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- No. 25 Utah State defeated San Jose State 85-78, securing their fifth consecutive win.
- Mason Falslev led Utah State with 17 points, seven rebounds, and four assists.
- The Aggies remain undefeated in the Mountain West, overcoming a strong San Jose State effort.
SAN JOSE, Calif. — San Jose State gave No. 25 Utah State all it could handle Tuesday night. But when it was all said and done, the Aggies left California with yet another notch in its belt.
The Aggies held off a feisty Spartans team with a 85-78 road victory. The win gave the team its fifth consecutive win and kept them undefeated in the Mountain West.
"Every game is going to be a battle," Aggies coach Jerrod Calhoun said. "It doesn't matter if you're 15-1 or not, you're going to get everyone's best shot. I thought certainly tonight we did, and our guys were able to overcome a very, very hot San Jose team."
Mason Falslev led Utah State (15-1, 5-0 MW) with 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists; while Tucker Anderson had 15 points and shot 3-of-7 from the 3-point line; and Ian Martinez had 14 points, five rebounds and four assists.
Five Utah State players scored in double figures.
The Spartans (7-10, 0-5 MW) tied the game 69-69 with about six minutes remaining, but a Falslev layup and 3-pointer led a 7-0 Aggies run to give the away team a 76-69 lead with 3:27 left.
San Jose State pulled to within 3, but Utah State did just enough to fend off the Spartans.
"I would say it was defensively — just taking pride in defense, guarding the ball and closing out hard on shooters," Dayton Albury said when asked about Utah State's run after San Jose State tied the game late.
Every time Utah State appeared to gain separation, San Jose State answered. In one sequence, the Aggies led by 7 with less than eight minutes left in the game. But 3-pointers from Latrell Davis and Donavan Yap Jr. cut Utah State's lead to 68-67.
The Aggies built an 11-point lead in the first half with a 10-0 run over the course of four minutes, but the Spartans went on an 11-3 run to cut the deficit to 3. Utah State answered with a 9-2 run for a 43-33 lead, and ended the half with a 45-36 lead.
Other than a brief 10-8 deficit in the first half, the Aggies led for almost the entire game.
Utah State received its first Associated Press Top 25 ranking of the season on Monday, and the news of the rankings seemingly put Albury in a reflective mood.
"Personally, I would say it just gave me a wake-up call on how blessed I am to be in this position to play for a ranked team, and to be around some guys that love the game and also are unselfish," Albury said.
