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Real Salt Lake’s reward for beating LAFC? A two-leg series against rival Sporting Kansas City

Sandy • Before they officially got started with training on Saturday, Real Salt Lake’s players engaged in a game of handball. They cheered. They laughed. They playfully jeered at teammates who made a mistake.

To the untrained eye, one would think these types of shenanigans would only be for teams with not a care in the world. But the moments of levity were by design for a team that starts a two-leg Western Conference semifinal round just three days after pulling an upset to advance in the first place.

“We can smell it. It’s obvious,” Sunday “Sunny” Stephen said.