Tag: Craig Smith

Sam Merrill, Justin Bean Lead Utah State Past Wyoming At Home, 78-58

Game Recap: Utah State 78, Wyoming 58 Merrill and company take care of business at home in search of a second-place finish. Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire Duo of Bean and Merrill lead Utah State past Wyoming at home. LOGAN, UT-The Aggies …

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Game Recap: Utah State 78, Wyoming 58

Merrill and company take care of business at home in search of a second-place finish. 

Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

Duo of Bean and Merrill lead Utah State past Wyoming at home.

LOGAN, UT—The Aggies played host to the Cowboys on Wednesday night inside the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum and closed the night with a 20-point win and sole possession of second place in the Mountain West.

Utah State was led by Sam Merrill who poured in 26 points on 69.2% shooting from the field and helped out on the defensive end chipping in three of the Aggies seven steals on the night. Merrill has hit peak form just in time to help push his team to a second-place finish behind San Diego State and almost in time for preseason play.

Sophomore big man Neemias Queta has been a bit hot and cold this season with only 8 points last night on 4-9 shooting. But the 7-footer was still able to use his height advantage on Wednesday night over a small ball Cowboys lineup, who were outrebounded 42-25 in starting big man Hunter Thompson’s continued absence.

Most of those rebounds came from Queta (15) and fellow sophomore Justin Bean (14) who garnered his 14th double-double of the season with his 20 points and 14 rebound performance last night.

The Cowboys limped to the finish line, with only two players reaching double figures at the end of the night. One of those players being sophomore guard Trevon Taylor who finished the night with a team-high 16 points and 4 rebounds, followed by fellow sophomore Greg Milton III with 10 points.

Leading scorer Hunter Maldonado was held to just 8 points on 2-12 shooting from the field in almost 38 minutes of play. Maldonado was the tallest man in a Cowboy uniform most of Wednesday night as an already struggling Wyoming had to play small without 6-10 sophomore post-Hunter Thompson who is still out indefinitely. Second leading scorer Jake Hendricks (9.7 PPG) struggled as well, finishing with 8 points on 2-8 shooting (all from deep).

Up Next:

Utah State Aggies:

Craig Smith and company take the weekend off before hosting San Jose State on Tuesday the 25th, which should shape up to be a pretty big senior night.

Wyoming Cowboys:

The Cowboys head south on Saturday to visit the Air Force Falcons in Colorado Springs for an afternoon match up in Clune Arena. The game will tip-off at 2:00 PM MST and can be seen on the AT&T Sports network. The Cowboys have three games left and have a chance at a couple of wins to tie with San Jose State to end the season. Wyoming would hold the tiebreaker to avoid a last play finish in the regular season.

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Utah State vs. Fresno State: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Livestream, Odds, More

Utah State vs. Fresno State: Game Preview The Aggies travel to Fresno to take on the Bulldogs with a four game winning streak in mind. Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire Utah State needs four wins to secure second place in the Mountain West, …

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Utah State vs. Fresno State: Game Preview

The Aggies travel to Fresno to take on the Bulldogs with a four game winning streak in mind. 

Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

Utah State needs four wins to secure second place in the Mountain West, and that campaign starts Saturday night.

WHO: Utah State Aggies (20-7, 9-5 Mountain West) At Fresno State Bulldogs (9-16, 5-9 Mountain West)

WHEN: Saturday, February 15th—7:00 PM PST/8:00 PM MST/9:00 PM EST

WHERE: Save Mart Center, Fresno, CA

TV: ESPNU

STREAM: Get a free trial through FuboTV

RADIO: Tunein

SERIES RECORD: Utah State leads all-time series 38-24

PREVIEW: 

This mid-afternoon match up in the Central Valley comes with big implications for the Aggies and a chance for the Bulldogs to avenge their seven-point OT loss to then No. 25 Utah State back in Logan on December 7th.

