INDIANAPOLIS — Utah State ended a 10-game losing streak in the NCAA Tournament dating back to 2001 with an impressive 88-72 victory over TCU in the first round of the NCA Tournament.
The Aggies (28-6) will now face No. 1 seed Purdue in the second round at Gainbridge Fieldhouse Sunday at a time to announced.
Here are three keys to Utah State’s win:
• Center Isaac Johnson scored 12 straight points for the Aggies during a key stretch in the first half. The sophomore from American Fork ended up scoring a career-high 19 points in 29 minutes.
• Guard Ian Martinez led Utah State with 21 points and had an 8-for-8 performance from the free-throw line. Overall, the Aggies went 14 of 15 from the line.
• TCU racked up an astonishing 21 offensive rebounds and outboarded USU by a 41 to 30 margin, but the Horned Frogs also shot just 35.8% for the game, while the Aggies shot 55%, including 8 of 19 from 3-point range