3 keys to Utah State’s 62-57 loss to San Diego State in the Mountain West tournament championship game

Third-seeded Utah State came up just short in its quest for a conference tournament championship and an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament on Saturday afternoon, losing 62-57 to San Diego State in the Mountain West final at Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.

After Taylor Funk’s 3-point try was originally ruled to have beat the shot clock with 6:19 remaining, a shot that would have given USU the lead, it was taken off the board after a video review, and the Aggies misfired on three of their next four possessions.

Former Wasatch Academy star Matt Bradley scored five straight points for SDSU, three on free throws after he steamrolled USU’s Steven Ashworth but got the friendly whistle. And when Darrion Trammell added a jumper, the Aztecs had a 53-46 lead with three minutes remaining.

Utah State pulled within two on an Ashworth 3-pointer with 30 seconds left, but the Aztecs made 9 of 10 free throws in the final 30 seconds to add the tournament title to their regular-season crown.

San Diego State improved to 27-6, while Utah State dropped to 26-8. The Aggies will now hope for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament on Sunday.

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Here are 3 keys to Utah State’s loss:

• Utah State appeared to tire out as the game wore on, while SDSU flourished with a much deeper bench. Also, the Aggies missed at least a half-dozen close-in shots and layups, and seven free throws.

• Jaedon LeDee led No. 20 SDSU with 15 points, while Matt Bradley added 14. The Aztecs turned 15 offensive rebounds into 14 second-chance points and got 35 points from their bench. USU’s bench contributed only 16 points.

• The Aggies led by as many as 11 points in the first half, but SDSU came roaring back just before halftime. Utah State was just 5 of 10 from the free-throw line in the first half, and just 2 of 9 from 3-point range.

They finished 4 of 24 (17%) from beyond the arc, well below their normal 3-point shooting percentage.