LUBBOCK, Texas - Utah State men's basketball ran its winning streak to seven games, including a perfect 5-0 mark in the Mountain West, following a 77-45 victory over New Mexico in Lubbock, Texas, on Wednesday night. The Aggies' flawless start in league play is the best for USU since the team started the 2012-13 season with a matching 5-0 record.
Junior center Neemias Queta led the Aggies in scoring with a season-high-tying 18 points, and added team bests of six rebounds and five blocks, while shooting 90.0 percent (9-of-10) from the floor. Queta increased his career total to 153 blocks, pulling to within two of the all-time mark in Utah State history held by Gilbert Pete (1986-89).
Queta was joined in double figures by redshirt junior guard Marco Anthony with 15 points and senior forward Alphonso Anderson with a season-high 14 points. As a team, Utah State narrowly missed shooting 50 percent or better for the third consecutive game, finishing the night 49.1 percent (28-of-57) from the floor, 25.0 percent (4-of-16) from behind the arc and 81.0 percent (17-of-21) at the free throw line.
The Aggies maintained their rebounding dominance by winning the battle of the boards, doing so in every game this year, with a 41-29 advantage on the glass. Freshman guard Rollie Worster tied for the team lead with a career-high six boards, matching Queta and sophomore center Trevin Dorius, also with six rebounds.
Utah State scored the opening bucket of the contest, but fell behind the Lobos, 11-6, with 13:15 to play in the opening half. The Aggies then used a 19-4 run over the next seven minutes to open up a double-digit lead, 25-15, and maintained the margin throughout the rest of the game.
USU went into the half with a 41-18 advantage, marking the fewest points scored by an opponent in the opening half this season. UNM shot a chilly 19.2 percent (5-of-26) from the floor during the opening 20 minutes and finished the game shooting 26.8 percent (15-of-56) from the floor, 23.8 percent (5-of-21) from behind the 3-point line and 71.4 percent (10-of-14) at the charity stripe. Redshirt senior guard Keith McGee was the lone Lobo in double figures, finishing with a team-high 10 points.
Utah State's margin was trimmed to 15 points in the second half, but a final 18-2 run over the final eight minutes of the contest gave the Aggies their fourth 30-point-plus victory during the conference season.
The two teams return to the court on Saturday night, playing the second game of the two-game series at 7 p.m. (MT), on FS1 (Comcast Ch. 265/HD691, DirecTV Ch. 219, DISH Ch. 150). The game will, once again, be played in Lubbock, Texas, on the campus of Lubbock Christian University without fans.
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