Merrill Leads Utah State To Overtime Win Over Fresno State
Dec 7, 2019, 6:38 PM
Utah State Aggies guard Sam Merrill (5) goes to the hoop during a Mountain West Conference semifinal game against the Fresno State Bulldogs at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on Friday, March 15, 2019. (Spenser Heaps, Deseret News)
(Spenser Heaps, Deseret News)
LOGAN, Utah – Utah State guard Sam Merrill led the No. 25 Aggies to an overtime victory over the Fresno State Bulldogs.
Merrill and the Aggies defeated the Bulldogs 77-70 in overtime at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum on Saturday, December 7.
The USU guard had 24 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal in the Aggies’ win over Fresno State.
WINNING TEAM‼️
Aggies win an overtime thriller 77-70 over Fresno State.#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/OKjXE4oqD2
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) December 8, 2019
Fresno State’s New Williams hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game at 61 apiece and sent the Aggies and Bulldogs to overtime.
THE BANK IS OPEN. New Williams ties it at 61-61 on this buzzer-beater to force overtime on the road at No. 25 Utah State!#GoDogs | #ValleyTough | #PrideOfTheValley | #AtThePeak pic.twitter.com/5UUadeHS1C
— Fresno State Men’s Basketball (@FresnoStateMBB) December 8, 2019
Utah State outscored Fresno State 16-9 during the five extra minutes of basketball to get the win.
The Aggies shot the ball poorly against the Bulldogs and went 35 percent on field goals and 21.1 percent on shots from three-point range. Utah State outrebounded Fresno State 48-37 including 11 offensive boards.
Merrill led the Aggies on 9-16 shooting including 2-4 from downtown.
Sammy Buckets!#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/lzh0yRqohM
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) December 8, 2019
USU forward Justin Bean had a double-double of 14 points and 13 boards. It was his seventh of the season and fifth consecutive game with a double-double.
.@justinbean12 🤝 today’s win
being great#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/iV5SF6wvdR— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) December 8, 2019
Aggie center Neemias Queta played his first minutes of the 2019-20 season. He’d missed USU’s first nine games recovering from injury. Queta posted 6 points, 1 rebound, and a block in 10 minutes.
HE IS BACK!!!!@nemi1599#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/rtHpE5OuCq
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) December 7, 2019
Utah State improved to 9-1 on the season and 2-0 in Mountain West play.
The Aggies have a week off before playing BYU (7-4) in the Beehive Classic at Vivint Smart Home Arena on Saturday, December 14 at 5 p.m. (MDT).
