Utah State withstands late Nevada surge to reach Mountain West title game
Mar 13, 2026, 9:59 PM | Updated: 11:38 pm
Utah State freshman Adlan Elamin attempts a shot during the 2026 Mountain West Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada. (USU Athletics, Tyler Knowles)
(USU Athletics, Tyler Knowles)
LAS VEGAS, Nevada – The top-seeded Utah State Aggies are headed to the Mountain West championship game after earning a 79-66 win over Nevada.
Utah State faced the No. 5 Nevada Wolfpack at the Thomas & Mack Center in the Mountain West Championships semifinals.
RELATED: Is Utah State destined for its best NCAA Tournament seed ever?
𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏 𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 🤘#ShowMe x #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/4l2PqKPjXs
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2026
The Aggies advance to face the winner of No. 2 San Diego State vs. No. 3 New Mexico on Saturday, March 14. Tip-off is at 3 p.m. MT.
First Half
The Aggies jumped out to a quick six-point lead, but a 7-0 Wolfpack spurt flipped it into a 12-11 deficit.
USU started slowly from the field, using seven straight free throws in the first 12 minutes to keep the game close.
Chuck Bailey III, one of Nevada’s best perimeter defenders, was forced to the bench with two quick whistles.
𝘸𝘪𝘪𝘪𝘪𝘪𝘪𝘥𝘦 open#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/Irb72dvBJ3
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2026
A Karson Templin two-handed posterizing slam gave the Aggies their largest lead, 27-19, and got the fan base buzzing.
KT CAUGHT A BODY 👀#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/JXMxSgLtWA
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2026
Adlan Elamin followed with a thunderous second-chance slam as Utah State’s momentum grew.
The freshman made his first four shots after struggling with foul trouble the previous day.
GET OUTTA THE WAY. @USUBasketball with a FURIOUS jam 😤😤 pic.twitter.com/rWcyMJNlub
— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 14, 2026
Graduate senior point guard Drake Allen got in on the fun moments later when he soared through the paint for a two-handed putback dunk that gave his team a 33-28 lead with 2:10 left in the half.
Drake from outta nowhere!#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/Vt6Qyp2CvQ
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2026
Utah State led 39-32 at halftime.
Eight Aggies scored, led by nine points from Templin and eight points from Elamin.
Nevada leading scorer Corey Camper Jr. was limited to five points on 2-of-9 shooting.
Aggies take a 39-32 lead at the half. Second half about to begin on @kslsports pic.twitter.com/G4kkx7c3Ow
— Scott Garrard (@ScottyGZone) March 14, 2026
Second Half
The lead grew to 14 out of the break thanks to a 9-2 Aggie run.
Smooth pull-up for Comer 👌
📺 @CBSSportsNet pic.twitter.com/mONyU3Qvwv
— Mountain West (@MountainWest) March 14, 2026
Utah State’s defense took control by forcing four Nevada turnovers that keyed a 7-0 run that boosted the advantage to 20 midway through the period.
Back-to-back Aggie buckets and it’s a 20-point game 😤#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/2nvvVfvYtc
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 14, 2026
Nevada began pushing, forcing its way to the basket repeatedly for five straight buckets.
The surge cut the deficit to 67-52 with under five minutes to play.
Later in the half, an Elamin missed transition dunk led to a wide-open three-pointer for the Wolfpack, making it an 11-point game with just over three minutes to play.
USU withstood the final effort, pulling away for the 79-66 victory.
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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. Find Brian on X, Instagram, and BlueSky at @bpreece24.
