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- Utah State men's basketball defeated Westminster 110-54 in their season opener.
- The Aggies made 19 of 37 3-point attempts tying third most in school history.
- Transfer guard MJ Collins Jr. led with 23 points and four rebounds for USU.
LOGAN — Fans had plenty to cheer about Monday night at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum as the Aggie men's basketball team opened the 2025-26 season on a good note.
Utah State led from start to finish against Division II Westminster from Salt Lake City on Stew Morrill Court. The Aggies lit up the nets from long range and also threw down some dunks on their way to a 110-54 victory in front of 8,927 fans.
"We study a lot of teams," head coach Jerrod Calhoun said. "… We want to get to our shape in four seconds. We want to get to an action in six (seconds). The first shot we can take that we have 10 toes on the rim, we want to take those shots. We want to be on the attack for 40 minutes and value the ball."
When the final buzzer sounded, USU had made 19 of 37 3-point attempts for the game. The 19 made threes is tied for the third most in school history.
"They (Griffins) packed the paint, so we had to take those shots," Calhoun said. "There will be other games where we have to make different decisions. I always tell our players when we need to take what the defense gives us. I thought tonight we made a lot of good decisions."
Transfer guard MJ Collins Jr. led the Aggies with a game and career-high 23 points, making 5 of 7 from long range. The junior also grabbed four rebounds.
"It was amazing, just being able to feel like myself again," Collins said. "I first want to thank God of course, my family, my teammates and most importantly my coaches for believing in me."
Collins was joined in double-digit scoring by guard Kolby King (16), wing Adlan Elamin (12), forward Garry Clark (12) and guard Elijah Perryman (10). It was the collegiate debut for Elamin and Perryman.
Clark finished with a double-double as he grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.
"We need Garry to be good," Calhoun said. "He has proven he can score and rebound."
The Aggies also shared the ball well as 32 of the made baskets came with assists Monday night. Guard Drake Allen led the way with nine, followed closely by Perryman with eight. The 32 assists tied for the seventh most in a single game in program history for USU.
"We didn't want to show a lot tonight," said Calhoun, when asked about the offense. "… You saw they like playing with each other. They are very unselfish, and we have a lot of guys that can put the ball in the basket."
The Griffins were led by Colin Hayes with 12 points. Michael Frazier, who is a Boise State transfer, added 11 points and six rebounds for Westminster.
The Aggies didn't control the opening tip, but were able to score the first five points as guard Mason Falslev knocked down a pair of free throws and drilled a 3-pointer off a pass from forward Karson Templin. The trey would be the first of six straight by the hosts.
Anderson made a pair of long-range shots, then Collins added a trio of treys. The six 3-pointers gave USU a 20-8 lead less than six minutes into the game. During the 3-point barrage, Falslev was poked in his right eye and left for a while. The junior did return and finished the first half.
Sharing the ball was a big part of the opening 20 minutes for USU. On back-to-back buckets, Perryman swooped in for a layup on a fast break off a pass from Templin. The following possession, it was Templin hustling down the court to score off a pass from Perryman.
Perryman sparked the biggest run of the first half by the Aggies. He swished a 3-pointer off a pass from Clark, to begin 11 unanswered points. Guard Jordy Barnes got into the 3-point shooting act with a bomb off a pass from Falslev. Clark scored in the paint to bring out the "Up by 20-1" chant, and wing Tucker Anderson made his third shot from distance off a pass from Falslev to give the hosts a 41-15 lead with six minutes before the break.
A pull-up 3-pointer by Collins and steal and coast-to-coast drive for a dunk by Templin highlighted the final minutes of the opening half. USU took a 53-27 lead into halftime.
