POCATELLO, Idaho — Cardell Butler scored a career-high 27 points to lead Utah State to a 73-62 win over Idaho State on Saturday night.
Mike Ahmed had 14 and Mark Brown added 10 for Utah State (4-1).
Marquis Poole led Idaho State (3-5) with 16 points. Scott Henry added 12 points for ISU.
The Aggies built a sizable lead, then had to hold off a late rally by the Bengals, who were outrebounded 40-26.
Butler's 3-pointer keyed a 12-point run as Utah State grabbed a 50-34 lead with 15:05 left in the game. However, ISU's Jeff Gardner hit three straight 3-pointers in a minute and ISU got back to within 52-47 with 11:53 left.
Butler then hit a 3 and scored on a fast-break dunk to push USU's lead back up to 59-50. Scott Henry's layup would make it 64-60 with 1:35 left, but that's as close as ISU would get. Butler hit two free throws and scored on a dunk to seal the game in the final minute of play.