Utah State basketball: WAC champs still have work to do

LOGAN — The suspense is gone from Saturday night's big match-up with New Mexico State.

Utah State's outright Western Athletic Conference title was secured late Thursday night while the blue Aggies rested at home. That was all thanks to NMSU's loss at Nevada — removing all the what-ifs surrounding the regular-season finale that might have determined who gets the No. 1 seed in next week's WAC tournament.

"Certainly there's some comfort in that we won the regular-season title," USU coach Stew Morrill said. "But our guys know this is a very tough game against a very tough opponent."

Utah State (24-6, 13-2 WAC) will celebrate the two-year career of point guard Jared Quayle — without whom the Aggies might not be even close to celebrating a title — before the game and cut down the nets after it's over.

What they most want to do, though, is break out those scissors after a win instead of a loss.

And New Mexico State, though no longer in position to claim a share of the WAC title, would love nothing more than to send the 10,270 Aggie fans — who are expected to pack the Smith Spectrum and watch those nets get cut down — home with a bitter taste in their mouths.

"They're not easy guys to defend," Morrill said. "They're awfully fast and awfully quick ... they've got pretty good talent at every position."

The red Aggies also have a win over Utah State earlier this season to use as a confidence booster.

To win, NMSU (19-10, 11-4) will have to shut down a Utah State team that is among the best in the nation at offensive execution.

"The Utah State team is a complete team. That's been their biggest advantage all year long is they have such balance," NMSU coach Marvin Menzies said. "They've got great experience and depth right now. They were picked the favorite and they're still the team to beat."

Morrill said his success is as much a product of the players he has in his system as it is the system he has for his players.

"It's just our system," Morrill said of the compliments he's received from opposing players and coaches over the years. "It's just the way we play ... and it's kept me employed for a lot of years."

Running a complex set of plays that calls for countless screens and passes that resemble a chess match, the Aggies wear down opposing defenses and often get open looks at the basket.