PHOENIX, Ariz. – No. 23 Utah State men's basketball suffered its first loss of Mountain West play and just its second loss of the season Saturday afternoon at Global Credit Union Arena, falling to Grand Canyon 84-74.
In what was the first-ever meeting between the Aggies and the Lopes, a heroic effort by USU junior guard Mason Falslev wasn't enough. Falslev went for his first double-double of the season and the fourth of his career. He finished the day with 25 points, a career-high-tying 12 rebounds, two assists and a block while playing 37 minutes.
The Aggies were plagued by foul trouble throughout, as USU was whistled for a season-high 27 fouls with four different players picking up at least four. Utah State reached the bonus less than 10 minutes into each half.
Utah State fell behind early and were unable to pull even through the remainder of the contest. Despite trailing for over 38 minutes, USU kept the hosts at arms length throughout, never trailing by more than 10 points. After scoring first, the Aggies surrendered an 11-2 run to the Lopes. USU clawed its way back and was able to pull within a single possession by the 5:41 mark of the half, but a 7-0 response by GCU made it a 10-point game.
At the half, Utah State trailed 42-36 after shooting just 32 percent to Grand Canyon's 54 percent.
The Aggies continued to battle after the break, their shooting percentages increasing and Grand Canyon's decreasing in the final 20 minutes, but were never able to break through to re-take control. USU scored five-straight to pull within five points with just under two minutes to play, but the final five points of the day belonged to the Lopes.
Along with the big performance by Falslev, junior forward Karson Templin neared a double-double as he went for 10 points, eight rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal despite being limited to just 22 minutes of action with foul trouble.
Freshman forward Adlan Elamin had one of his strongest performances of the season, finishing with 12 points, seven rebounds and two assists.
In total, Utah State shot 36.2 percent (25-of-69) from the floor, 25.0 percent (7-of-28) from 3-point range and 73.9 percent (17-of-23) at the charity stripe. Grand Canyon shot 50.9 percent (27-of-53) from the field, 35.0 percent (7-of-20) from behind the arc and 69.7 percent (23-of-33) at the free throw line.
UP NEXT
Utah State will return home next week to host UNLV on Tuesday, Jan. 20, at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. Tip-off is slated for 9 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on FS1.
TICKETS
Season tickets for the 2025-26 men's basketball season have sold out. Fans can purchase single game tickets for available remaining games here. A waitlist for 2026-27 season tickets is now available here.
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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