WAC’s No.1 comes to USU

Now that the Utah State men’s basketball team has a winning record in conference play, it will host the only remaining unbeaten team in the WAC – Louisiana Tech.

The Bulldogs bring a 4-0 conference record with them to the Spectrum Wednesday. The game will start at 7:05 p.m.

“Obviously, they’re a good basketball team,” Head Coach Stew Morrill said. “They come into the Spectrum with a lot of momentum.”

LTU is led by Paul Millsap, who is the leading rebounder in the country, averaging 12.5 boards per game. He is also 13th in the nation in scoring with 20.8 points per game.

“They have one of the premier players in the country in Millsap,” Morrill said. “I have never seen as good of a rebounder as him. He has strong hands and good touch. He takes up a lot of space.”

Millsap is listed at 6 feet 8 inches, 245 pounds. Morrill said double-teaming the big man is much easier said than done.

“I wish it were that simple,” he said. “Other teams have doubled him and he had 28 [points] and 15 [rebounds]. He’s a veteran guy who’s used to getting double-teamed. It may or may not work on him.”

Morrill said there are other reasons why the Aggies might not double down on Millsap.

“Other players get overlooked because of him,” he said. “They all play around Millsap.”

LTU is 11-6 overall with wins over Texas Tech, Hawai’i and Fresno State. However, the Bulldogs have also lost to Yale and Nebraska. Their only road wins in conference play have been at Boise State and Idaho.

“This is the first time a first-place WAC team has come to the Spectrum,” Morrill said. “I hope the crowd shows it what it’s been about.”

In the last three games, USU has started three different players at the small forward position. Durrall Peterson was the starter all season until Chris Session started against BSU last Thursday. Nick Hammer then started against Idaho on Saturday.

“I thought all three played well against Boise,” Morrill said. “Quite frankly, [Hammer] struggled against Idaho. But the other guys stepped up and played well. It’s kind of a coin toss as to who starts. Whoever is in there better rebound the ball.”

This will be the first of two tough opponents USU will face. After playing LTU on Wednesday, the Aggies will travel to Reno to face Nevada on Monday. Nevada had been ranked in the top 25 in the nation until a few weeks ago.

“The next two games are huge challenges,” Morrill said. “Our guys need to be aware of the challenges. It should be fun.”

-bhhinton@cc.usu.edu