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LOGAN, Utah - Utah State (19-7, 8-5 MW) men's basketball continues its 2019-20 season with a Mountain West road games at Colorado State (17-8, 8-4 MW) on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at 7:30 p.m. Fans can watch the game against CSU on the CBS Sports Network (Xfinity Ch. 269, DirecTV Ch. 221, Dish Ch. 158).

Opening Tips
• Utah State and Colorado State will meet for the 103rd time, making it the fourth-longest series in school history. USU leads the all-time series 61-39 and have won fourth straight and three of the last four in Fort Collins.

• Colorado State's only loss over its last nine games came at the hands of Utah State as the Aggies posted a 77-61 victory over the Rams in Logan on Jan. 25.

• Utah State will be playing for its 20th victory this season, giving the Aggies their first back-to-back 20-win seasons since 2012 and 2013.

• All-time Utah State is 29-14 when playing for its 20th victory of the season.

• Utah State is 23-8 against Mountain West opponents over the last two years, including a 9-6 mark on the road. All-time, USU is 63-58 in the MW since joining the league in 2013-14.

• Utah State earned a combined 3.11 grade point average during the fall semester, making up a combined 3.32 grade point average for USU student-athletes, the highest semester GPA for the Aggies in school history.

• Last week, Utah State held both UNLV and Boise State to a MW-season-lows of 55 and 61 points, respectively. In fact, USU also held Wyoming to a MW-season-low 45 points on Jan. 28, and Air Force to a season- and conference-low 47 points on Jan. 21.

• Senior guard Sam Merrill is on pace to become the fourth Aggie in school history to surpass 2,000 career points this season. Merrill currently has 1,996 points to rank No. 4 all-time in USU history. Merrill would be just the sixth player in MW history to surpass 2,000 career points.

• Merrill has scored in double figures in all but one game he's played in this season and in each of the last 17 games, increasing his total of 100 career games in double figures, moving to fourth in school history.
• Merrill is the only player in school history to surpass more than 1,900 career points, 400 career assists and 100 career steals. Merrill is just the third player in MW history to accomplish the feat (Jimmer Fredette - BYU, Brandon Ewing - WYO).

• Merrill and junior guard Abel Porter are the only guard tandem in the MW that ranks in the Top-5 in assist-to-turnover ratio, averaging 2.5 and 2.0 to rank second and fourth, respectively.

• Sophomore center Neemias Queta recorded his 100th career block against UNLV, becoming the fifth Aggie in school history to record 100 or more blocks in a career. Queta has recorded multiple blocks in more than half of the games he has played in during his career at Utah State.

• Queta has logged 20 or more points in each of the last two games, making him just one of two Aggies to log 20 or more in back-to-back games this season (Sam Merrill - two times).

• Senior guard Diogo Brito has surpassed 100 career steals this year, totaling 112 during his career to rank tied for 10th in school history. Brito is second in the MW with 1.6 steals per game, while sophomore forward Justin Bean is third with 1.5 per contest.

• Utah State is a perfect 26-0 over the last two years when Brito scores in double figures.

• Bean, a former walk-on, is one of only two players in the MW averaging a double-double, turning in 12.4 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. Bean is 15th in the nation with 12 double-doubles this season, the most by an Aggie since Eric Franson logged 15 double-doubles during the 1994-95 season.

• Bean has recorded double-digit rebounds in 18 of 26 games this season and in 19 games in his career. 

• Head coach Craig Smith is closing in on 200 career victories, needing just two more wins to reach the 200-victory plateau.

The Utah State/Colorado State Series
• Utah State and Colorado State will meet for the 103rd  time on Saturday, the fourth-longest series in the history of Aggie basketball.

• Utah State leads the all-time series 61-39 and have won each of the last four contests and three of the last four in Fort Collins.

• The team with the better shooting percentage at the end of the game has won 12 of the last 13 meetings.

• Over the last four games against the Rams, Utah State has shot 55.7 percent (128-of-230) from the floor, including a MW-series-best 59.2 percent (29-of-49) in the last contest in Logan on Jan. 25.

• Utah State's 16-point margin of victory over Colorado State in the game on Jan. 25, marked the largest difference between the two teams since the Aggies joined the Mountain West.

• Utah State's trio of Sam Merrill, Justin Bean and Neemias Queta have been especially effective against the Rams, averaging 18.3 points and shooting 84.6 percent (11-of-13) and 72.0 percent (18-of-25), respectively. Over the last two games alone, Merrill is averaging 33.0 points per game against Colorado State.

• Utah State head coach Craig Smith and Colorado State head coach Niko Medved were on the same staff under head coach Tim Miles at Colorado State from 2008-12. Smith is a perfect 3-0 against Colorado State during his career.

• The game between the Rams and Aggies pit the two leading rebounders in the league against one another as CSU's Nico Carvacho leads the MW with 10.8 boards per game, followed by Bean with 10.4 per contest.