Meet the Aggies’ host of incoming freshman, led by rising star Koby McEwen
Freshman guard Koby McEwen comes from a team who was simply too good to play in 2A — a small, private school in San Pete county called Wasatch Academy.
Wasatch Academy’s entire student body would fit in section K in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum where McEwen will soon play.
”I’m going to be really nervous. I’ve never played in front of a lot of people before,” McEwen said, anxious for the first home game on Nov. 4. “Not like this.”
McEwen has some experience on the big stage, though.
The Wasatch Academy Tigers went independent two seasons ago, traveling the country to play some of the best teams in states like Alabama and Florida. In the midst of a difficult schedule, McEwen bolstered the Tigers to a 24-7 record last season.
McEwen, the Toronto, Canada native, decided to come to Utah State because his first coach at Wasatch Academy, Geno Morgan, and current Aggie assistant coach Louis Wilson were college teammates/roommates and have similar attitudes and coaching styles.
Morgan, who McEwen had developed a deep relationship with, passed away last year.
“Koby had so much of a relationship with Morgan, it was very easy for him to transition to Wilson,” said Curtis Condie, former Aggie assistant coach who coached Koby his senior year.
When Koby showed interest in Utah State, Condie, being a former Aggie himself, brought Koby up for a few campus visits.
“He feels at home and I think that’s a big thing for him,” Condie said. “That’s why he liked it at Wasatch and I think it’s the same thing.”
McEwen has separated himself from the beginning, averaging 18.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game his senior season. Aggie head coach Tim Duryea said the Aggies had shown interest in McEwen since his freshman year at Wasatch Academy.
With earning Mountain West Co-Freshman of the Year, the first for the Aggies since they joined the Mountain West Conference in 2013, and leading both blue and white teams with 12 points at the annual Primetime Madness scrimmage, he will likely be the Aggies’ starting guard this season.
“Koby is physically gifted for a freshman,” Duryea said.
McEwen, the six-foot-four-inch 195 pound powerhouse, brings all the finesse to Logan as the Aggies’ highest recruited guard in history.
Not only does he make an impact on the court, he deeply cares about his teammates and is extremely loyal.
“And not just basketball-wise but his mental attitude and his work ethic,” Condie said. “He brings toughness that I think has been missing up there. As you know, he also has a million dollar smile.”
McEwen has already received attention from many Aggie fans and lots of love via social media.
But everything isn’t always serious for McEwen — he likes to sing and play chess in his free time.
“I like to sing by myself a lot. I went from terrible to OK,” McEwen said. “I taught myself how to sing a little bit. I sing in my apartment all the time. Coming up the stairs, in my room.”
McEwen is not the only freshman who will have a large impact on the court this year and several others will vie for leadership positions on the team. Six of the seven new freshman received scholarships — the only exception being Trevin Dorius (forward) from Wasatch High School who will redshirt because of his decision to serve an LDS mission.
“Anytime you have a large freshman class, and a freshman class that is highly regarded like ours is, you’re looking for immediate impact,” Duryea said of the largest freshman class in Aggie history. “You know that they’re gonna get better in the future, but you know that you need some of them to get better right away.”
With the team’s only returners being Julion Pearre, Shane Rector, Jalen Moore, Quinn Taylor and Alexis Dargenton, Duryea’s main focus is transitioning the freshman to the college level and then place them into starting and backup positions from there.
“It’s kind of a hodgepodge of backgrounds and separation, but hopefully they will all come together and it will be a positive experience,” Duryea said.
Klay Stall (forward) from Basha High School in Chandler, Arizona is recovering from an ACL injury that wiped out his senior year.
“The coaches were super loyal after I got hurt,” Stall said. “It was tough missing your senior year, but recovery went well so excited to start playing again.”
Another huge contributor will be guard Sam Merrill from Bountiful High School, who recently returned from an LDS mission in Nicaragua. Merrill has a variety of athletic talent, lettering in basketball, baseball, golf and football high school.
“The whole idea of playing under these new lights with new people is exciting,” Merrill said.
The Aggies are also welcoming in guard Diogo Brito, who is originally from Portugal and came to the U.S. to play high school basketball at Mountain Mission High School in Virginia. He also had the opportunity to play overseas for the Portuguese national team since 2012 — bringing professional experience to the roster.
Daron Henson (wing) from Cathedral High School in Pasadena, California and Abel Porter (guard) from Davis High School wrap up the freshman class.
“We do a lot of things together we don’t leave each other behind,” McEwen said. “It makes it easier to play with each other on the court because we get along.”