are herded into a room and encouraged to talk and, more importantly, listen to one another. And come to an accord.

That's what happened in the run-up to Thursday's announcement that Utah, BYU, Utah State and Weber State will face off in an annual alternating holiday basketball doubleheader at Vivint Smart Home Arena. The Jazz, who often are seen as a unifying force in a state divided by crimson, shades of blue, and purple, took that role a bit further in this case, essentially brokering the deal, bringing in a sponsor, and hosting the event.

Jazz team president Steve Starks did his best Henry Kissinger impersonation in mediating the peace talks. And that's what they were.

"We made phone calls to each of the athletic directors and laid out a concept that we had," Starks said at an afternoon press conference. "And engaged their interest, and there was immediate interest. From there, we invited everybody together and had a meeting. It was a very collaborative effort."

Said Utah athletics director Chris Hill: "We appreciate the opportunity."

BYU AD Tom Holmoe said: "It's going to be a tough ticket to get. … It could turn out to be something great."

Utah State athletics director John Hartwell said: "To me, this provides a great platform to promote basketball in what I can see is a basketball-crazy state."

Weber State AD Jerry Bovee called the doubleheader a "no-brainer."

BYU and Utah had been warring against one another in the aftermath of Ute coach Larry Krystkowiak's move to cancel this coming season's game between the Cougars and Utes in Provo. As is well known, he said he was upset with the tone and tenor of the rivalry, worried about the safety of his players after an on-court altercation in this past season's game at the Huntsman Center.

That reasoning seemed disingenuous, wiping out a college basketball series that had been played for more than a century. Dave Rose subsequently said in an interview that former Ute coach Jim Boylen had indicated to him, during earlier discussions about scheduling, that Hill no longer wanted to play the rivalry game, even back then.

Either way, Krystkowiak's refusal to play BYU at the Marriott Center, and his explanations for not doing so, ignited a strong backlash, including rumblings in the Utah Legislature that triggered an audit of the Ute athletics department.

Shrouded in that dust-up had been the sometimes-troubled scheduling details involving Utah, BYU, Utah State and Weber, all worthy in-state programs that did not always play each other on account of reasons that were seen as either one-sided or disadvantaged for certain parties.

Lost in the lopsidedness was the good of basketball fans across the state, many of whom would rather see Utah play Utah State, on equal terms, than Utah play, say, IPFW or College of Idaho or Savannah State on the Utes' terms, and watch BYU play the Aggies and the Weebs, on the level.

The argument pops up, at times, that athletics administrators should only do what's in their program's best interests, no matter who gets shoved to the curb or completely left out. And a vocal group of fans will echo that notion.

But sometimes doing what's best for all the schools in the state, and a majority of fans and state residents, especially when it comes to expansive basketball scheduling, is significant.

Poisoning or putting off time-honored rivalries by refusing to play games or only playing those games at home is the wrong response and never the proper answer.

Playing at Vivint Arena, though, in this format is a great answer. The electrifying atmosphere generated by home-and-home games is difficult to beat, but bringing these teams together in the same place, a neutral venue, isn't bad at all. Maybe the fans can transform the Jazz's building into a kind of extraordinary college sports experience.

Hartwell said he wants the event to take on the feel of Final Four Saturday.

In that respect, a decent idea that always seemed like an obvious one got real here on Thursday.

"From our perspective, and from listening to the folks, so many different people, we took a step back and decided, maybe this is an opportunity to make sure we are a collaborative effort," Hill said. "And we come together. One of my important things is that we have some excitement for basketball."

Exactly. That's what clear-minded people said throughout the Great Utah-BYU Basketball Dispute of 2015-16.

Work out the differences and play the freaking games. Give peace and war a chance — at least on the floor.

BYU and Utah will go on with their normal rivalry-game scheduling and then fit in the doubleheader, in the years they face off against one another in the newly announced event, as part of that scheduling. That's one of the reasons Starks said the event took on the form of a doubleheader versus a round-robin-type tournament, so as to avoid repeat bookings of the opponents in a given year.

From here on out, then, let the in-state basketball battles not be found in any coach's off-court posturing or power plays, or in the Legislature, rather let them be on the court, clean and proper and intense. And if somebody punches somebody, chuck him out, and let the great games go on.

GORDON MONSON hosts "The Big Show" with Spence Checketts weekdays from 3-7 p.m. on 97.5 FM and 1280 AM The Zone. Twitter: @GordonMonson.