Utah State basketball: Program is alive and well

LOGAN — There was a time in early January when many observers of the Utah State basketball team wondered if this, after 10 years of averaging nearly 25 wins per season, would be the one that saw the Aggies come back down to earth a bit.

Utah State was, after all, just 10-6 and was limping home from Louisiana fresh off a 22-point tail-kicking.

"We had to re-evaluate some things," USU coach Stew Morrill said.

Once that happened, the Aggies were virtually unstoppable as they steamrolled the rest of the Western Athletic Conference and waltzed to a third-consecutive regular season championship.

"I think it's safe to say this program is healthy," Morrill said. "I feel awfully positive about this group. … They achieved some great things."

But with the season wrapped up, Morrill knows there are also a few things they aren't satisfied with.

Despite winning 17 games in a row down the stretch and having a comfy three-game cushion in the WAC standings when the regular season ended, Utah State polished off the season with two losses — one to New Mexico State in the WAC Tournament championship game and another to Texas A&M in the NCAA Tournament.

Those two losses notwithstanding, Morrill calls the 27-win season a success.

"What we're doing hasn't been all bad," Morrill said, noting his team has been in the NCAA Tournament seven times in the last 11 years and has a pair of at-large invitations in the process. "I hope we're having that kind of discussion every year because they mean things are going pretty darn well at Utah State."

Morrill said he's as frustrated as anyone, probably more so, at the lack of post-season success his teams have had.

He knows there is a constant criticism that USU's schedule is "soft" and that his teams are not battled tested in some ways. But he also said Utah State is limited in fixing those complaints.

A breakthrough win or two in the NCAA Tournament would result in a better seed in future years and break down a handful of scheduling walls. Until that happens, though, Morrill said he will simply try to build the program by recruiting better players and winning games.

"I try not to read or listen to all that stuff. It tends to ruin my day and at my age, you can't afford to ruin too many days," Morrill said. "We're going to try and keep winning championships. If we keep doing that it will give us chances to win in the NCAA."