Utah State Claims Cayman Islands Classic Title In Blowout Win
Nov 21, 2023, 7:43 PM
Utah State guard Ian Martinez is swarmed by defenders in an Aggie win over the Marshall Thundering Herd in the Cayman Islands Classic on Sunday, November 19.
GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands – The Utah State Aggies blew out the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks, 79-49, to claim the Cayman Islands Classic title.
With the win, the Aggies improved to 5-1 on the season.
Came to the Caymans. Won a championship 🏆#AggiesAllTheWay | #LightTheABlue pic.twitter.com/8casHdUKQe
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 22, 2023
First Half
The Aggies came out of the gates hot against Stephen F. Austin.
They jumped out to a 10-2 lead with a dominant inside game.
feeling 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 tonight 😎
⚡️ @GreatOsobor
📺@FloHoops | https://t.co/8OhcH2frmu#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/v2agvx8eiU— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 22, 2023
Utah State threw down five dunks in the first ten minutes of the game.
Nearly all of Utah State’s shots were taken from inside the arc. They took six threes in the first half and missed all of them.
Need a bucket? Dial 1⃣
⚡️ @GreatOsobor
📺 @FloHoops | https://t.co/8OhcH2frmu#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/hF3HEtM7fC— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 22, 2023
The Lumberjacks started knocking down some shots but the early deficit kept them down for the entirety of the first half.
Utah State led by six at the half, 32-26.
USU leads by six at the break!
Freshman Karson Templin leads the Aggies with eight points in his first minutes at the Cayman Islands Classic.#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/p1Dv2ZP0Op
— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 22, 2023
Second Half
The first 20 minutes was a defensive-oriented battle. After the break, it was all Utah State.
The Aggies went on a 20-7 run over the next five minutes to take a commanding lead.
The threes started dropping for Utah State at the perfect time.
DB for THREEE 💦
⚡️ @dariusbrownii
📺 @FloHoops | https://t.co/8OhcH2frmu#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/gDGHRDfQOQ— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 22, 2023
They made four of their first six attempts from deep in the second half.
Ian Martinez had a great game off the bench for Utah State. Just like the rest of the team, Martinez turned it up after halftime.
Mason Falslev led the Aggies in scoring with 19 on 8/10 shooting.
splash zone 💦
⚡️ @mason_falslev
📺 @FloHoops | https://t.co/8OhcH2frmu#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/zcJTzYXocq— USU Men’s Hoops (@USUBasketball) November 22, 2023
Utah State’s second-half momentum snowballed and they continued to add on to the lead.
The Aggies beat the Lumberjacks, 79-49, in the Cayman Islands Classic championship game to improve to 5-1 on the season.
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Chandler Holt is a co-host for the Jazz Notes podcast and a Digital Sports Producer for sports.ksl.com, specializing in all things basketball and football. Follow Chandler on Twitter @ChandlerHoltKSL or on Threads @chandlerho1t.
