‘Spectrum magic’ gives Aggies win
For the few who might have left the Spectrum with 5:31 remaining in the game and the Aggies down 13 points, a big dose of “spectrum magic” was missed.
That’s the phrase USU Head Basketball Coach Stew Morrill gave to the Aggies’ 80-79 come-from-behind victory over the Boise State Broncos Thursday night in the Spectrum.
Down by two points with 18 seconds left, the Aggies (14-5, 3-2 in WAC play) gained possession after a missed layup by Bronco guard Eric Lane. On the other end USU guard Jaycee Carroll’s running jumper was blocked. The ball ended up in teammate Chaz Spicer’s hands underneath the basket.
Spicer’s shot went in as he was fouled by Bronco guard Coby Karl.
The scene was reminiscent of the way Spicer put away the University of Utah in the Spectrum with a three-point shot back on Dec. 6.
Spicer’s ensuing free throw found the bottom of the net, sending the crowd of 8,307 into a frenzy.
The Broncos (8-8, 2-3) got one more chance to win the game, but it was an off-balanced, unthreatening 3-pointer by Lane from the top left corner of the 3-point line.
“It was crazy,” said Spicer, who led all scorers with 20 points and eight rebounds. “The ball kind of fell into my hands on the last play.”
At the time of the 13-point hole, it certainly appeared to be doom at the doors and a rare USU home loss.
But hustle and perseverance proved to be key.
“I’m still trying to sort it all out in my head,” said Carroll, who overcame a two-point first half to end the game with 19 points. “[Boise State] was real physical with me. They bumped me. I wanted to go down fighting.”
That he did.
The 13-point deficit was trimmed to seven points with 1:17 remaining thanks to a hustling, relentless Carroll who stole the ball and then put in a fast-break layup for his team.
Two free throws from USU forward Chris Session, along with a clutch 3-pointer from Carroll with 49 seconds remaining pulled USU to within two points. Then came Spicer’s 3-point play on the Aggies’ next possession.
“All of a sudden we’re up one, and we’re like, ‘what?'” Morrill said. “Spectrum magic is about all I can figure out. Our guys kept battling. That’s a tough loss for Boise. I really don’t know what to say. I don’t remember winning a game like that, but my memory isn’t what it was.”
Even more surprising is the fact that the Broncos’ Karl, one of the best free-throw shooters in the WAC, missed two free throws in the final minute which could have given his team the win, or at least have pushed the game to overtime.
The Broncos played well enough to win.
Proof of that is found not only by the fact they were up 13 points late in the game, but also in the statistic that the Aggies held the lead only twice (both times in the first half) before Spicer’s three-point play.
Morrill was as surprised as anybody that his team won.
“It’s been a special building for a long time,” he said. “We don’t win that game on the road. We don’t win that game in a park.”
The Broncos were led by Karl and forward Reggie Larry. Both players tallied 17 points and seven rebounds.
The Broncos also out-shot the Aggies on the game with a 51.7 percent from field-goal range (including a 59 percent in the second half) to the Aggies’ 50 percent.
Durrall Peterson, who fouled out of the game with 57 seconds remaining, had 18 points on the night to go along with five assists and two rebounds.
“It was lovely,” Peterson said with a grin. “It beats sitting over there and losing.”
Next up: San Jose State
The Aggies will play their fifth game in 10 days this Saturday as they travel to California to take on the San Jose State Spartans (2-14, 1-3).
“We had a lot of courage tonight, and we’ll need it again (against the Spartans),” Morrill said.
-sbhislop@cc.usu.edu