Aggieville: USU Sports

Tonight, Utah State found out how far it needs to go in order to be a premier program. 

In losing to Boise State, the Broncos did the obvious. They ran the ball effectively, they have a great quarterback, they have great receivers who will probably play in the NFL. 

But this game was about the trenches, and that's where the biggest difference is. Offensively, Boise State pushed USU around, opening up huge holes and dominating the line. Defensively, Diondre Borel found himself scrambling for his life nearly the entire game. 

That's the top thing that Gary Andersen needs to rectify to improve the program. He has to get more of that and more depth, with that being a special need. He's off to a great start in recruiting, and people like Pleasant Grove's Bryce Walker, 6-9 300 pounds will help tremendously. 

  Tony Jones

Here are some of the notes from Utah State's 68-67 loss to Utah

The Aggies have lost for the first time in 31 games when leading at halftime

Jared Quayle's 27 points are a career-high and his 11 rebounds tie a career-high

USU is now 26-10 in games versus instate opponents

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There are a few things that are lasting impressions, good and bad, that could be trends for this season. 

1) Nate Bendall has the chance to be a great player this year. His double double was impressive because he was going against length, a ton of length, in the Utah bigs. David Foster is 7-3, Jason Washburn seven feet and Kim Tillie is 6-10. Still, Bendall more than held his own. He scored regularly, he hit jumpers, and he rebounded out of his area. 

2) Jared Quayle is a monster. Obviously, the fans know this, but this is the first time I've seen it for myself. The kid is a player, backs down to nobody, is one of the best rebounding guards that I've seen and makes all the big plays. Simply put, this Utah State team will have a chance to win each and every game this season because he's the point guard. You simply can't say that about a lot of players. 

3) Pooh Williams is greatly missed. Obviously Tyler Newbold's missed three-pointers proved costly, as did the turnovers, as did the lack of bench production. But this game was lost because there was nobody that could match up with Carlon Brown. He was too quick for Newbold, too big for Quayle because of his ability to rise up and shoot the ball. Williams is a great wing defender, and someone who would've made a difference because of that ability alone.

Tony Jones

Game number two, instate rivalry number two. The last time the Aggies visited the Huntsman Center, it was lights out for the Aggies in a major way. This is what USU needs to do to avoid another beatdown.

1) Stay out of foul trouble - On Friday against Weber State, Tai Wesley and Nate Bendall both missed large chunks of the game due to fouls with Bendall fouling out. That won't work against the Utes, who have huge bigs in both height and length. The longer these two are on the floor, the greater the chance the Aggies have at pulling off a huge win. This has long been a problem spot for Wesley, and as a junior, it's time that he starts reversing that trend. 

2) Efficiency - The offense stalled for long stretches against Weber State, there were more turnovers than assists and the shooting wasn't good. That's not Aggie basketball. Part of it was that Weber State was very familiar with everything the Aggies tried to run. Part of it was first game jitters. There has to be more motion tonight, better screens set and more penetration off the dribble. 

3) Control the bigs - Utah's front court is huge. David Foster is 7-foot-3, Jason Washburn 7-0 and Kim Tillie 6-10. Washburn is particularly skilled and athletic. While none of them are Luke Nevill, the size and the length are enough to cause the Aggies problems. 

4) Carlon Brown - Easily the most athletic player in the state, Brown can't be allowed to leave his imprint on the game. He's a highlight reel waiting to happen, and he'll probably catch a dunk or two that will no doubt please the television camera's. What can't happen is for him to have an 18 point, 9 rebound, 8 assist kind of night. That means he's affecting the game in almost every phase. Tyler Newbold's defense on him, since Pooh Williams will once again be out with an injury, will maybe be the key to the game. 

5) The emotion factor - This will be an angry Utah team that will take the floor at the Huntsman Center tonight. The Utes will be ready to play and will not want to start the season 0-2 with those losses coming at home in embarrassing fashion. The Aggies should know that Utah will play much better on both ends of the floor than Friday. They have to raise the level of play accordingly. 

Tony Jones

Has led me to believe that Utah State's non-conference schedule is a little tougher than I realized. As I'm feeding my two month old daughter, who NEVER SLEEPS, (sorry about that), I watched Cal-State Fullerton run and jump its way to a road win at UCLA, who by the way looks absolutely awful. Even so, Fullerton became the first non-conference non-ranked opponent to win at Pauley Pavillion in 38 games. I guess that qualifies as an impressive stat. 

Then I watched St. Mary's tear San Diego State apart. Both schools are on the Aggies schedule this season. As this season plays on, it's becoming plain that this is the best non-league schedule that USU's played in years. Utah, BYU, Weber State, Northeastern, CSF, St. Mary's, Morehead State. That's a challenging slate. Handle it and the Aggies will put themselves in position to get an at-large bid as long as they have a good conference season. I'm still awake, for the record. It's 2:42 a.m. and I'm officially a college basketball junkie. 

Tony Jones

Utah State's now won 15 of its last 16 openers. 

The Aggies are 12-3 in road games over the last two years

Utah State's won 19 of its last 24 games against in-state opponents

Utah State's won six straight games during the month of November

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GAME THOUGHTS

Jared Quayle, despite turning the ball over way too much, is very very good. He can get his shot off anytime he wants, he makes clutch shots and he gets his within the flow of the offense. Those are three very good attributes to have as a point guard

There is no way that Damian Lillard should be in the Big Sky Conference. He's the best player in that league, and he's a nightmare to defend off the dribble

Tyler Newbold is a great glue guy. Always seems to be in the right place at the right time, makes shots and does the little things that don't show up in the box score. 

The Aggie defense won this game. They had a great scheme, played it well and absolutely took Steve Panos away as an inside option

Brian Green played exceptionally well in the second half. He scored big hoops, he knocked down jumpers and he salted the game away at the line down the stretch

It's encouraging that the Aggies can win with Tai Wesley not playing well. 

Those are just some of my thoughts. 

Tony Jones