Utah State Basketball Update

The Aggies were able to fit in two games against Colorado State and Wyoming after a pause due to COVID-19 and lost both games, on the road to the Rams 77-72 and at home to the Cowboys 71-69. Colorado State currently stands at third place in the conference and Wyoming is tied for second place with San Diego State with Boise State leading the conference.

Utah State only put up 24 points in the first half against Colorado State while allowing 33 points to the Rams. In the second half, Utah State scored 48 points while Colorado State put up 44. Against the Cowboys, Utah State and Wyoming both put up 31 points in the first half but the Cowboys outscored the Aggies 40 to 38 in the second half.

Against Colorado State, Sean Bairstow was the leading scorer, putting up 20 points on 8/15 shooting. Utah State struggled overall from the field in the first half and shot 25-55 for the game. One of the areas that hurt Utah State in this game was going 4-18 from three. The free throw percentage was a positive sign, going 18-22 from the free throw line (81.8%). The foul number was something else that could have been a little lower for the Aggies as they had 19 fouls. Utah State turned the ball over 9 times, which made a difference in what was a close game throughout.

At home against Wyoming, the leading scorer for Utah State was Justin Bean, who put up 19 points on 7-18 shooting. The Aggies were unable to improve on the shooting from the previous game against Colorado State, shooting 26-64 (40;6%) as a team and shooting 6 for 26 from three (23.1%). Utah State missed five of their 16 free throws, going 11-16 (73.3%). The Aggies were able to get a big 12 rebounds and 32 rebounds overall but could not overcome the poor shooting night. The Aggies had 12 assists, nine steals, two blocks, eight turnovers, 17 fouls, and a technical foul.

The next game for Utah State is at Fresno State and if the Aggies want to stay relevant in the NCAA Tournament picture at this point without having to win the Mountain West, they must get a win against the Bulldogs to start a streak and build confidence.