Utah State Basketball Dismantles UNLV, Advances To Mountain West Semifinals
Mar 13, 2025, 11:52 PM
(Photo courtesy of Utah State Athletics)
(Photo courtesy of Utah State Athletics)
LAS VEGAS – Utah State basketball shot out of the gates at the Mountain West Men’s Basketball Championship with a 70-59 win over the UNLV Rebels at the Thomas & Mack Center on Thursday.
Overall, the defense was great and the offense was solid. What hurt the Aggies the most was a lack of discipline on defense. The Rebels took advantage of this which resulted in 37 free throw attempts to just 17 from USU.
However, Utah State was clearly the better team on both ends. Ian Martinex led the team in scoring with 17. Mason Falslev was a close second with 15.
Utah State basketball will lace them up again tomorrow as they face the Colorado State Rams in the semifinals at 10:00 p.m. (MT).
𝐑𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐃𝐔𝐁 🤘
Spectrum South was ROCKIN’ tonight! pic.twitter.com/O499qT13yP
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2025
Utah State Basketball Holds Off UNLV In Quarterfinals
First Half
The Aggies came out of the gates strong, especially on defense. The Rebels were shocked by the USU zone, only able to make one of their first seven attempts.
As a result, Utah State jumped out to an 11-3 lead through five minutes. If it weren’t for three early UNLV offensive rebounds, the scoreline could’ve been even uglier for the hometown Rebels.
deyton HOW??@deyton242 pic.twitter.com/yvzhAq5TzR
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2025
The suffocating defense did not let up at all. One for seven turned into one for 11. Six of UNLV’s first eight points came at the free-throw line.
This was both a blessing and a curse for USU. The Rebels couldn’t get anything going in the half-court but they continued to test the Aggies and entered the bonus in less than 10 minutes.
At the midpoint of the opening half, Utah State led 16-10.
Mason with the kiss off the glass 🤌 pic.twitter.com/8yn9Yovfz0
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2025
After playing on their heels for the better part of the half, UNLV shot back. They turned up the defensive intensity and forced a miss or turnover on five straight possessions. During this period, the Rebels went on a 9-0 run.
The bleeding was finally stopped by Martinez as he drilled his second three of the game.
The Rebels weren’t done there though. The 9-0 run increased to 17-3 and UNLV took its first lead of the game with six minutes left in the half.
The lead was short-lived, to say the least. Tucker Anderson nailed a third three-pointer to put USU back in front. The Aggies wouldn’t lose that advantage for the rest of the half.
20 minutes in, Utah State shot 44.8 percent from the floor and 40 percent from deep. UNLV shot 25.9 and 12.5 percent but shot more than three times as many free throws.
The Aggies led 36-29 at the break.
HALF | 20 minutes to go!
Aggies lead 36-29 heading into halftime pic.twitter.com/KDyStLSjd1
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2025
Second Half
The start of the second half was similar to the first half. Competitive and gritty with Utah State holding the slight advantage.
Through the first seven minutes, the Aggies outscored the Rebels 14-9.
Karson Templin provided USU with a perfect spark off the bench. He subbed in, hustled, and scored two quick buckets to give Utah State their largest lead of the game at 12.
.@USUBasketball is HYPED after taking a BIG lead over UNLV pic.twitter.com/zwcAHWpJ0K
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 14, 2025
Jerrod Calhoun’s halftime speech must have been centered on remaining aggressive without being reckless. The Aggies were more poised on defense and as they were called for fewer fouls, the floodgates opened.
Through 12 minutes, USU still forced UNLV to shoot 4/16 but fouled less than half as much.
A Martinez layup in traffic gave him 10 points and put Utah State up by 14 with eight minutes left. The senior guard has scored in double figures in every game this season.
THAT’S AGGIE DEFENSE 😤😤😤 pic.twitter.com/wtio7dWiIw
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2025
USU’s lackluster second-half offense—or UNLV’s strong defense—kept the door open late. With five minutes on the clock, Utah State led 58-50.
What haunted Utah State in the first half came around once again late in the second half. Truly the only thing that kept the game interesting was the free throw discrepancy.
However, the dual-edged sword of aggressive defense ended up working in the Aggies’ favor.
They held on down the stretch to beat UNLV, 70-58.
