Utah State Sets Stage For Showdown With San Diego State
Feb 20, 2025, 6:08 PM | Updated: Feb 21, 2025, 9:39 am
The Aggie bench celebrates a bucket in a blowout win over the San Jose State Spartans in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum on Wednesday, February 19. (USU Athletics, Eileen Woodings)
(USU Athletics, Eileen Woodings)
LOGAN, Utah—The Utah State Aggies‘ midweek blowout set up a massive game with the San Diego State Aztecs, which will go a long way toward seeding for the upcoming Mountain West Championships.
The Aggies (23-4, 13-3) look for the season sweep against San Diego State (18-6, 11-4) on Saturday, February 22. Tip-off is at 6 p.m. MT.
RELATED: Utah State Skewers Spartans In Blowout
🏀 Highlights from @USUBasketball's 105-57 win over San José State pic.twitter.com/t0zMuE5rB0
— Mountain West (@MountainWest) February 20, 2025
USU’s 48-point win over San Jose State was the largest margin of victory for a conference game in program history. The blowout showed once again that when the Aggies combine their multi-level pressure defense with a shooting threat from outside, they can be one of the scariest teams in the country.
Utah State is 9-0 when hitting 38.7 percent or more on threes. They are 7-2 when making at least ten triples and 14-3 when making eight shots from deep.
Despite being 114th in the country in attempts (24.2) and 79th in made threes (8.8), Utah State’s ability to create turnovers, thus limiting opponents’ shots, makes the three-point line even more important as the season enters the stretch run.
SDSU looks to even season series against Aggies
Tucker Anderson was the hero for Utah State in a game that seemingly had to come down to the wire in a 67-66 Aggie win.
After erasing an 18-point first-half deficit, The two sides went back and forth as it remained a one-possession game for several minutes.
USU missed five shots in a row to begin crunch time, allowing the Aztecs to build a seven-point advantage with less than two minutes to play.
San Diego State had the opportunity to ice the game from the free-throw line, but a miss gave the Aggies possession trailing by two.
RELATED: Tucker Anderson Drills Last-Second Shot To Defeat San Diego State
TUCKER. PAUL. ANDERSON.
😤😤😤 pic.twitter.com/Euw09yNmfI
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) December 29, 2024
The final sequence was a bit chaotic, but with the final seconds ticking down, the ball found Anderson’s hands on the right wing. With pressure in his face, the sophomore let loose, giving Utah State the one-point lead with seven seconds remaining.
The Aztec’s final heave fell short, giving USU a rare win in Viejas Arena. Ian Martinez led four Aggies in double-figures with 17. Mason Falsev added 16 points, four rebounds, four assists, and five steals in a tremendous all-around performance. Anderson’s four threes led to 14 points.
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San Diego State is 10-3 and has won three straight since falling to the Aggies. Three seasons removed from an appearance in the National Championship game, SDSU is a well-coached team that remains a threat on any night.
Led by their defense, the Aztecs allow a Mountain West-best 62.5 points per game, nearly four points better than second-place Boise State. Opponents shoot 37.1 percent overall and 29.4 percent from deep against them, also far and away the best numbers in the league.
USU is 1.5 games ahead of SDSU in the MW standings.
In a series that began in 1962, San Diego State leads 20-11. Both programs have held serve on their own court, with Utah State holding a 6-5 edge in the Spectrum.
RELATED STORIES
USU vs. San Diego State on CBS Sports Network
- Date: Saturday, February 22, 2025
- Tip-Off: 6 p.m. (MST)/5 p.m. (PST)
- Location: Logan, Utah
- Venue: Dee Glen Smith Spectrum
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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 Twitter and Instagram at @bpreece24.
