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LOGAN, Utah - Utah State men's basketball (7-1) opens Mountain West Conference play this week, traveling to San José State (3-5) on Wednesday, Dec. 4 for a 9:15 p.m. (MT) tip. The game can be seen on ESPN2 (Comcast Ch. 36/669HD, Dish Ch. 143, DirecTV Ch. 129).

Opening Tips
• Utah State has matched its start from a season ago, compiling a 7-1 record over its first eight games.

• Utah State's 7-0 start was the best since the 1961-62 season, when the Aggies began the year 8-0. The 7-0 mark was the fourth-best start in school history, trailing the school record of 9-0 set during the 1938-39 and 1917-18 seasons.

• Utah State, currently ranked No. 25 in the AP poll, is 63-19 all-time as an AP-ranked team.

• Utah State has appeared in each of the last five AP polls, making it the longest stretch for the Aggies since appearing in the AP poll in 11 consecutive weeks during the 1970-71 season.

• Utah State led for the majority of minutes in its 81-73 loss at St. Mary's on Friday. USU led for 20:34 of the game and carried a lead as late as 3:00 left in the contest.

• Utah State held North Texas scoreless over the final 4:11 of the game and overcame a 59-57 deficit to post a 68-59 victory in the Jamaica Classic finale.

• The Aggies overcame a 19-point deficit with 16:32 to play in the second half against LSU to post an 80-78 victory over the Tigers in their opening game of the Jersey Mike's Jamaica Classic. The comeback was the biggest since USU overcame an 18-point halftime deficit against Weber State on Nov. 14, 2014, to post a 72-61 win over the Wildcats.

• Senior guard Sam Merrill tied a school record with 17 made free throws in the Aggies' 81-73 season-opening victory over Montana State. Merrill matched the school record alongside Tim Tollestrup, who made 17 free throws against Utah in 1970, and Bart Johnson, who made 17 free throws against Idaho in 1954.

• Sophomore forward Justin Bean, a former walk-on, leads the Mountain West in rebounding with 11.4 boards per contest and is the only player in the conference averaging a double-double, turning in 14.8 points per game. Bean is 11th in the nation in both total rebounds per game and offensive rebounds per game, averaging 11.4 and 4.0 per contest, respectively.

• Bean was named the Jamaica Classic MVP, averaging a double-double of 14.0 points and 13.0 rebounds per game against LSU and North Texas.

• Junior forward Alphonso Anderson was named to the Jamaica Classic all-tournament team after averaging 21.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game against LSU and North Texas. Anderson scored a career-high 24 points in the victory over LSU.  

• Sophomore center Neemias Queta, the reigning MW Freshman and Defensive Player of the Year, has yet to make his 2019-20 debut. Queta led the MW and set a Utah State single-season record with 84 blocks last year.

• Head coach Craig Smith has the best record of any coach in USU history over their first two years with an overall mark of 35-8.

The Utah State/San José State Series
• Utah State and San José State will meet for the 85th time on Wednesday, the sixth-longest series in USU history.

• Utah State leads the all-time series against the Spartans, 62-22, including a 21-14 advantage in San Jose. The Aggies have won 10 of the last 11 on the road against SJSU.

• Utah State has won all but one game against San José State since joining the Mountain West during the 2013-14 season.

• In the game against the Spartans on Feb. 28, 2018, Utah State attempted a school- and Mountain West-record 43 3-point baskets.

• Utah State has used at least a 10-man rotation against the Spartans in all but one game since joining the Mountain West, including a 13-man rotation against San José State in both games during the 2014-15 season.

• Utah State has had at least one 20-point scorer in each of the last nine games and in 11 of the last 12. Senior guard Sam Merrill is the latest Aggie to score 20 or more against the Spartans, turning in a 29-point performance on Jan. 30, 2019.

• Merrill has had three 20-point games against San José State, scoring 22 on Feb. 22, 2017, 26 on Feb. 28, 2018 and 29 on Jan. 30, 2019. Overall, Merrill is averaging 19.7 points per game against the Spartans during his career and averaging more than six assists per game.

• Merrill recorded his first career double-double against San José State, posting 11 points and 10 assists in the first round of the MW Tournament on March 8, 2017.