"Unselfish" Aggies pick up 94-69 win against UT Rio Grande Valley

LOGAN – After losing three of the last four games, the Aggies picked up a comfortable 94-69 win over UT Rio Grande Valley in the first round of the Global Sports Hoops Showcase. It may not have been against a Mountain West-caliber team, but USU head coach Tim Duryea said it will help the team prepare for the rest of the season.

“Every year it seems like we have used this tournament to really find our offensive rhythm,” he said. “I think that’s more important this year because we are coaching a couple of guys for the first time.”

Senior Chris Smith led USU in four different categories. The forward had 18 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks in his 30 minutes on the court.

“I honestly thought he had like 15 rebounds,” Aggie senior Grayson Moore said. “It seemed like he was getting a hand on every ball.”

Duryea said he was pleased with his team’s unselfishness. He said it led to “high-quality shots” which in-turn led to good (56.3 percent) shooting from the field. Five Aggies scored in double figures, including 12 points from Grayson Moore and 13 from Julion Pearre off the bench. The Aggie bench outscored the Vaquero bench 35-9.

“I thought the best stat of the night was 22 assists on 36 made field goals,” Duryea said. “That’s Utah State basketball.”

A slow start caused by poor shooting put the Aggies down early, but 3-pointers by Smith and Pearre put USU back on track. Pearre’s triple started a 14-0 run that was highlighted by a soaring Grayson Moore dunk. The senior had a team-high 10 points in the first half.

“Grayson always hustles, he’s always playing hard,” Smith said. “He get’s to guard me in practice so I know he’s tough to guard.”

The 14-unanswered points gave the Aggies a 10-point lead which slowly increased to 20 near the end of the half. USU went into the break leading 48-32, but the Aggie dominance continued through the second half. The lead peaked at 32 right before the Vaqueros scored 13-straight to try and rally back, but Smith and Pearre again scored back-to-back 3-pointers to put an end to the attempted comeback.

The Aggies will continue the tournament with a game against Idaho State Tuesday and North Dakota State Wednesday.

Free News Delivery by Email

Would you like to have the day's news stories delivered right to your inbox every evening? Enter your email below to start!

Posted in USU