Utah State Basketball Overcomes Thanksgiving Hangover To Stay Undefeated
Nov 29, 2025, 4:41 PM
Utah State Aggie guard MJ Collins Jr. eyes the defense in a USU win over Montana State at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum on Saturday, November 29. (Utah State Athletics)
(Utah State Athletics)
LOGAN, Utah – Montana State had dreams of an upset, but undefeated Utah State basketball held serve on their home court to beat the Bobcats 84-81 in overtime on Saturday afternoon.
It was the Aggies’ second single-digit win of 2025 as the team improved to 7-0 in non-conference play.
USU hosted the Montana State Bobcats at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum on Saturday, November 29.
⬅️ 𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐌!#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/3AVMZCr2Zv
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 29, 2025
MJ Collins Jr. followed up his 40-point game in the Aggies’ last outing with a team-high 23 points with four threes in 42 minutes.
Mason Falslev added 17 points, eight rebounds, five steals, and two assists. Karson Templin added 15 points and eight boards, while Kolby King contributed 11 points and eight rebounds in the win.
Point guard Drake Allen finished with nine of USU’s 17 assists, adding three steals on the defensive end.
First Half
A slow start for both teams led to a 12-12 deadlock at the first media timeout.
The Aggies scored nine of the following 13 points to build a 23-16 lead when MJ Collins knocked down his second deep ball of the afternoon.
Can we interest you in a pair of quick triples?#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/jUYfaeph7A
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 29, 2025
The Bobcats battled back, cutting the lead to four in the final minute of the half thanks to a more than two-minute scoring drought from the Aggies.
MJ Collins Jr. led USU with 14 first-half points while the Aggies took a 36-34 halftime lead. Collins made 4-of-6 field goal attempts, including three of five threes in 17 minutes. Kolby King knocked down a pair of threes to finish the half with nine points.
Utah State forced five steals in the opening 20 minutes, leading to eight points off turnovers.
Second Half
The Bobcats continued to battle in the second half, keeping USU from pulling away.
Garry getting the crowd up‼️#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/QVkE5UgrNf
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 29, 2025
Utah State led 63-61 heading into the final media timeout.
Montana State took a 69-57 lead when Cavin Holden hit a corner three following an extended out-of-bounds challenge that the Aggies ultimately lost.
👋👋👋#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/UcLFYDdw5F
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 29, 2025
MJ Collins Jr. hit two free throws to tie the game at 59 with 40 seconds left.
Following a timeout, King and Mason Falslev combined to force a Bobcat turnover with 18.8 seconds remaining.
USU wasn’t able to get a shot off before the final horn, forcing overtime, tied at 69.
Overtime
Both teams traded baskets in the opening minutes of overtime.
MJ COLLINS 🔥🔥#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/ubZjozoWnH
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 29, 2025
Utah State held a 74-73 lead after Templin made a second-chance bucket with 2:56 left.
Team-first, heads-up ball movement opened enough space for Falslev to hit a floater to give his team a 76-73 lead with 49.9 seconds left.
The Cache Valley native secured a defensive rebound on Montana State’s next possession before getting fouled and hitting two free throws for a five-point USU lead with 33 seconds left.
𝘾𝙇𝙐𝙏𝘾𝙃 🙌#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/gpMhtxTee5
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 29, 2025
Utah State survived a free-throw battle in the final seconds, prevailing with an 84-81 OT win.
Follow Utah State basketball with KSL Sports
Utah State faces the South Florida Bulls in Tampa, Florida, on Thursday, December 4. Tip-off is at 5 p.m. MT.
Find Utah State’s entire 2025-26 men’s basketball schedule here.
Listen to USU basketball games on KSL Sports Zone with Scott Garrard on the call.
Find KSL Sports coverage of Utah State University Athletics here.
Take us with you wherever you go.
Brian Preece is a sports.ksl.com insider covering Locals in MLB and the Salt Lake Bees. Follow Brian’s Bees and Beehive baseball here. Find Brian on X, Instagram, and BlueSky at @bpreece24.
