LAS VEGAS – No. 22 Utah State men's basketball (16-2, 6-1 MW) had a six-game winning streak come to an end, dropping its first game of Mountain West play Wednesday evening in Las Vegas as the Aggies fell to UNLV 65-62 at the Thomas & Mack Center. Despite the loss, USU remains atop the MW standings at 6-1 as it heads into its first bye of league play.
Despite posting its second-lowest scoring output of the season, Utah State had a chance until the final seconds, but a tying 3-point heave at the buzzer was too strong, ricocheting off the back of the rim.
The Aggies posted a strong defensive effort, limiting UNLV to just 40.7 percent (24-of-59) shooting from the floor and 24.0 percent (6-of-25) shooting from 3-point range, but allowed 36 points in the paint.
Both sides got off to a slow start in this one, neither team leading by more than two possessions at any time during the first half and trading control six times. The first 20 minutes concluded with UNLV holding a 32-30 advantage heading into the locker room.
The Aggies spent the first 12 minutes of the second half playing from behind, but never let the Rebels stretch their lead to more than five points, before a 6-0 run put USU back in front with 7:49 to play. They extended that run to 15-3 to turn a five-point UNLV lead into a seven-point Utah State lead, its largest of the night.
From that point, USU made just one of its final 10 shots, while the Rebels caught fire, making five of their final seven in the last five minutes of action. Free throw shooting plagued USU throughout the night as the Aggies made just 53.3 percent (8-of-15) of their shots at the charity stripe.
The Aggies were led in the scoring column by sophomore wing
Tucker Anderson, who went for a season-high 19 points while shooting 6-of-12 from the field and 4-of-8 from deep. Anderson also tacked on five rebounds and a pair of assists.
Other strong individual performances for USU included a 15-point night by fifth year guard
Ian Martinez and an eight-point, 10-rebound, four-assist performance from sophomore forward
Karson Templin. Sophomore guard
Mason Falslev finished the night with eight points, eight boards and three assists.
Utah State finished the game shooting 41.5 percent (22-of-53) from the floor, 38.5 percent (10-of-26) from behind the 3-point arc and 53.3 percent (8-of-15) from the free throw line. UNLV shot 40.7 percent (24-of-59) from the field, including 24.0 percent (6-of-25) from 3-point range and 64.7 percent (11-of-17) at the charity stripe.
UP NEXT
Utah State will have the weekend off, then return to the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum next week to host Nevada on Wednesday, Jan. 22. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. on FS1.
SEASON TICKETS
There are a limited number of tickets available for all remaining home games. To purchase visit utahstateaggies.com/tickets.
FOLLOW
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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