Men look to build on Wednesday’s win
Cal-State Bakersfield was one of the two non-conference teams the Utah State Aggie men defeated last season, and USU will be looking to get the same result when they take on the Roadrunners tomorrow night in the spectrum. Here’s what to watch for.
Bendall to come up big
Senior all-WAC forward Nate Bendall has been slowly gaining minutes, and if all goes well he should see even more against the Roadrunners. The Aggies need him on the floor almost as much as they need senior forward Tai Wesley. Bendall may have only finished with four points and five rebounds in 17 minutes of play, but his impact goes much further than the stats. He is a big presence down low, and his ability to run the complicated offensive sets is invaluable. The Aggies will need Bendall to help Wesley contain junior forward Rashad Savage, who is averaging 10 rebounds and nine points per game for the Roadrunners.
Containment key
Unless the Aggies plan on scoring more than 67.9 points per game that they are averaging, they will need to play lock-down defense on the Roadrunners. The Roadrunners back-court may be the most offensively potent that the Aggies have faced all year. Sophomore guard Stephon Carter is averaging nearly 20 points per game, and he’s shooting a proficient 50 percent from the floor and 47 percent from beyond-the-arc. Senior wingmen Pooh Williams and Tyler Newbold will have their hands full all night with senior guard Donavan Bragg and junior guard Alex Johnson, who are averaging 13 points apiece.
When will the offense come to life?
Eighty-one points may seem like a lot, but the Aggies still aren’t where they were last year as far as offensive efficiency goes. Shooting 45 percent from the field and 36 percent shooting from the 3-point line is almost where the Aggies want to be. It took a 44 point blowout over the Hawaii Warriors last year at home for the Aggies to kick things into gear. Tomorrow night would be the perfect opportunity for the Aggies to blowout the Roadrunners and get things going on the offensive end.
– ty.d.hus@aggiemail.usu.edu