by Wade Denniston, USU Athletic Media Relations

RENO, Nev. – Utah State kicked off the New Year and Mountain West play with a 72-49 loss to No. 6 Nevada on Wednesday night at the Lawlor Events Center – the Aggies' most lopsided loss of the season.
 
Junior guard Sam Merrill was one of two Aggies to finish in double-figure scoring as he had a game-high 16 points, while redshirt freshman guard Brock Miller added 10. Those two players accounted for half of Utah State's baskets as Utah State (10-4, 0-1 Mountain West) shot a season-low 26.2 percent (16-of-61) from the field.
 
Neemias Queta helped the Aggies edge the Wolf Pack (14-0, 1-0 MW) on the boards, 44-43, as the freshman center grabbed 10 rebounds, to go along with eight points, five blocks and one steal.
 
Jordan Caroline flirted with a triple-double for Nevada, tallying 15 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists. Cody Martin and Tre'Shawn Thurman chipped in 14 points apiece and Jazz Johnson had 10 off the bench.
 
The Wolf Pack shot 39.3 percent from the field (24-of-61), including 24.1 percent from 3-point range (7-of-29).
 
Caroline opened the game by knocking down a 3-pointer less than two minutes in, but back-to-back baskets by Queta and Merrill gave the Aggies their first lead of the night at 4-3. Nevada regained the lead at 5-4 on a basket by Caleb Martin. Moments later, Utah State senior forward Dwayne Brown Jr. gave the visitors their final lead of the night at 6-5 with 15:58 left in the opening half.
 
The Wolf Pack opened up a double-digit lead at 25-13 with 6:54 left in the opening half after going on a 20-7 run. The Aggies fought back, though, trimming the deficit to 29-25 with 1:42 to go.
 
However, Nevada scored the final six points of the half and took a 35-25 lead into the break. 
 
Utah State will look to bounce back on Saturday, Jan. 5, when the Aggies welcome Air Force to the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum for their conference home opener.
 
Fans can purchase season tickets, or on a game-by-game basis. Fans can purchase tickets at the Utah State ticket office, located on the first floor of the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. Tickets are also available online at utahstateaggies.com/tickets, or by calling the ticket office at (435) 797-0305 or (888)-USTATE-1.
 
Utah State men's basketball news and information is available on Facebook (facebook.com/usumensbasketball), on Twitter (@usubasketball) and on Instagram (@usubasketball). Fans can also get USU men's basketball highlights on YouTube (youtube.com/utahstateathletics). Aggie fans can follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter (@usuathletics), on Facebook (facebook.com/usuathletics) or on Instagram (@usuathletics).
 
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