LOGAN, Utah - Utah State senior guard Sam Merrill garnered several weekly accolades after leading the Aggies to a pair of victories over South Florida and Florida last week. Merrill logged team highs of 21 points in each contest and, for his efforts, was named the Mountain West Player of the Week, College Sports Madness High-Major Player of the Week and the America First Credit Union USU Student-Athlete of the Week.
With their sponsorship of the Student-Athlete of the Week, America First Credit Union donates funds directly to support student-athlete scholarships.
Merrill (Bountiful, Utah) led Utah State to a 2-0 neutral court record last week with a 76-74 overtime win against South Florida and a 65-62 win against Florida. Against the Bulls, Merrill scored 21 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists, while shooting 53.8 percent (7-of-13) from the floor, 57.1 percent (4-of-7) from behind the 3-point line and 100.0 percent (3-of-3) at the free throw line.
Against the Gators, Merrill was named the MVP of the game after leading the Aggies with 21 points, a career-high nine rebounds, and a team-best five assists. Merrill finished the game shooting 44.4 percent (8-of-18) from the floor, including 50.0 percent (5-of-10) from behind the 3-point line.
For the week, Merrill averaged 21.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game, while shooting 48.4 percent (15-of-31) from the floor, 52.9 percent (9-of-17) from behind the 3-point line and 100.0 percent (3-of-3) at the free throw line.
Merrill and the Aggies return to the court on Saturday, Dec. 28, hosting Eastern Oregon at 2 p.m., inside the Dee Glen Smith 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).
Nominees from other sports for USU Student-Athlete of the Week included:
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL – Senior guard Lindsey Jensen-Baker (Smithfield, Utah) led Utah State to a 2-1 record last week with a 66-55 home win against North Texas, a 69-61 home win against Idaho State, and a 57-49 loss at Utah Valley. Against the Mean Green, Jensen-Baker scored a career-high 32 points and added a team-high nine rebounds, to go along with two assists and two steals. Her 32 points tie for the 18th-most in a single-game in program history. Jensen-Baker then scored a game-high 22 points against the Bengals, while adding three rebounds and an assist. And against the Wolverines, she had four rebounds and two points. For the week, Jensen-Baker averaged 18.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.7 steals per game, while shooting 51.5 percent (17-of-33) from the floor, 44.4 percent (8-of-18) from behind the arc and 100.0 percent (14-of-14) at the free throw line.
FOOTBALL – Senior quarterback Jordan Love (Bakersfield, Calif.) was 30-of-39 passing for 317 yards with a season-high-tying three touchdowns to go along with one interception in Utah State's 51-41 loss to Kent State in the Tropical Smoothie Café Frisco Bowl. Love also carried the ball 10 times for 16 yards in the game.
2019-20 Utah State Athlete of the Week Winners
Sept. 2 – David Woodward, Football
Sept. 9 – Ashley Cardozo, Soccer
Sept. 16 – Lucy Octave, Women's Tennis
Sept. 23 – Shaq Bond, Football
Sept. 30 – David Woodward, Football
Oct. 6 – Luke Beattie, Men's Cross Country
Oct. 13 – Colten Cordingley, Golf
Oct. 20 – Luke Beattie, Men's Cross Country
Oct. 27 – Devin Pancake, Men's Cross Country
Nov. 4 – Dallin Farnsworth, Men's Cross Country
Nov. 11 – Justin Bean, Men's Basketball
Nov. 18 – Eric Munoz, Football
Nov. 25 – Justin Bean, Men's Basketball
Dec. 2 – Gerold Bright, Football
Dec. 9 – Justin Bean, Men's Basketball
Dec. 16 – Lindsey Jensen-Baker, Women's Basketball
Dec. 23 - Sam Merrill, Men's Basketball
