Courtesy of Utah State Athletics

SAN DIEGO, California – Utah State men’s basketball (12-1, 2-0 MW) earned its first road win over a ranked opponent in over three decades Saturday afternoon in front of a sellout crowd at Viejas Arena, taking down No. 20 San Diego State 67-66. The Aggies battled back from an 18-point deficit, culminating in a game-winning 3-pointer from sophomore forward Tucker Anderson.

After trailing for over 36 minutes of regulation and fighting all the way back from down 40-22, a triple from the right wing by Anderson then a defensive stop on the other end sealed the victory for Utah State. This was the team’s second win ever in San Diego and first since 1999, and was USU’s first win over an AP Top 25 team since a 74-72 win at No. 10 Utah on Dec. 10, 1991.

Anderson finished the night with a season-high 14 points, 12 of which came from behind the 3-point arc. The Aggies were led in scoring by the guard duo of Ian Martinez and Mason Falslev, who went for 17 points and 16 points, respectively.

The Aggies got off to a slow start in this one, giving up a 7-0 run to open the game and eventually seeing the deficit balloon to as many as 18 points in the first half. USU struggled to keep pace with strong shooting by the Aztecs, who shot 52 percent (13-of-25) from the floor, including 46 percent (6-of-13) from 3-point range in the first 20 minutes.

San Diego State out-rebounded Utah State 16-7 in the first half, holding the Aggies without a single offensive board.

With a triple from Martinez, a steal from freshman guard Jordy Barnes and a layup from Falslev, the Aggies scored five points in the final nine seconds of the half to cut the deficit to 43-32 at the break.

Despite the early deficit, Utah State climbed right back into it as the Aggies scored 10 of the second half’s first 12 points, including an 8-0 run, to pull back within a single possession at 45-42. USU kept clawing away, eventually pulling even with a pair of successful free throws by Martinez with 6:52 left in the contest. The Aggies took their first lead of the game shortly thereafter when a Falslev layup made it 56-55.

San Diego State punched back later, using an 8-0 run with six-straight made free throws to go back up by seven with just under two minutes remaining. From that point, USU clawed back with a made basket and a free throw by Martinez, then a triple by Anderson to make it 65-64 with 1:16 remaining. Two free throws put the Aztecs back in front, before Anderson’s heroic shot with seven seconds remaining secured the win.

Utah State out-scored SDSU 35-23 in the second half, and dominated on the defensive end, limiting the Aztecs to just 25.9 percent (7-of-27) shooting in the second half without a single make from behind the arc, going 0-for-11 from 3-point range.

In total, USU led for just 1:49 in the game, never leading by more than a single point.

Along with his 16 points, Falslev finished with four rebounds, four assists and a career-high-tying five steals. Martinez went for a stat line of 17 points, five rebounds and an assist. The final double-figure scorer for USU was senior guard Deyton Albury, who had 11 points, five boards, an assist and a steal.

Leading USU in the assist column was Barnes, who dished out a career-high seven helpers. The Aggies recorded 16 assists on 22 made shots.

Utah State shot 44.0 percent (22-of-50) from the floor, 28.6 percent (8-of-28) from behind the 3-point arc and 71.4 percent (15-of-21) at the free throw line. San Diego State finished the night shooting 38.5 percent (20-of-52) from the field, 25.0 percent (6-of-24) from 3-point range and 90.9 percent (20-of-22) from the free throw line.

 

UP NEXT

Utah State will now conclude its three-game road trip as the Aggies travel to Reno to face Nevada on Tuesday, Dec. 31, at 8 p.m. (MT). The game will be broadcast on Mountain West Network.