Dan Akin’s return to form
LOGAN — Forward Dan Akin slammed a one–handed jam into the hoop at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum to put Utah State Men’s Basketball up 75–50 over Wyoming on Jan. 10. His athletic dunk drew cheers throughout the arena, and Akin’s teammates all jumped to their feet from the bench to celebrate the highlight.
Hurd goes crazy for free ice cream🤯🍦
📺 @FS1 #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/0sGOgNN1QJ
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) January 11, 2023
But for a while on Tuesday, it didn’t seem like Akin would even play in the second half.
After setting a screen near the end of the first half, Akin fell to the ground clutching his left knee. He was able to limp off the court under his own power but head coach Ryan Odom, among others, was concerned.
“I was concerned because Dan’s had a knee injury,” Odom said. “Whenever he goes down with that, he gets nervous, and certainly, I know him extremely well, and so I get nervous too.”
But when the Aggies trotted down the tunnel to the court after halftime, there was Akin, ready to warm up. And when he hit the court, Akin went off. He dominated in the paint, securing nine rebounds and 12 points in the second half alone, pushing him to his fifth double–double of the year with 16 points and 15 boards.
“I think you saw what Dan can do with a little bit of room in there,” Odom said. “He was able to come up with a big game.”
It was a refreshing turnaround for Akin and the Aggies, who struggled at Boise State the game before. At Extra Mile Arena, it seemed Akin let his emotions get the best of him. During the first half, Akin repeatedly felt like he was being fouled by Boise State without calls from the officials. Later on, Bronco Max Rice and Akin got tangled up during a screen and squabbled, resulting in both players receiving technical fouls.
“Technicals are not what either team wants,” Odom said after the Boise State game. “We have to be better than that. Obviously, (Leon Rice) is going to talk to his team, and I’m going to talk to my team about that. It’s just not OK to react inappropriately to competition like that.”
Playing against Wyoming, it seemed Akin had learned his lesson and moved on.
“I was proud of his response,” Odom said. “He was not himself the other night. Tonight he was. He was much better.”
Akin responded to the Cowboys with flashy dunks, tough defense and gritty rebounds. He moved past the injury and emotions from the game before and focused on guarding Hunter Maldonado — who Odom called Wyoming’s best player. Odom said Akin did a “really nice job” defending the First Team All–Mountain West guard, forcing him to shoot tough shots all night.
“Definitely a good match–up,” Akin said. “I can hold my own in the post.”
The defensive effort from Akin, guard Sean Bairstow and other Aggies kept Maldonado to 20 points — the same total he put up against No. 23 San Diego State the week before.
To close out the night, Akin punished the rim again. He got elevated for a two–handed dunk to finish an alley–oop from Bairstow in the final minutes.
Dan dunks simply cannot be stopped🔥
📺 @FS1 #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/lndlH76YZP
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) January 11, 2023
Akin will face his next test in the paint tonight as the Aggies visit the no. 2 team in the Mountain West, Nevada.
Featured image by Sam Warner from the Wyoming game.