Ag basketball escapes in OT
The No. 25-ranked Utah State men’s basketball team escaped an 11-of-18 performance from the free throw line in overtime to edge UC Riverside 77-72 Thursday night in the Spectrum.
“I don’t know what it was,” Aggie senior Cardell Butler said. “I guess it’s concentration. It’s a free throw. It’s free.”
Riverside jumped to an early lead in the first half and with 11 minutes left in the period, UCR led 17-11. The Ags battled back behind a 9-2 run to capture a 33-28 halftime lead.
“We give Riverside a whole lot of credit,” Butler said. “We knew they were going to come in thinking they were going to beat us. Our whole mentality was just to stay focused and have some determination.”
The Highlanders, led by 19 points and eight rebounds from Nate Carter, were able to control most of the second half by shooting 68.2 percent from the floor. Carter, however, missed a free throw attempt that would have secured the lead for Riverside with only 40 seconds left in regulation.
“The crowd was awesome,” Aggie Head Coach Stew Morrill said. “They were a key factor in [Riverside] missing some key free throws.”
With the ball in Butler’s hands in the final 30 seconds of the game, the Ags were unable to capitalize and the game was sent to overtime.
“I thought I had more time,” Butler said. “We were supposed to make something happen for Mark [Brown]. He was supposed to come off a screen and I was supposed to pass it to him.”
In overtime, USU benefited from nine trips to the charity stripe, but were only able to capitalize on 11-of-18 attempts – but Butler hit six of six free throws in the game’s final 30 seconds to cement the victory.
“I wasn’t nervous,” Butler said. “I knew if we played possession by possession, we would win.”
Butler finished the game with 14 points, two rebounds and two assists. Forward Nate Harris added 13 points and six rebounds, while junior Spencer Nelson recorded a 15-point, 10-rebound double-double.
For UCR, guard Mark Peters shot 2-for-4 from behind the three-point arc and finished the game with 14 points and five rebounds. Reserve guard Matt Benson added 11 points, including 3-of-5 from downtown.
“It’s not what’s wrong with us,” Morrill said. “It’s what they did. Sometimes you’ve got to give your opponents credit.”
Coming off its first loss in 18 games, USU improved to 21-2 overall and 13-1 in Big West Conference play. Riverside, who was riding a two-game winning streak coming into Thursday, fell to 8-13, 5-8.
“It’s a wake-up call,” Butler said. “A lot of teams are coming at us in this conference.”
-acf@cc.usu.edu