Utah State men's basketball struggled to stop an offensive attack on the road at Wyoming on Wednesday night, falling 76-53 at the University of Wyoming. The loss snaps a six-game winning streak by USU and drops the Aggies to 18-11 overall and 11-6 in the Mountain West, while the Cowboys move to 22-8 overall and 11-6 in the MW.
Utah State struggled to find its shot as the game opened, converting its first bucket four minutes in and falling behind 4-2 with 16:09 on the clock. Wyoming also came out of the gates slow, missing its first two, but then went on a 10-for-10 run to take its first double-digit lead, 17-6, with 13:02 to play.
The Aggies continue to trail but trimmed the deficit to just four, 30-26, with 5:18 to play. However, Wyoming countered and closed out the half with a 10-4 run to take a 40-30 lead into the break.
The double-digit lead remained with Wyoming throughout the second half as the Aggies only came within 13 points during the final 20 minutes. The game ended in the Cowboys' favor, 76-53 at the final whistle, marking the largest margin of defeat for Utah State this season.
USU was led in scoring by junior guard Chris Smith with 18 points on 7-of-10 (.700) shooting, and he was followed by sophomore wing Jalen Moore with 11 and redshirt freshman forward David Collette with 10.
Wyoming was paced by senior forward Larry Nance Jr. with a double-double performance of 21 points and 10 rebounds. He was followed by junior guard Josh Adams with 17 points, senior forward Derek Cooke Jr. with 11 points and redshirt freshman forward Alan Herndon with 10.
As a team, Utah State finished the night shooting 45.8 percent (22-of-48) from the floor, 33.3 percent (6-of-18) from deep and 60.0 percent (3-of-5) from the free-throw line. USU allowed Wyoming to shoot 55.6 percent (30-of-54) from the floor, a season high by the Aggies, 33.3 percent (7-of-21) from behind the 3-point line and 90.0 percent (9-of-10) from the free-throw line.
Utah State looks to shake off the loss when the Aggies return home and face Colorado State on Senior Night on Saturday, March 7 at 7 p.m. MT. The game will also mark the final regular season home game for head coach Stew Morrill in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, and he will also be honored prior to the game.
Fans can watch the game via a regional broadcast on ROOT Sports with Marc Stout set to provide the play-by-play and Joe Cravens serving as the analyst. Fans can also listen to the game live on the Aggie Sports Network with Al Lewis on the call.
Kyle Cottam is the Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations at Utah State University.