Kyle Beckerman, left, of Real Salt Lake, challenges Dairon Asprilla (11), of the Portland Timbers, during the first half of an MLS soccer game, Saturday, March 7, 2015, in Portland, Ore.
Kyle Beckerman, left, of Real Salt Lake, challenges Dairon Asprilla (11), of the Portland Timbers, during the first half of an MLS soccer game, Saturday, March 7, 2015, in Portland, Ore. Troy Wayrynen, Associated Press
Aaron Morton
By Aaron Morton

The road to the U.S. Open Cup final just got a little bit easier for Real Salt Lake.

RSL got a favorable draw Thursday morning as the Claret and Cobalt will host the Portland Timbers on July 1 at 8 p.m. in the round of 16. The winner of that game will host the San Jose Earthquakes/L.A. Galaxy winner in the quarterfinals on July 21/22.

The U.S. Open Cup, a 102-year-old single-elimination tournament that involves all the professional and top amateur men's teams in the United States, will be using a fixed bracket from the Round of 16 on.

The Timbers eliminated the Seattle Sounders on Tuesday in a wild 3-1 extra-time victory, in which the Sounders finished the game with seven players after three red cards and one injury. RSL advanced by rallying past Seattle Sounders 2 on Tuesday.

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In the teams' only matchup so far this year, RSL and Portland drew 0-0 in Major League Soccer's opening weekend.

Email: amorton@deseretnews.com

Twitter: UtahMortReport

Blog: TheMortreport.com

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