GAME DAY PREVIEW: Utah State @ Seattle

<strong>SEATTLE—</strong> The Utah State men’s basketball team snapped its longest losing streak under Stew Morrill with a much needed road win at Idaho Thursday night. The Aggies will have little time for celebration, however, as they stay on the road Saturday to take on Seattle University.

The Redhawks snapped their own three-game losing skid Thursday, with a 56-48 win over San Jose State. Seattle lost in the Spectrum earlier this year, but gave the mostly healthy Aggies all they could handle in a <a href=”http://www.cachevalleydaily.com/sports/article_908e63ba-5638-11e2-a586-001a4bcf6878.html” target=”_blank”>75-66 loss</a>. Deshaun Sunderhaus was especially effective in that game, tallying a 23 points on 10-of-13 shooting. Containing him will be a big key for USU if the Aggies hope to continue their winning ways.

Junior forward Jarred Shaw, who finished with a career-high 27 points against Idaho on 12-of-15 shooting will also need to continue his hot play of late. Shaw struggled mightily in the first meeting of these teams, scoring only six points on 3-of-12 shooting.

“The real test for Jarred will be when things aren’t going real well offensively. Are you still going to rebound and defend with everything you have to try and help us win?” USU head coach Stew Morrill said. “Even though you aren’t making shots are you going to get your head down and not be as productive in other areas?”

Overall, the Redhawks have lost eight of their past 10 games, with the lone win before Thursday’s victory over the Spartans on the road at UT Arlington. Seattle has a balanced offensive attack, which is led by Clarence Trent who averages 11.4 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Sunderhaus is right behind Trent, with 10.1 points and 6.9 rebounds per game, while four other players average at least seven points per game.

In the first meeting between these two teams, Seattle was one of the few teams to outrebound the Aggies as they finished the game with a 34-31 advantage. On the season, the Redhawks are shooting nearly 42 percent from the floor, but only 32 percent from beyond the arc. Their opponents meanwhile are connecting on just more than 40 percent of their shots.

Another key for USU will be the continued solid play of its roll players. While Shaw and junior guard Spencer Butterfield have been leaned on to replace the production of three injured starters, they have needed a supporting cast. That cast stepped up against Idaho with Marcel Davis posting his best game in nearly a month, TeNale Roland finding his range and knocking down some big shots, and Jordan Stone playing great defense and making a couple nice plays on the offensive end.

Saturday’s game will tipoff at 8 p.m., and will be available locally on KVNU (610 AM/102.1 FM) and KLZX (95.9 FM), as well as on the web at 610kvnu.com. Al Lewis, the voice of the Aggies, will be on the play-by-play. The game will also be televised regionally on ROOT Sports.

<em><strong>@TheRealTO</strong></em>

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