Estimated read time: 6-7 minutes
With shooting still a work in progress for the Aggie men's basketball team, they used defense Saturday afternoon in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.
Utah State turned up the heat against UTEP and rolled to a 75-51 victory in front of 7,942 fans.
"I'm really proud of our guys, I thought we had our antennas up on the toughness that we needed to bring today," USU head coach Jerrod Calhoun said. "We talked about rebounding the ball and playing physical. That's a team that tries to turn you over, and they did, so we had to make up for some of our mistakes by just outplaying them. We couldn't make a shot again, and we still got 75 (points) so I'm proud of our guys' response from the other day. I think we're in a good place."
The Aggies (4-0) used a big run in each half to get some breathing room against the Miners (2-2), who were also tenacious on defense throughout the 40 minutes.
"We started off kind of slow on offense, and we've been priding ourselves on defense the last couple days of practice," USU forward Garry Clark said. "After our last game, coach really got into us and our defense has been our main focus. So yeah, it was a defensive battle at first."
The Aggie head coach has stressed defense and not fouling. The Aggies did commit 18 fouls on Saturday, but played better overall defense.
"I thought that was the best defensive performance we've had since we got here," Calhoun said. "I think our guys are tired of hearing they aren't tough enough and can't guard. We've been on them since the summer. We want to become a top 50, top 60 defense in the country. … We did a little better job not fouling. It's a step in the right direction."
Despite 17 turnovers, the Aggies limited the damage as the Miners turned those into just 11 points on Stew Morrill Court. Conversely, USU turned 16 UTEP turnovers into 26 points.
"You have to get back and get that defense set," Calhoun said. "We really believe we can be one of the best defensive teams in the country if we can get our defense set."
The Aggies also crashed the boards, grabbing 14 offensive boards. USU finished with 13 second-chance points.
"I just try to be involved as much as I can when I'm out there," said Clark, who led the way with 13 rebounds. "I want to be around the rim as much as possible, be able to create advantages for our team, offensive rebound and defensive rebound. It's about knowing my role and just doing it."
"Garry just has a tremendous work ethic," Calhoun said. "He will be a fan favorite this year because he does what he can do. He doesn't play outside of his game. He's just a wonderful kid that plays hard, good teammate. … I think he will get better and better. He is just scratching the surface. His motor is really good. He plays hard all the time. He does what we ask him. He was awesome."
Clark also led the team in scoring with a season-high 20 points. He made his first five field goal attempts and got to the foul line often, being fouled 10 times. He was 10 of 16 from the charity stripe with both of those numbers career highs.
"Coach ran some sets for me when I had mismatches," Clark said. "He got me in position to get fouls and get to the rim. It worked out. … Our guys can shoot, and they will fall. If they are not falling, I will rebound it for them. I have faith in them. They (shots) will eventually start falling."
Five other Aggies joined Clark in double-digit scoring in MJ Collins Jr. (13), Elijah Perryman (11), Karson Templin (10), Kolby King (10) and Mason Falslev (10). Falslev also grabbed seven boards, while Perryman led in assists (5) and blocked shots (2).
The true freshman point guard made his first start in place of injured Drake Allen. Perryman played 30 minutes.
"We knew it was going to be tough for him," Calhoun said of Perryman. "But I think he responded really well. He's not scared of the bright lights. He is a kid that has extreme confidence. I wish he would have had a few less turnovers, but I thought him and Jordy (Barnes) did a nice job running the team. That's a hard team to play against. They pressure you."
A trio of Miners came into the game averaging double figures, but only Elijah Jones was able to get to double digits with 13, matching his season average. He scored UTEP's final seven points the last 78 seconds of the game to get there.
"They (Aggies) played really well," UTEP head coach Joe Golding said. "I think they're a really good team, extremely well-coached, and obviously tough to beat at home."
The Miners took their lone lead two minutes into the game on a steal and layup by Caleb Blackwell, 2-1. Both teams struggled in the early going to find the bottom of the net.
Clark threw down a dunk off a pass from Collins to put the hosts back in front, where they stayed.
A rebound bucket by Falslev triggered a 8-0 run. Templin scored off a pass from Collins to make it 16-6 at the 8:33 mark of the opening half.
The Miners did get within 21-17 when Blackwell knocked down a shot from long range. The trey came with 4:09 left in the first half.
"I called a timeout and said, 'we are pressing. I'm not watching this any more,'" Calhoun said. "We needed our defense to spark us. … That kind of jumpstarted us."
It did, and the crowd joined in as well. The Aggies then reeled off 11 unanswered points as UTEP went nearly three minutes without scoring and turned the ball over four straight times as USU turned up the heat on defense with a press. Clark and Collins each scored four points during the run as USU took a 32-17 lead with just under two minutes until the break.
"During a timeout, coach said we were going to try and speed them up as much as we can," Clark said. "It worked. We got a couple of stops and got the momentum."
The Aggies took a 34-20 lead into halftime, despite 10 turnovers.
USU maintained a double-digit lead throughout the second half, building a 16-point advantage on three occasions. A three-point play by Clark, a pair of free throws by Collins, and then a fast break dunk by Collins on a long pass from Templin marked those 16-point leads.
Then the Aggies blew it open with a 13-0 run as Templin had six straight points, including a pair of free throws that brought out the "Up by 20-1" chant. King drilled a 3-pointer, and Perryman dunked a steal he came up with to give the hosts a 66-38 lead with four-and-a-half mintues to play.
King gave the Aggies their largest lead, 75-46, with a 3-pointer with 1:05 to play.
"About halfway through the game our guys were pretty determined to win this game, just by their defense and rebounding," Calhoun said. "Sometimes you have to win like that."
