Utah State cruises past Westminster in historic fashion

Utah State basketball continued its dominant start on Wednesday night, dismantling Westminster 117-53. For the first time in program history, the Aggies have scored over 100 points in each of their first three games. 

Utah State was fueled by another complete team performance, finding points from all 10 of 11 players that checked into the game. 

“Got to give our guys credit with 28 assists. Really, really pleased with how we keep passing the ball and forcing tempo,” said head coach Jerrod Calhoun after the game. “We want to keep getting better in a lot of different areas, but very, very pleased with our ball security and just overall offense.”

The Aggies took control of the game early, ripping off a 12-0 after a Westminster three-pointer to take a 12-3 lead. After conceding a layup to the Griffins, USU took off on another 10-0 run to take a commanding 22-5 lead. 

Utah State kept their foot on the gas the whole first period, finding yet another 10-0 run later in the half and going into the half up 65-25.

The second half was more of the same for the Aggies, as they scored another 52 points to cruise to a 64-point victory, their biggest win since 2019. 

Utah State had everything going for them in their win over the Griffins. In their previous two wins, they certainly flexed their offensive prowess, but Wednesday night unlocked another aspect of their game. In their previous two games, the Aggies shot a combined 36% from beyond the arc. 

In Wednesday’s win, Utah State shot 55% from three, connecting on 17-31 shots from deep.

“We knew we maybe weren’t in our best rhythm in the earlier games, and, you know, we knew that it was going to happen sooner or later,” said guard Ian Martinez after the game. 

Martinez led the charge for the Aggies in the win, scoring a team-high 24 points and knocking down seven of nine three-point shots. 

“We’ll keep doing the same thing, keeping the same mindset when we go out there and shoot … never stop shooting, always be confident.” 

The Aggies came into the game with a 3.3 assist-to-turnover ratio, which ranks them among the top teams in the country in assist-to-turnover efficiency. Utah State continued spreading the ball at a high clip against the Griffins, totaling 28 assists to just nine turnovers. 

“Our guy’s ability to find each other, spacing, cutting, the things that really a lot of people don’t talk about with offense … you have to credit the players and the type of players we have, they really, really enjoy moving the ball,” said Calhoun. “That’s what basketball is. It’s about finding, creating and keeping advantages, spacing the floor and taking what the defense gives you, and our guys have really played at a high level.”

The Aggies have shown the depth and talent that they have through the early games this season. Utah State had a season-high six players in double figures and shot a season-high 63% from the field in their win. 

The Aggies will be back in action on Monday night at 7 p.m. in the Spectrum as they host Montana, looking to improve to 4-0.