Utah State Basketball Looks To Maintain Momentum Against Boise State

Mar 3, 2023, 5:26 PM | Updated: Mar 4, 2023, 9:09 am

Digital Sports Producer

LOGAN, Utah – The Utah State Aggies have Mountain West postseason seeding to play for when they take on the Boise State Broncos on Saturday night.

Utah State (23-7, 12-5) hosts Boise State in the Mountain West regular-season finale for both teams on Saturday, March 4. Tip-off for this game is scheduled for 7 p.m. (MT) at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum in Logan, Utah.

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🎟➡️ https://t.co/Nd3bYWR89L #AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/3KOFn8IvbP

— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) March 2, 2023

Riding a four-game winning streak, USU will be looking for revenge after their most lopsided defeat of the season. In just the second MW game of the season, the Aggies fell behind early on their way to an 82-59 Bronco win. Point guard Rylan Jones has missed 14-straight games after leaving early in the second half against Boise State.

USU is among NCAA leaders in several offensive categories.

One of the best shooting teams in the nation, the Aggies are second in the country in 3-point field goal percentage (.402) and is fifth in effective field goal percentage (.569). They are 12th in assists per game (16.7), with 3-pointers made per game (9.63, 15th), field goal percentage (.483, 22nd), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.38, 30th) & points per game (78.83, 33rd). Utah State is the second-highest scoring team in the conference, behind only New Mexico.

Junior point guard Steven Ashworth has shouldered a large load with the absence of Jones. Ashworth is fifth in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage (.449), 12th in 3-pointers made per game (3.23), 15th in free throw percentage (.893) and 17th in assist-to-turnover rate (2.88).

Boise State Broncos (23-7, 13-4) 2nd in MW

The reigning Mountain West regular season and postseason champs, Boise State has been one of the most consistent teams in the conference this year. In spite of their excellent record, the Broncos are just 5-5 away from home.

Boise State averages 72.1 points per game, good for seventh in the league. Despite their middle of the pack offense, Boise State has the largest scoring margin (9.1) in the MW due to a suffocating defense that allows just 63 points per game. As a team, the Broncos have created 153 steals and forced 357 turnovers this season, seventh in the league.

MAX RICE. That's the tweet.#BleedBlue | @maxrice12 pic.twitter.com/1MVgqmeJeL

— Boise State MBB (@BroncoSportsMBB) March 3, 2023

Redshirt senior guard Max Rice leads four double-digit scorers with 14.4 points per game. Tyson Degenhart (14.3 ppg), Marcus Shaver Jr. (13.3), and Chibuzo Agbo (11.3 ppg) round out the group.

USU will need to end a five-game losing streak against the Broncos in order to pick up the win.

Up Next

Utah State closes out the regular season when they welcome the Boise State Broncos to the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum on Saturday, March 4. Tip-off for this game is scheduled for 7 p.m. (MT).

Every Utah State basketball game can be heard on the KSL Sports Zone with Scott Garrard on the call.

Coverage of Utah State University Athletics from KSL Sports can be found here.