Aggies gear up for high-powered Spartans
The Aggies had some trouble securing their first Western Athletic Conference win of the season Wednesday night against the Hawaii Warriors, and they’ll be facing another difficult task in defeating the San Jose State Spartans tonight in the Spectrum.
The Spartans (8-4, 0-1 WAC), who are led by senior guards Adrian Oliver and Justin Graham, might have the most potent backcourt in the WAC.
“Those two guys really test your defense,” Aggie head coach Stew Morrill said.
Oliver is averaging 24.9 points per game and Graham is averaging 15 points per game. The duo is responsible for more than half of the Spartans 74.8 points per game.
“Those two are awfully good players and veterans,” Morrill said of Oliver and Graham. “They have some guys to go with them, but it is kind of their show a little bit. Those two really test your defense. We’ll have to guard a little better than we did (against Hawaii).”
The Spartans had trouble in their first WAC game against the Fresno State Bulldogs however. Graham scored three points on 1-of-10 shooting from the field and 0-of-1 from 3-point range, 3-point line.
The Bulldogs got big performances from senior forward Nedeljko Golubovic and pre-season all-WAC sophomore center Greg Smith, who dropped 16 and 13 points respectively.
When the Aggies defeated the Spartans in the Spectrum during the 2009-10 season, the Aggies also used their size to defeat the Spartans. Forwards Nate Bendall and Brady Jardine scored 20 and 17 points respectively.
The Aggies and Spartants tip-off action at 7:05 p.m. tonight at the Spectrum.
-ty.d.hus@aggiemail.usu.edu