USU Blows Out Air Force, Advances To Second Round Of MWC Tourney
Mar 9, 2022, 4:39 PM
Steven Ashworth (3) of the Utah State Aggies handled the ball as Lucas Moerman (35) of the Air Force Falcons defends during the first half of their Mountain West Championships first round matchup at Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada on Wednesday, March 9, 2022. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
(Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS – The Utah State men’s basketball team crushed the Air Force Falcons to advance in the Mountain West Conference Tournament.
The Aggies and Falcons played in the first round of the MWC tourney at the Thomas & Mack Center on Wednesday, March 9.
USU defeated Air Force, 83-56.
Final from The Thomas & Mack Center@USUBasketball 83@AF_MBB 56
Utah State was red-hot shooting in the second half as they blew out Air Force. Brandon Horvath led five Aggies with double-digits scoring with 18#MWMadness #MWCTournament #USU #AggiesAllTheWay #KSLVegasMayhem pic.twitter.com/6iGSzqqK6y
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) March 9, 2022
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The Aggies controlled the game throughout the afternoon. It was a well-rounded effort by Utah State that included a strong performance by both its starters and bench unit.
USU outscored Air Force by 11 points over the opening 20 minutes of action to take a 38-27 lead into the locker room at halftime.
After the break, the Aggies exploded on offense and ran away with the victory.
Utah State shot 81 percent from the field after halftime and went 6-8 on shots from beyond the arc.
CONNOR with the step back!!!#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/AR3murwS6f
— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 9, 2022
The Aggies finished the game by outshooting the Falcons, 53.7 percent to 45.1 percent.
Five USU players reached double figures in scoring.
Brandon Horvath led the team with 18 points on 8-12 field goals. He added 12 rebounds, two assists, one steal, and a block.
Justin Bean poured in 16 points and Sean Bairstow added 11 points.
OH. MY. GOODNESS!#MWMadness | @USUBasketball pic.twitter.com/VcSAHvvj3K
— Mountain West (@MountainWest) March 9, 2022
Max Shulga and Steven Ashworth combined for 22 points to lead Utah State’s second-unit.
With the win, the Aggies advanced to the second round of the Mountain West tournament. USU will play the No. 2 seed Colorado State Rams on Thursday, March 10 at 7 p.m. (MDT). The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network and The Zone Sports Network.
.@USUBasketball will face @CSUMBasketball in #MWMadness Quarterfinals.
Tip-time: 7 p.m., (MT) on March 10
Listen to the action on the @ZoneSportsNet. #AggiesAllTheWay #KSLVegasMayhem
📷: Getty Images pic.twitter.com/QJFEzHvkCP
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) March 9, 2022
Utah State finished its regular season slate with a 17-14 record, including 8-10 in conference action. The Aggies fell to the Rams in both regular season matchups.
