LOGAN, Utah – Graham Ike scored 23 points, the final two coming with three seconds left, as Wyoming beat Utah State 71-69 in a Mountain West men's basketball game Saturday night at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.
The Aggies still had a chance to win the game at the buzzer, but a wide-open look from 3-point range by junior guard
Rylan Jones was off the mark.
Utah State (10-7, 1-3 MW) trailed 63-56 with 4:50 to go, but used an 11-2 run to move in front 67-65 with 1:33 remaining. Jones, who finished with 19 points and two assists, capped the spurt by converting an old-fashioned three-point play.
The Cowboys (12-2, 1-0 MW) answered back with a mini 4-0 run of their own to regain the lead, but Utah State senior forward
Justin Bean knocked down a jumper to tie it at 69-all with 26 seconds left, setting up the thrilling final moments.
Bean also scored 19 points for the Aggies, to go along with 13 rebounds and two steals. It marked his 11th double-double of the season.
Two other players scored in double figures for Utah State as junior guard
Sean Bairstow had 15 points, while sophomore guard
Max Shulga chipped in 10 off the bench.
Hunter Maldonado joined Ike in double-figure scoring for Wyoming with 21 points. Drake Jeffries and Jeremiah Oden added 14 and 11 points apiece, respectively, for the Cowboys, who had not played a game since Dec. 25 due to health and safety protocols.
Conversely, the Aggies had not played a home game since Dec. 21, a span of more than three weeks. Saturday's game against Wyoming marked the latest league home opener for Utah State since the 1996-97 campaign, when it hosted North Texas to open Big West play on Jan. 16.
The game featured 11 ties and six lead changes. Wyoming led by as many as 10 in the first half, while Utah State never led by more than two on the night.
Despite trailing 18-8 with 10:17 to go in the first half, the Aggies battled back tie the game at 31-all at the break.
Utah State shot 40.6 percent from the field (26-of-64), including just 23.1 percent from 3-point range (6-of-26), and 73.3 percent from the free throw line (11-of-15).
Wyoming shot 52.2 percent (24-of-46) overall, but knocked down 37.5 percent of its shots from beyond the arc (6-of-16). The Cowboys made 81.0 percent of their free throws (17-of-21).
Utah State, which was without the services of senior guards
RJ Eytle-Rock and
Brock Miller, has lost its last two games by a combined seven points and three conference games by a combined nine points.
The Aggies will look to snap their two-game losing streak on Tuesday, Jan. 18, at 9 p.m. (MT), when they hit the road to take on Fresno State at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California.
For more information on Utah State's men's basketball program, follow the Aggies on Facebook at usumensbasketball, on Twitter at @usubasketball and on Instagram at @usubasketball. Fans can also watch USU men's basketball highlights by visiting youtube.com/utahstateathletics.
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