USU men take down SDSU for seventh straight MW win
Brock Miller was one of many Aggies that came into Thursday evening’s game ready to play.
“He had a great look to him all week,” said Utah State head coach Craig Smith. “Like he just felt like he was going to have a good game.”
Whatever Smith saw out of Miller, he was right, because the junior shooting guard ended up with a game-high 16 points, including a dagger three to extend the lead to 13 with 3:53 to play. The Aggies beat No. 36 San Diego State 57 to 45, giving the Aztecs their first loss on the road in 677 days, while USU extended its own win streak to nine games.
Beyond Miller, the offensive performance wasn’t extraordinary. USU shot just 23 of 53 from the field and had 18 turnovers – but the team’s tenacious defensive effort resulted in arguably its best win of the season. The Aggies held the Aztecs to 17 of 54 from the field (31.5 percent), forced 16 Aztec turnovers, and won the rebounding battle 36 to 34.
“It was a bit of a rock fight out there,” Smith said. “It was hard for anyone to get scores…I thought we defended at a very high level as did they, but to able to hold a team like that 45 points, and that kind of shooting percentage I thought our guys did an excellent job.”
“We’re a tough resilient team and we play to win,” Miller said. “At the end of the day I thought we were the toughest team.”
Another guy who certainly brought it was junior center Neemias Queta. The big man went 7 of 11 from the field for 14 points and had a season-high 16 rebounds while holding his defensive assignment, Aztec center Nathan Mensah, to 13 points and nine rebounds. Freshman guard Rollie Worster had five points, four rebounds and three assists and freshman guard Steven Ashworth had five points, three assists and two rebounds.
From the moment the ball was tipped, the Aggies had a fire in their eye, displaying an urgency so apparent that new head football coach Blake Anderson called it the “toughest effort I’ve ever seen” during a halftime speech.
However, the first half was sloppy. USU forced 11 Aztec turnovers and held them to 8-22 from the field (36.4 percent). They kept SDSU’s best playmakers, Jordan Schakel and Matt Mitchell in check, holding them to two and five points respectively. The 20 points in the first half was a season-low for the Aztecs. The Aggies had seven turnovers of their own but shot 14-29 (48.3 percent) from the field.
The team’s heart was on full display. One sequence stood out in particular: Neemias Queta had a decisive block out of bounds on a shot attempt from Schakel. On the ensuing Aztec possession, Bean poked the ball loose, dove for it, lost it, then Worster dove on it and got it back to Bean. He then got it back to Worster, who found Bairstow for the layup. The scramble for the ball electrified the crowd and forced Aztec head coach Brian Dutcher to call a timeout with 7:53 to play.
SDSU tried to keep pace for the remainder of the half, but the Aggie offense had other things in mind, as a pair of buckets from Queta and two threes from Alphonso Anderson gave USU a 33 to 20 lead heading into the break.
“That stretch late in the first half (Alphonso) had a couple of big threes right on that right-wing where our guys found him and he rhythmed into them,” Smith said.
Starting the second half, SDSU had a run of its own, forcing Aggie turnovers and hitting shots which cut the lead to 35-30 with 16:55 left in the game.
“Two many turnovers, too much sloppy play on the offensive end,” Smith said.
Things went back and forth, with both teams struggling to make a basket. The Aggies shot 9 of 24 (37.5 percent) in the second half, while SDSU was 9 of 32 (28.1 percent.)
A savvy turn and finish by Queta in the post 10:18 mark, and a Queta put back dunk at the 8:15 mark, were the only buckets from the 12 to eight-minute mark and extended the USU lead, 45 to 35.
The physicality, which was present all game, reached a peak in the winding minutes, with bodies flying on top of each other, jousting for rebounds. After an apparent no call with 6:57 left in the game, Dutcher flipped his top, resulting in a technical foul and two free throws for the Aggies.
Moments later, Mitchell went for a rebound and buckled his knee, falling on the court in pain. He would have to leave the game, and his status to this point is unknown.
Following the injury, the Aggies continued to play tough defense, had two made threes from MIller and Worster and finished with a victory.
“We’ve really been able to hold teams down the stretch,” said Miller. “I think that’s what’s allowed us to come out with these wins, especially when it gets close like tonight.”
It will be a quick turnaround for both teams, with the next meeting Saturday morning in the Spectrum, 11:30 am on CBS.
“Not only is it in 36 hours and the same team, it’s two really good teams going at it,” said Smith. “Everytime we play each other it’s a physical game.”
@jacobnielson12
—sports@usustatesman.com