by: Wade Denniston, USU Athletic Media Relations
LOGAN, Utah – No. 17/19 Utah State lifted the lid on its 2019-20 campaign with a hard-fought 81-73 victory over Montana State on Tuesday night at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.
Senior guard
Sam Merrill, playing in his 100th career game, had 28 points, five rebounds and three assists for the Aggies (1-0), who overcame an outstanding shooting performance from Montana State's Harald Frey.
The 6-foot-2 senior guard for the Bobcats led all scorers in the game with a career-high 34 points on 10-of-20 shooting from the field, including 6-of-10 from 3-point range and a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line. Frey also had six rebounds and five assists for the Bobcats (0-1), who led 61-58 with 7:19 to go.
In a game that featured nine ties and 11 lead changes, Utah State moved in front for good following a pair of free throws by junior forward
Alphonso Anderson that broke a 66-all tie with 3:47 to go.
Anderson, who finished with 13 points and six rebounds, was a perfect 8-for-8 from the charity stripe in the second half alone. Sophomore forward
Justin Bean recorded the second double-double of his career with 13 points and 10 rebounds, while senior guard
Abel Porter chipped in 10 points and four assists for the Aggies.
Utah State had 12 assists on its 20 made baskets and outrebounded Montana State 41-36. The Aggies also went 35-of-45 from the free throw line.
Merrill went to the charity stripe 18 times on the night and made 17 of those attempts, tying the school record for most free throws made in a single game, along with Tim Tollestrup (17 against Utah in 1970) and Bart Johnson (17 against Idaho in 1954).
Joining Frey in double-figure scoring for Montana State was Jubrile Below with 12 points, to go along with a team-best nine rebounds, and Michael Paulo with 10.
Trailing by two with 5:25 remaining in the game, the Aggies used a 10-0 run to open a 74-66 lead with 1:44 to go. Anderson scored six during the key stretch.
An old-fashioned three-point play by Finn Fleute pulled the Bobcats to within three, 74-71, with 56 seconds remaining, but that's as close as they would get the rest of the way.
Utah State shot 37.7 percent from the field (20-of-53), including 33.3 percent from beyond the arc (6-of-18). Conversely, Montana State shot 42.1 percent from the field (24-of-57), including 47.4 percent from 3-point range (9-of-19), and 61.5 percent from the free throw line (16-of-26).
Utah State improved to 79-40 all-time against Montana State in what is the third-most played rivalry in school history.
Next up for the Aggies is an in-state showdown with Weber State on Friday, Nov. 8, at 7 p.m., at the Spectrum.
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).
-USU-