That December 7th match up was also Neemias Queta’s first return back to the hardwood after rehabbing a knee injury suffered over the summer playing for the Portuguese men’s national team. For Queta shaking off a bit of rust was very apparent, scoring only 6 points on 6/7 made free throws but missing all three of his field goal attempts. Now Queta and the Aggies travel west to Fresno for a match up with tournament positioning on the line. And even though both are fighting for very different positions on the bracket, both know what’s at stake.

The stakes, 

Utah State is playing to help secure a second place finish in the Mountain West after San Diego State clinched the regular season title with their Tuesday night win over New Mexico. They are currently in a three-way tie for second with the Boise State Broncos and the Nevada Wolf Pack, but have the easiest final four games of those three teams to finish out the regular season. But four straight wins should secure at least a share of second place and position them nicely for a deep conference tournament run where they can hope for a second consecutive tournament championship and NCAA tournament berth.

The Bulldogs are a talented team, but don’t have the regular season resume to expect any sort of post season automatic bids. Their only way to the big dance will be a conference tournament championship, and to make that road smoother requires a strong performance in their final four games to afford them a higher tournament seed.

Matchup(s) of the night: Battle of the bigs

F Nate Grimes Fresno State vs.  F Neemias Queta Utah State

The Stats: Grimes (12.0 PPG 9.8 RPG & 1.5 BPG) and Queta (12.4 PPG 6.8 RPG & 1.5 BPG)

As well as,

F Orlando Robinson Fresno State vs. F Justin Bean Utah State

The Stats: Robinson (13.1 PPG 7.2 RPG & 1.7 APG) and Bean (12.2 PPG 10.2 RPG & 1.5 SPG)

There are several exciting position battles in this match up as Fresno State’s frosh have been an exciting bunch all season long. But where this game may be won tonight is in the post, as each team has two big men that can have a major impact to help win the game.

We can start with the visiting Aggies who will start Neemias Queta and Justin Bean, or at least should. Bean is in a close second behind Nico Carvacho (10.8) to lead the conference in rebounds at 10.2 RPG. And makes a lot of his money off of second chance boards, which shouldn’t be a problem with as many times this group gets shots up.

Queta who has been playing at the level maybe most expected him to be at after a sophomore jump, has been a force in the month of February. His overall season totals aren’t much of an improvement on his numbers last year as a freshman but his performance over the last three games (all wins), 18.6 PPG 8.3 RPG and 3.0 BPG is a trend in the right direction.

Now the hosting Bulldogs have one of the more underrated frontcourt tandems on the west coast, in senior Nate Grimes and freshman Orlando Robinson. Grimes is a double-double machine, with nine so far this season and three in his last four games.

While Robinson may very much be the future for Fresno State in the Mountain West, his play tonight is still vital to an upset of the Aggies at home. These guys aren’t just rebounders and can score when fed the ball down low. If the shots aren’t falling on the perimeter expect a lot of touches in the post from these two tonight.

Prediction: Utah State 88, Fresno State 70

The Aggies are deeper and boast more experience than this Bulldog team, but the last time these teams faced off produced a closer result than you’d of thought and even went to overtime. Fresno State is 3-2 over their last five games and do lead the all-time series between these two when played in Fresno, at 16-10.

If Utah State wins the battle of the bigs and Sam Merrill who just hit 2,000 career points mark in his career has a productive night on top of that, than the score predicted above isn’t too far fetched.

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Utah State Basketball: Was It Too Soon To Write Off The Aggies?

Utah State Basketball: Was It Too Soon To Write Off The Aggies? Aggies have climbed the conference standings with recent play. Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire The Aggies are currently sitting in a three-way tie for second place after a rough …

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Utah State Basketball: Was It Too Soon To Write Off The Aggies?

Aggies have climbed the conference standings with recent play. 

Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

The Aggies are currently sitting in a three-way tie for second place after a rough conference start. 

Utah State was placed on a pretty high pedestal in preseason media coverage, and that may have been unfair. Sam Merrill was pegged as the preseason player of the year and a preseason all-MWC first team member along with sophomore forward Neemias Queta. Not to mention the Aggies were picked to win the Mountain West receiving all seventeen first-place votes in the process.

