Aggies defeat Delta Devils behind career-high 26 points from Miller
Redshirt freshman guard Brock Miller scored a career-high 26 points for Utah State in route to a 94-59 blowout win over Mississippi Valley State on Tuesday night. With the win, Utah State starts the season 3-0 for the fifth time in the last six seasons.
Miller’s previous career high was 15 points, and this performance was just the second double-figure scoring game he’s had in an Aggie uniform. Miller made his first shot of the game and never looked back, finishing 6-11 from three-point range and 6-6 from the free throw line. He had shot just 2-8 from three before this game.
Utah State University’s men’s basketball team plays Mississippi Valley State on Nov. 13, 2018 in the Spectrum in Logan, Utah. Utah State defeated Mississippi Valley State 94-59.
“It’s something as a shooter that you definitely love to see that one go in,” Miller said. “It’s not too hard to get going like that when you have teammates that give you really good looks, that are drawing and kicking too you and finding those gaps and setting good screens.”
Utah State head coach Craig Smith said Miller is a good shooter and can knock down multiple shots in a row when he gets the chance.
“I thought he let the game come to him,” Smith said. “I don’t know that he took a bad shot, maybe one of them.”
The Aggies would start slow, leading 16-10 six minutes into the game, before going on a 23-3 run in the next seven minutes. Utah State finished the first half up 53-24 behind 13 points from junior guard Sam Merrill and 12 points from Miller. Merrill finished the game with 18 points, his eighth-straight game scoring in double-figures dating back to last season.
Utah State would only outscore the Delta Devils by six points in the second half. Junior guard Jordan Evans had 20 points in the half, with six three-pointers, for MVSU. Miller would hit four of his six three pointers in the second half for Utah State.
Sophomore guard John Knight III had high praise for Evans’ shooting in the game.
“He hit some tough shots. He just got hot at the end,” Knight III said. “Good defense but better offense. Any time you got a hand in somebody’s face and they still make it you just gotta give them a pat on the back.”
Every player in uniform played and scored at least two points for Utah State. The Aggies have now had a different leading scorer in every game this season.
“Every different game it’s been somebody different that way,” Smith said. “That’s the nice thing that we can just throw guys out there because they’ll compete and play our brand of basketball.”
Utah State looks forward to Friday’s game against Utah Valley University at 7 p.m. in the Smith Spectrum. Utah Valley is 1-2 on the season coming off losses against BYU 75-65 and Saint Mary’s 92-63. This will be the third home game for the Aggies, and it is part of the MGM Resorts Main Event which will continue as they play Saint Mary’s and either Arizona State or Mississippi State in Las Vegas next week.