AGGIE TIP-OFF
Utah State women's basketball (2-2) continues its nonconference schedule on the road this week. First, the Aggies will travel to take on in-state rival BYU on Tuesday, Nov. 23, at noon. USU will then head eastward to face Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday, Nov. 27, at noon.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Radio coverage for Saturday's game will be provided by 92.3 KBLU with Ajay Salveson on the call. Live stats and play-by-play information will be available through Sidearm, while updates will also be provided through the team's social media outlets. Links to each option will be available online prior to the game.
AGGIES VERSUS THE COUGARS
Tuesday will be the 43rd meeting between Utah State and BYU. The Aggies are 4-38 alll-time versus the Cougars with USU's most recent victory coming in a 76-69 victory at BYU on Dec. 6, 2017. The Cougars have since won the last three meetings.
SCOUTING THE COUGARS
The Cougars are 4-0 so far in the 2021-22 campaign, including two wins over Mountain West opponents in Fresno State and Boise State. BYU returned all five starters from last year's squad which went 19-6 while reaching the championship game of the WCC tournament and the second round of the NCAA tournament. Through four games this season, the Cougars are averaging 75.0 points per game while holding their opponens to 51.5. BYU has shot 44.6 percent from the field, 37.9 percent from 3-point territory and 78.9 percent from the free throw line. The Cougars are also out-rebounding their opponents by 8.2 rebounds per game and forcing 16.0 turnovers per game while surrendering only 11.75.
Senior Paisley Harding leads BYU in scoring with 17.5 points per game with sophomore Shaylee Gonzales close behind with 16.0 points per contest. Sophomore Lauren Gustin is the Cougars' leading rebounder, averaging a double-double with 13.5 rebounds to go along with 11.0 points per game. Senior Tegan Graham has been BYU's leader in assists so far with 4.75 assists per game.
AGGIES VERSUS LIONS
Saturday will be the first meeting between Utah State and Southeastern Louisiana. The Aggies are 1-0 against current Southland Conference teams, having beaten Incarnate Word, 79-46, on Nov. 25, 2016.
SCOUTING THE LIONS
The Lions enter the week at 2-2 on the year and on a two-game winning streak following victories over LSU Sherveport and Alcorn State. SLU returned all nine letterwinners from the 2020-21 season, including all five starters. So far this season, the Lions have averaged 61.5 points per game while holding opponents to 56.5 points. SLU has shot 37.3 percent from the floor, 36.4 percent from 3-point range and 74.2 percent from the free throw line. Additionally, the Lions have been outrebounded by 0.7 rebounds per contest by their opponents this season and have forced 76 turnovers while turning the ball over only 59 times.
The Lions have eight different players averaging at least five points per game this season. Sophomore Daija Harvey leads the Lions with 8.5 points per game while junior Chrissy Brown ranks close behind with 8.0 points per contest. Senior Caitlyn Williams leads the Lions in rebounding with 5.3 per game while sophomore Hailey Giaratano and senior Breonca Ducksworth lead the team with 2.5 assists each per game.
HOME GROWN
Utah State has four players from the state of Utah in senior forward Taylor Franson (American Fork, Utah), sophomores Halle Nelson (American Fork, Utah) and Kinley Falslev (Benson, Utah), and redshirt freshman Amit Lustgarten (Salt Lake City, Utah).
AGGIE RETURNERS
Utah State returns eight letterwinners from last year's squad. Headlining the returners include senior Emmie Harris, who averaged 8.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game in 22 contests. Junior Faith Brantley also returns having averaged 7.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game a season ago. Sophomore guard Meagan Mendazona also returns her 6.0 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. Junior Shyla Latone is USU's leading returning scorer at 9.7 points per game across 24 contests. Other returners for Utah State include sophomore Halle Nelson (4.6 ppg, 4.0 rpg), junior Kamalu Kamakawiwo'ole (4.2 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 1.2 apg), sophomore Kinley Falslev (3.4 ppg) and senior Taylor Franson (2.8 ppg, 3.4 rpg). In all, USU returns 65 percent of last season's scoring, 55 percent of last season's rebounds, and 80 percent of last season's assists. Over 68 percent of all minutes played during the 2020-21 season return again for the Aggies this year.