San Diego State has already clinched the Mountain West regular season title with their 23-point win over New Mexico on Tuesday night at home, but there is still plenty up for grabs. But before we can move forward to this weekends batch of games which still have heavy conference standing implications at stake. Let’s take a look at the Aggie’s season as a whole and try to understand why their recent success feels a bit surprising, but shouldn’t at all.

No Neemias Queta, 

The first half of the season was spent without their star Portuguese big man, who sustained a knee injury playing for the Portuguese national team over the summer. At the time his injury seemed like a big blow to Utah State’s hopes at dominance in the coming season, and no one really assumed otherwise. As the seven-foot big man was one of the bigger surprises in all of college basketball in 2018-2019 with ten double-doubles (nine in conference play) while displaying an elite bounce, body control, defensive instincts and a back to the basket game that is hard to find in one package, especially among freshman.

Those performances also got his name on some NBA draft big boards last season, but ultimately deciding to come back to school placed him as a second round pick in the 2020 NBA draft on a couple of draft sites. He’s recently dropped from that position to being outside of the top-60 players draft eligible, but he is still one of the most pro-ready players on any Mountain West roster.

But most feared his absence early on would cause the Aggies to struggle, that wasn’t exactly the case. Queta made his return on Dec. 7th, against Fresno State. The sophomore big man posted six points, 1 rebounds and 1 block. He took some time to adjust back to the game since his injury, but he’s found a rhythm of late. Averaging 18.6 PPG and 8.3 RPG over his last three games (all wins). His presence was missed but the team played some of their best basketball without him in the line up and with him as he adjusted back to game level speeds. The team was 8-1 in his absence playing a smaller line up that at times included junior college transfer Alphonso Anderson in the post who averaged 13.1 PPG & 5.4 RPG without Queta in the lineup versus 6.1 PPG & 3.0 RPG with him in the lineup. He shouldn’t be all to blame for their bad run in January but his absence wasn’t their downfall either.

The Month of January, 

Utah State’s reception into the new decade and new year were not kind, as Craig Smith’s team went 4-4 during the month of January. They started off with a 17-point loss to UNLV and caught the Runnin’ Rebels right in the middle of their best run of the season (7-1, from Dec. 21st-Jan. 18th). This was the beginning of a three game losing streak that solidified the Aggies drop from the juggernaut status they were maybe prematurely given in preseason polls and coverage to just another team battling it out behind San Diego State.

I mean it wasn’t the worst month a Mountain West conference team had this season but Utah State was perceived to have the kind of season….well maybe the kind the Aztecs are enjoying. And that no knock on them, because the Aztecs took the expectations that were given to the Aggies back in September to the next level.

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Miraculous comeback by Boise State sinks Aggies’ at-large hopes

RayJ Dennis scored all of his career-high 19 points in the final 3:23 of regulation as Boise State fought back from a late 19-point deficit.

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Game Recap: Boise St. 88, Utah St. 83 (OT)

Broncos erase 19-point deficit in stunning fashion

Contact/Follow @andrewdieckhoff & @MWCwire

High drama in Boise means high stress for Utah State

It seemed for all the world that Utah State was moving past its early struggles in the Mountain West, leading comfortably in Boise with just a few minutes to play.

But a late Boise State surge propelled the Broncos to one of the most unlikely wins of the season in college basketball, the home team escaping with an 88-83 overtime win in ExtraMile Arena.

Freshman guard RayJ Dennis led the comeback charge for Boise State, scoring all of his career-high 19 points in the final three-plus minutes of regulation. Dennis shot 5-for-5, including four three-pointers. He was also a perfect 5-for-5 at the free throw stripe.

It was one of the most electrifying individual performances of the season—not just in the MW, but in the nation—and it came from one of the most unassuming players on the court.

This win wasn’t just unlikely—it was all but impossible.

According to Ken Pomeroy, the win probability for Utah State (14-6, 3-4 MW) peaked at 98.8% after Justin Bean’s free throws put them up 18 points with 4:10 remaining. The Broncos’ 0.2% shot at victory was about as slim as it gets.

