by: Wade Denniston, USU Athletic Media Relations

LOGAN, Utah – Make it a baker's dozen.

Flirting with a triple-double, Utah State senior forward Brandon Horvath had 17 points, nine rebounds and a career-high-tying seven assists to help lead the Aggies to a 73-46 rout of Air Force in a Mountain West men's basketball game Tuesday night at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.

Fellow senior Justin Bean also had 17 points and nine rebounds as Utah State (13-9, 4-5 MW) improved to 13-0 all-time at home against the Falcons (10-10, 3-6).

The 46 points allowed by the Aggies are the fewest scored by a Utah State opponent this season. During its current three-game winning streak, USU is only allowing 50.7 points per game.

These same two teams opened Mountain West play back on Dec. 29, with Air Force eking out a 49-47 victory over the Aggies at Clune Arena. Utah State wasn't about to let this one go down to the wire, though.

The Aggies, who limited the Falcons to just 23 points in each half, led for nearly 37 minutes on the night. 

A step-back 3-pointer by Joseph Octave gave the visitors their final lead of the night at 7-5 with 17:46 remaining in the first half. A driving layup by Horvath tied it at 7-all and a layup by Bean – assisted by Horvath – put the Aggies ahead to stay, 9-7 with 15:28 to go in the half.

Horvath's basket actually ignited a 10-0 run for Utah State, which led 36-23 at the break.

Octave finished with a team-high-tying nine points for Air Force, which came into the game fresh off a 63-61 setback at home against Wyoming. Nikc Jackson added nine points off the bench.

The Falcons, who have lost three of their last four, are 2-6 in their last eight games.

Junior guard Sean Bairstow and sophomore guard Steven Ashworth also scored in double figures for the Aggies with 15 and 10 points apiece, respectively. Ashworth had six helpers, as well, helping Utah State record 20 assists on 26 made field goals – the ninth time the Aggies have finished with 20 or more assists.

Utah State also pulled down 20 more rebounds than Air Force (36-16) and scored 12 points off 12 Falcon turnovers.

The Aggies shot a season-high 61.9 percent from the field (26-of-42), including 31.3 percent from beyond the arc (5-of-16), and 94.1 percent from the free throw line (16-of-17). Utah State is the only opponent to shoot above 60 percent against Air Force this season.

Conversely, the Falcons shot just 36.0 percent from the field (18-of-50), including an icy 13.3 percent from 3-point range (2-of-15), and 72.7 percent from the charity stripe (8-of-11).

Utah State has limited its last two opponents – Air Force and Nevada – to just 33.3 percent shooting from the field (36-of-108). In fact, both the Falcons and Wolf Pack each shot 2-for-15 from beyond the arc.

The Aggies continue their three-game homestand on Thursday, Feb. 3, at 7 p.m., when they welcome San José State to the Spectrum. The game was originally scheduled to be played on Jan. 1, but had to be postponed due to COVID-19 protocols within the Spartans' program.

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.

-USU-