TRANSFER-MATION COMPLETE
Utah State added five new faces to the 2021-22 roster via transfer. Sophomore Olivia Wikstrom joins the Aggies after playing her freshman year at Northern Colorado. Junior Adryana Quezada comes to Logan after two years at UTSA. Senior E'Lease Stafford joins USU after three years at East Tennessee State. USU also brings in two transfers from Murray State in seniors Manna Mensah and Laci Hawthorne.
OLD SCHOOL
While the Aggies welcome five new transfers to the team in 2021-22, only one freshman graces this season's roster, Amit Lustgarten, who redshirted last year while appearing in five games for the Aggies.
WELCOME TO THE PARTY
The Aggies made several changes to the coaching staff for the 2021-22 season. Jauwan Scaife remains as assistant coach while also taking on the responsibility of recruiting coordinator. Taylor Ignoto officially joins the staff as an assistant coach after spending last season as director of basketball operations. Marc Wilson also joins as an assistant coach, bringing 21 years of Division-I coaching experience with him. Claire Gritt makes her coaching debut as graduate manager after concluding her playing career at Denver, which included three seasons under current USU head coach Kayla Ard.
PACIFIC PIPELINE
Utah State's 2021-22 roster presents a plethora of Pacific flair, with six players joining USU from Pacific-coast states (Washington, Oregon, California and Hawaii). Junior Faith Brantley (Tacoma) and sophomore Olivia Wikstrom (Bainbridge Island) call Washington home. Junior Shyla Latone (San Diego) and senior Kaylin Randhawa (Turlock) come from California. Sophomore Meagan Mendazona (Monmouth) represents Oregon while junior Kamalu Kamakawiwo'ole hails from Hawaii.
CLOSING IN ON HISTORY
Senior guard Emmie Harris enters this week's play having suited up 115 times for the Aggies, placing her ninth all-time in program history. Harris will have the chance to pass numerous Aggies this season given good health. Former USU standouts Hailey Bassett, Rachel Brewster and Jennifer Schlott hold the all-time record with 126 games played in an Aggie uniform.
HIGH FLYERS
Through four games, Utah State's scoring average of 70.8 points per game would qualify as the program's seventh-highest season average and the highest mark since averaging 77.3 points per game in the 2013-14 season. In the Aggies' first two games of the year, an 83-78 win over Westminster followed by an 85-75 victory of Cal State Fullerton, Utah State topped the 80-point plateau in consecutive games for the first time since reaching the marks versus UC Irvine and Dixie State in November of 2017.
FREE FOR THE TAKING
Kaylin Randhawa is currently ranks first in the nation for both total made and attempted free throws this season. The senior from Turlock, California, has made 31 free throws this season while attempting 36. Randhawa also ranks fifth in the Mountain West with a free throw shooting percentage of 86.1 percent. Olivia Wikstrom also appears on the conference lists, ranking 10th for free throw percentage (72.2 percent) and seventh in both free throw attempts (18) and makes (13). Utah State ranks first in the Mountain West for both total free throw attempts (100) and makes (70) while ranking 19th and 21st in the same categories nationally, respectively.
LEADERS IN THE MOUNTAIN WEST
Two games into the 2021-22 campaign, the Aggies find themselves near the top of several statistical categories in the Mountain West. At 70.8 points per game, USU boasts the fifth-highest scoring offense in the conference thus far. The Aggies also rank fourth with 9.3 steals per game and fifth in turnover margin (+2.8) and 3-point field goal defense (28.4 percent).
Indiviually, senior Kaylin Randhawa ranks second in the MW with 18.0 points per game. Junior Adryana Quezada sits at third with an average of 2.8 offensive rebounds per game, ninth in total rebounding with 6.5 rebounds per game and ninth with 1.0 blocks per game. Senior Laci Hawthorne also ranks sixth in offensive rebounding with 2.5 offensive rebounds per contest. Senior E'Lease Stafford and sophomore Olivia Wikstrom currently rank seventh with 2.0 steals per game.
HIGH SCORES
Last week, junior Faith Brantley matched a pair of career-highs in Utah State's game versus Loyola Marymount with three made 3-pointers and four made free throws in the contest.
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