Utah State Makes Bid For Top 25 After Knocking Off Fresno State
Jan 4, 2025, 9:19 PM | Updated: Jan 6, 2025, 2:40 pm
LOGAN, Utah – Is Utah State ticketed for its first AP Top 25 appearance of the season after improving to 4-0 in conference play with an 89-83 win over Fresno State? It was far from perfect as the Aggies fell behind by 17 in the first half before taking over in the final 30 minutes.
The Aggies (14-1, 4-0) returned home after three consecutive road games on Saturday, January 4, to host the Fresno State Bulldogs (4-11, 0-4).
NEVER. A. DOUBT.#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/ix9iWK04L5
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) January 5, 2025
Karson Templin equaled his career-high, finishing with an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double. Drake Allen returned to the court with a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double as five Aggies scored in double-figures.
Ian Martinez added 16 points, while Mason Falslev found the range for 14 points. Dexter Akanno rounded out the group with 13 points and one posterizing slam.
Bulldogs forward Alex Crawford led all scorers with 26 points.
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First Half
Four giveaways leading to eight Fresno State points, combined with some uncharacteristically poor defense in the opening minutes, allowed the Bulldogs to grab a 26-13 lead with 10:47 left in the half.
Fresno made 10-of-17 shots to open the game, while the Aggies sputtered to a 6-of-19 start. USU leading scorers Ian Martinez and Mason Falslev combined to miss ten of their first twelve shots.
Easy buckets for Fish 🐟@Isaac_Johnson33 pic.twitter.com/EqLOJdbBsi
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) January 5, 2025
Utah State bounced back from its slow start, using its defense to ignite a comeback. USU held the Bulldogs without a field goal for the last 3:31 of the half to get within three points at the break. The Aggies closed the half on a 12-4 run.
Dexter Akanno and Martinez led USU with eight points each. Aubin Gateretse went 3-of-3 from the floor for six points and two rebounds.
Aggies trying to shake the Holiday cobwebs loose. Trailed by 17 with 7:40 left in the half but end it on a 24-10 run to cut Fresno's lead to 3 at the break.
Drake Allen providing a key spark off the bench. pic.twitter.com/nVSqQaUbmq
— Scott Garrard (@ScottyGZone) January 5, 2025
USU trailed 42-39 at the half.
Second Half
The comeback continued in the second half, with Utah State grabbing a 52-51 lead after Martinez finished a four-point play.
A 4⃣-point play for 4⃣!@IanJumaine pic.twitter.com/QlljWUYPUF
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) January 5, 2025
The lead grew to six after Karson Templin knocked down his second three of the night.
Moments later, Akanno got everybody in the Spectrum out of their seats when he cocked back and threw down a thunderous dunk over a Bulldog defender. Akanno hit the free throw to give USU a 69-59 lead.
DEXTER DOES NOT CARE ABOUT YOUR FEELINGS! https://t.co/lDwU7sOG0Z
— Utah State Athletics (@USUAthletics) January 5, 2025
After falling behind by 14, Fresno State trimmed the advantage to seven with 3:08 left.
A putback slam by Templin off a Drake Allen miss all but sealed the win for Utah State with under a minute to play and a six-point lead.
KT with the dunk and his first career double-double 💪@karsontemplin pic.twitter.com/nxUpFKxUYS
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) January 5, 2025
The Bulldogs got within three with 16.5 seconds left, but three free throws gave Utah State an 89-83 win.
Following USU With KSL Sports Zone
Utah State heads to the Bay Area for a midweek matchup with the San Jose State Spartans on Tuesday, January 7. Tip-off is at 7 p.m. MT. The game is streamed on the Mountain West Network.
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.
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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.
