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LOGAN, Utah - Utah State women's basketball (2-4, 0-1 MW) hosts its first conference games of the 2020-21 campaign as the Aggies return home for a two-game series against Air Force (2-3, 0-0 MW) on Thursday, Dec. 31, and Saturday, Jan. 2, with both games tipping at 2 p.m., at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum in Logan, Utah.
 
HOW TO FOLLOW
Radio coverage for the game will be provided by 92.3 KBLU-LP with Jaden Johnson on the call. The contest can be seen on The Mountain West Network. Live stats and play-by-play information will be available through Sidearm. Links to each option will be available online prior to the game.
 
SCOUTING THE FALCONS
Utah State leads the all-time series, 10-5, with the teams splitting games in four of the past five seasons. In 2019-20, each team won on the road, Air Force winning in Logan, 62-45, and Utah State winning at USAFA, 53-52. The Falcons finished the 2019-20 campaign with a 10-21 overall mark, and a 7-11 record in league play to finish the season eighth in the Mountain West. Air Force capped off the season with a 60-48 win over 10-seeded Colorado State at the Mountain West Championships, before falling to Boise State in the quarterfinals. 
 
This season the Falcons are averaging 69.6 points per game, shooting 40.9 percent (134-of-328) from the field, 28.0 percent (26-of-93) from behind the 3-point line and 75.0 percent (54-of-72) at the free throw line. Junior forward Riley Snyder leads AF's scorers, averaging 19.2 points per game, while junior guard Briana Autrey-Thompson leads the squad with 24 assists on the season. Senior guard Emily Conroe leads all Air Force players on the glass with 5.0 rebounds per game.
 
Defensively, the Spartans have allowed 76.2 points per game, with opponents shooting 49.9 percent (131-of-264) from the field, 34.1 percent (29-of-85) from behind the arc and 67.2 percent (90-of-134) at the free throw line. Autrey-Thompson leads the team in steals with 21, while redshirt senior forward Kassady Huffman leads the squad with seven blocks. 
 
A (BRE)AKOUT PERFORMANCE
In Utah State's loss to San José State on Dec. 21, junior forward Bre Mathews exploded for a career-high scoring performance of 22 points, surpassing her previous career-high of seven points earlier this season against UTEP. The Garland, Texas native also tied her career-high of six rebounds, while recording her first career blocked shot and playing in a career-high 23 minutes of action.
 
RESERVES MAKING A MARK
With her 22-point performance against the Spartans, Mathews became the first Aggie player to score 20-plus points off the bench in nearly a decade. The last time this happened was Feb. 12, 2011, when Ashlee Brown went for 22 points at Fresno State.
 
RESERVES MAKING A MARK - PART II
Against San José State, 35 of Utah State's 73 points came from the bench, including Mathews' 22 points and a career-high 13 points for redshirt sophomore Shyla Latone. This was the most points scored by non-starters for a USU team since the bench accounted for 39 points in a win over Northern New Mexico on Nov. 9, 2018.
 
CONSISTENCY IS KEY
Graduate forward Jessica Chatman has been a model of consistency for the Aggies, scoring in double figures and bringing down at least seven rebounds in each of USU's six games this season. Chatman is the only player in the Mountain West who has at least 10 points and seven rebounds in every contest while playing more than two games.
 
LETTING 'EM FLY
Utah State has scored eight 3-pointers in each of its past three games, and has at least five makes from behind the arc in every game this season. Last season, the Aggies had eight or more threes just six times as the team averaged 5.3 3-pointers per game.
 
CRASHING THE GLASS
The Aggies currently rank first in the Mountain West and 12th in the nation in defensive rebounds with 32.7 defensive boards per game. They also rank third in the conference in total rebounds per game (44.3). Against UTEP, Utah State had a season-best rebounding margin, outrebounding the Miners, 37-24.
 
AULD LANG SYNE
Thursday's contest against Air Force will be the final game of the 2020 calendar year for both teams, taking place on Dec. 31. Historically, USU has played on New Year's Eve six times and has posted a 4-2 record in those contests.
 
CLOSING IN ON 100
USU senior guard Emmie Harris is closing in on 100 career games played, as she enters Thursday's contest with 95 total appearances, including a streak of 77-straight. The lone senior for the Aggies this season, Harris has appeared in all but five games throughout her Utah State career