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LOGAN — After what once seemed like a quasi-impossible season from Danny Sprinkle's Aggies, Utah State will dance for the second consecutive season and for the fourth time in the past five tournaments.
The eighth-seeded Aggies will face ninth-seeded TCU (21-12, 9-9 Big 12) on Friday in Indianapolis in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in the Midwest region. The winner is likely to take on the formidable first-seeded Purdue in the following round should they avoid a 16-seed upset.
The eight-seed is tied for the Aggies' best seed ever in the NCAA Tournament, and was, according to multiple experts projections, a worse seed than expected. Though the Aggies have appeared in the tournament many times in recent years, they have not won since 2001 when they upset Ohio State.
The tournament appearance also marks Sprinkle's third consecutive appearance after he led Montana State to Big Sky Tournament championships and tournament appearances in 2022 and 2023.
The Aggies are one of six teams from the Mountain West in the NCAA Tournament this year and drew the second highest seed of those teams. They are one of just four of those teams that earned a first-round bye.
Other teams from the conference that clinched a bye are 10 seed Nevada, 11 seed New Mexico, and 5 seed San Diego State. Colorado State, a 10 seed, and Boise State are both part of the "last four in."
