Aggie women done for the season after loss to Air Force
Editor’s Note: This article was edited on March 13 to adhere to AP Style guidelines.
Air Force sent Utah State packing with a 66-59 victory, ending the Aggies’ run in the 2025 Mountain West Women’s Basketball Championship. Utah State finished the season with just four wins, but its unwavering competitiveness earned the respect of opponents, analysts and the Aggie community that stood by them.
“Thankful for the people [who] are around us at Utah State,” head coach Wesley Brooks said. “We get great support. They believe in what we’re trying to do. They believe in our program.”
Brooks and his players couldn’t hide their emotions following the loss. Senior guard Cheyenne Stubbs appeared both disappointed and overjoyed in the postgame press conference.
“You can’t say that we ever gave up,” Stubbs said. “That’s the resiliency that Coach Wes always talks about. No matter what’s going on or what’s happening — the score, our record — we’re going to fight to the very end — all the way to 0-0 when the buzzer goes off.”
USU Women’s Basketball falls to Air Force in First Round of Mountain West Basketball Championship
Playing in her final game as an Aggie, Stubbs delivered a gutsy performance with 21 points and a career-high 14 rebounds, knocking down momentum-shifting 3-pointers and battling against taller opponents.
As many stars do, Stubbs embodied the personality and attitude of the team. She was often underestimated and counted out, yet she ends her career ranked among the top scorers in program history.
Perhaps her greatest development in her final year of college basketball was her leadership — playing more without the ball in her hands and empowering younger teammates to step up in big moments.
Associate head coach Valaida Harris and assistant coach CJ Vaifanua-Pace confer while assistant coach Joe Haigh and Alexis Hyder look to the court during the game against Air Force at the Mountain West Basketball Championship at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 9.
Stubbs in particular instilled confidence in her backcourt partner freshman guard Carlie Latta. The duo played their fourth full game in a row, each logging all 40 minutes. Latta delivered in clutch moments, finishing with 16 points and four 3-pointers.
A lot of losing teams this time of year claim they fought hard. They might say they never gave up. However, it’s rare for a team that spent the entire season at the bottom of the standings to be feared and respected by its competition.
Air Force head coach Stacy McIntyre praised the Aggies after the game.
“That is one of the best four-win teams that anybody will face this late in the season,” McIntyre said. “Regardless of the fact that we’ve beaten them at our place and also in Logan, we came in focused, knowing we needed to get a win.”
Utah State’s unwillingness to quit has become a recurring theme among Mountain West broadcasters and analysts. Phrases like, “This team plays better than its record shows,” or “They just never go away until the buzzer sounds” have become common.
The Aggies displayed that relentlessness yet again against the Falcons.
Trailing 23-9 with eight minutes left in the second quarter, Latta drilled three straight jumpers to cut the deficit to nine.
Down 52-39 heading into the fourth, Utah State nearly mounted a comeback. Stubbs, Latta and freshman forward Taliyah Logwood combined for all 20 of the team’s fourth-quarter points.
While many losing coaches blame their team’s struggles on a lack of effort, it seemed this Aggies squad may have wanted it too much. Their 16 turnovers and 22 fouls weren’t the result of laziness but rather over-aggressiveness and playing too fast.
Their shots weren’t ill-advised — they were worked for. While working too hard isn’t always an ideal trait, it can serve as a building block in the culture Brooks hopes to establish for years to come.
“Logan is a special place,” Brooks said. “We have special people, and we’re going to bring championships home at some point. So, we have a championship-minded focus.”
Brooks intends to spend the offseason recruiting aggressively to address personnel needs while also developing his young core led by Latta, Logwood and others.
“I trust what we can do in recruiting,” Brooks said. “I trust our connections. I trust our network. I trust our staff. So, that’s how we will improve.”