But on some nights, college basketball simply refuses to be penned in by such limits.

Utah State’s collapse spoiled a season-high scoring night from its star player, Sam Merrill, who finished with 30 points on the night. Bean had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Neemias Queta added 12 points before fouling out, but those performances weren’t enough to stave off the Broncos’ late push.

The gut-wrenching loss may be the final straw that breaks the back—and heart—of the Aggies.

With just over six minutes to play in regulation, Queta hit two free throws to give the Aggies a 62-43 lead over Boise State, matching the Aggies’ largest lead of the game at 19 points. Over the next two minutes, the Broncos only managed to chisel one point off of that deficit, with Utah State leading 66-48 with four minutes to play.

Then it happened.

RJ Williams drew a foul on Queta, the fifth of the game for the Portuguese sophomore. Over its next few possessions, Utah State alternated between missed shots and turnovers, resulting in a 14-0 run for Boise State that cut the Aggie lead to four points with one minute remaining.

After two Abel Porter free throws with eight seconds to play, Utah State held a 75-70 lead and looked like they would be able to survive Boise State’s big haymaker.

But Dennis came down and capped off his out-of-the-blue explosion, nailing a three-pointer with four seconds remaining.

Boise State’s comeback hinged on forcing one last turnover.

Justinian Jessup didn’t disappoint.

The senior sharpshooter was able to intercept Diogo Brito’s inbounds pass, and he quickly layed the the ball in with 1.3 seconds on the clock, tying the game at 75.

The two teams would take that scoreline with them into overtime. With the wind fully at their backs, Boise State drew first blood in the extra period—and never gave the lead back.

Jessup and Williams both finished in double figures for the Broncos, with Derrick Alston also chipping in 19 to tie Dennis for the team-high in scoring.

The win moves Boise State (12-6, 4-4 MW) to .500 in league play—something Utah State can no longer claim. The Broncos have had issues with depth at times this year, but the big plays out of RayJ Dennis and Max Rice down the stretch is a sign of growth for Leon Rice’s bench.

It’s a step in the right direction for a Broncos team coming off two straight losses to San Diego State and Air Force. Consistency hasn’t been this team’s strong suit this season, but any indications of progress are encouraging. If nothing else, it seems unlikely that Boise State will repeat its dismal showing in the Mountain West after last season’s mess.

For the Aggies, the loss not only hands them a losing record in conference play—it might have completely dashed any remaining hopes that Utah State had to get an at-large bid in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.

Craig Smith’s team came into the season with massive expectations, but the Aggies have fallen well short of them. Utah State was pegged to win the league going away, with San Diego State a distant second in the league. Questions lingered about how the team would fare with Queta on the mend from a summer knee injury, but a 7-0 start to the season for the Aggies quelled those fears.

But since Thanksgiving, that narrative has been completely flipped on its head, with Utah State going just 7-6 in games since their holiday trip to Montego Bay for the Jamaica Classic. And things are getting worse in 2020, with the Aggies having won just one game in five tries so far in the new year. Those games include losses to Air Force and UNLV.

Even on the road, those were games the Aggies were supposed to win.

At this point, preseason projections have to be thrown out. Though it’s not entirely clear what is wrong with the Aggies, they are nowhere near where the prognosticators—myself included—thought they would be.

The Aztecs, meanwhile, are still standing as the last undefeated team in the nation.

Utah State does hold wins over LSU and Florida, but those victories won’t be enough to buoy the Aggies’ chances at getting an at-large bid. At this point, they may need to run the table the rest of the way to have a shot at one. Failing that, Utah State’s only way forward will likely be through the Mountain West Tournament.

They will have plenty of competition there, though, with San Diego State having already all but locked up their ticket to the Big Dance. No other team in the league can make such a claim, so the stakes will be enormous at the Thomas & Mack Center in March.

Let’s hope that all of those games can be exciting as this one was.

