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LOGAN, Utah - Utah State (5-3, 1-1 MW) takes its first Mountain West road trip this week, traveling to Air Force (3-3, 1-1 MW) for games on Thursday, Dec. 31, and Saturday, Jan. 2. Fans can watch the game on Thursday on the CBS Sports Network, with the game tipping at 2 p.m. The game on Saturday can be seen on Stadium, with the game starting at 4 p.m.

Opening Tips
• Utah State is 29-9 in MW play under head coach Craig Smith, including an 11-7 road mark.

• Utah State leads the all-time series 19-6 against Air Force, but has lost two of the last three games in Colorado Springs. USU leads the all-time series at AFA, 7-6.

• Utah State is 3-4 in conference road openers since joining the Mountain West during the 2013-14 season. The Aggies have opened at Air Force twice during that span, with the Falcons posting wins in each contest, including a 78-73 victory during the 2016-17 season and a 73-72 win during the 2013-14 season.

• Utah State has won five of its last six games behind a staunch defensive effort, holding opponents to 34.7 percent (126-of-363) from the floor. The Aggies have also improved in their 3-point field goal defense,  holding San José State to a season-low 20.0 percent (4-of-20) from behind the arc in their last time out.

• During its most recent four-game winning streak, USU's offense has also been clicking, connecting on 47.3 percent (129-of-273) from the floor, outscoring opponents by 29.3 points per game and outrebounding the opposition by 14.8.

• Utah State has owned the glass this season, outrebounding every opponent this year and carrying a rebounding margin of plus-10.6 to rank No. 20 in the nation. The Aggies have pulled down double-digit offensive boards in all but two games this season.

• Junior forward Justin Bean has recorded double-digit rebounds in each of the last three games and in five of the last six, moving to eighth all-time in school history with 30 double-digit rebounding games.

• Freshman guard Rollie Worster has logged more double-digit scoring games than any other rookie in Utah State history over their first eight games. Worster currently leads the Aggies with six double-digit scoring outings this season.

• Redshirt junior guard Marco Anthony has already scored more points at Utah State (94) than his entire career at Virginia (52). Anthony only needs 15 more minutes this season to match his total minutes played with the Cavaliers.

• Junior guard Brock Miller found his shooting touch over the last two games, connecting on 50.0 percent (6-of-12) from behind the 3-point line and averaging 13.0 points per game.

• Junior center Neemias Queta matched his career high of six blocks in each of the last two games against SJSU, bringing his career total to 143, which is just 12 shy of the all-time record in USU history.

Fresh Legs
• Utah State was able to utilize its bench more than any other time this season in the two-game series against San José State last week. In fact, the most any individual played in the games against the Spartans was 23 minutes.

• The Aggie reserves combined to score 86 points against the Spartans during the two-game set.

Thrown Into the Fire
• Utah State opened the year with its toughest schedule since the KenPom era began (2001-02), as each of its first opponents were ranked among the top-100 in the nation. The Aggies are one of just eight teams in the country to face four top-100 teams over the course of their first four games of the 2020-21 season.

• Utah State entered the 2020-21 season with seven players on its roster of 16 that had never played a single minute in Division I basketball.

Obligatory Block Party Note
• Utah State recorded 10 blocks as a team in its 85-52 victory over San José State on Dec. 23, marking the most blocks by the Aggies in a game since the 2014-15 season.

• The 10 blocks are tied for the third most in a single game in USU history.

All About the Benjamins
In three years under head coach Craig Smith, USU has scored 100 or more points in a game six times. To find another six 100-point games prior to Coach Smith, you have to include a span of 20 years from 1997-98 to 2017-18.