UP NEXT

Boise State: The Broncos will have something of a light week compared to their recent forays against SDSU, Air Force, and Utah State. On Saturday, Boise State hosts Fresno State (6-12, 2-5 MW), who has struggled to the tune of a 2-5 start in league play. The Bulldogs have weapons, though. Leon Rice would do well to remind his team not to rest on their laurels, especially with no midweek game to keep them sharp.

Utah State: The Aggies will look to right the ship at home against Air Force (9-10, 3-4 MW). Remember: this team beat the Aggies by 19 points just two weeks ago. The Falcons’ offense has been impressive behind the play of Ryan Swan and Lavelle Scottie, but Dave Pilipovich has yet to field a consistent winner on the year. Utah State will also host San Jose State (6-13, 2-5 MW) next Saturday.

It’s not a stretch to say that these are must-win games for Utah State if they are to have any hope at getting into the NCAA Tournament through the front door.

Andrew is a current USBWA member, covering college basketball for multiple outlets, including Mountain West Wire of the USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Busting Brackets of the FanSided Network. He also runs the Dieckhoff Power Index, a college basketball analytics system, and provides bracketology predictions throughout the season.

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Utah State vs LSU: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Odds & More

Utah State vs LSU: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Odds & More Aggies face first test of the season in Jamaica Contact/Follow @MWCwire Utah State looking to remain undefeated. Who: Utah State University Aggies vs LSU Tigers When: Friday, …

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Utah State vs LSU: Game Preview, TV & Radio Schedule, Odds & More

Aggies face first test of the season in Jamaica 

Contact/Follow  @MWCwire

Utah State looking to remain undefeated.

Who: Utah State University Aggies vs LSU Tigers

When: Friday, 11/22/2019 at 5:00 PM MST

Where: Montego Bay Convention Centre: Montego Bay, Jamaica

TV: CBSSN

Streaming: FuboTV – Get a seven-day free trial.

Radio: 1280 the Zone

Odds: USU -1.5

Utah State is making their maiden voyage away from the familiarity of the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.  The Aggies are five games into their season and Craig Smith’s squad has yet to play an away game.

The game will feature a pair of conference leading teams.  Louisiana State University, leading the SEC, and Utah State University, leading the MWC.  Each team made the trek all the way to Jamaica and will face off in the Jersey Mike’s Jamaica Classic.  Jamaica is no Logan, but I guess it’s a close second…   LSU, who was ranked in the top 25 earlier this season, will look to reclaim a spot among the best teams in the nation.  Meanwhile, Utah State looks to stay unbeaten and hopefully climb into the top ten.

LSU’s only loss this season was a two-point mishap against VCU.  They are a very talented and athletic squad.  Senior guard Skylar Mays leads the Tigers in scoring with 17 points a game.  Coincidentally his highest scoring output this season (23) came is the loss against VCU.  Not only does Mays score the ball, but he also snags nearly 7 rebounds per game.  Another Tiger to watch for is sophomore forward Darius Days.  Days is averaging nearly 13 points and 8 rebounds a game.

The Aggies have scored over 80 points in each of their 5 games this season.  It will be interesting to see if the can continue their dominant offense against an opponent such as LSU.  Sam Merrill has been the leading scorer for Utah State this season averaging nearly 18 points a game.

Merrill will need his teammates to continue playing at a high level as well.  Utah State features 5 players averaging ten or more points. Merrill (18), Bean (13), Miller (13), Anderson (12), and Brito (11).  This well balanced attack will be needed in order to outlast LSU.

Utah State sophomore center Neemias Queta made the trip to Jamaica with the rest of the Aggie team.  No word has been given whether or not he will receive any playing time over the course of the tournament.  Big man, Kuba Karwowski, has been filling in for the injured Queta.  He has done a solid job thus far averaging 3 points, 5 rebound, and 2 blocks a game.  Queta’s return could spell trouble for the Tigers.  LSU doesn’t have any players over 6’9”.  If Queta returns the Aggies would have three 7 footers at their disposal.

Overall, be on the lookout for a high paced, high scoring game.  If USU can control the pace, tempo, and style of game they should be able to emerge victorious.

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