UVU, Utah State basketball: Tai Wesley, Tyler Newbold get USU a 'home' win over Wolverines

OREM — Tai Wesley and Tyler Newbold proved that you can always come home again, leading Utah State to a 76-58 victory at Utah Valley University on Saturday.

"I grew up down the street," Wesley said. "I had a lot of relatives and family here. There is nothing like playing in front of your family and friends."

Wesley and Newbold are both Utah County natives. Wesley grew up in Provo, and Newbold in nearby Payson.

Earlier this season the duo had a homecoming spoiled in a loss to BYU in Provo, but they were not to be denied in Orem. Wesley had 14 points and 11 rebounds and Newbold continued his improved play with 10 points.

"(Newbold) has officially broken out of his slump," head coach Stew Morrill said after the game.

After fighting to a 33-30 lead at halftime the Aggies exploded in the second half, scoring 43 points and breaking the game open.

"I think we just got a feeling on the way the game was being called and how physical they were going to be," Wesley said. "We came out and tried to match their physicality and outrebound them. I feel like we did a good job with that."

"I think that was by far the best second half we've had on the road," Morrill agreed. "We were good defensively, good on the boards, made some shots, and executing a little better offensively."

Newbold and Wesley also got a lot of help from Dallas, Texas, native Brockeith Pane.

Last week was not a banner week for Pane. He was in the middle of the controversy that got coach Dan Monson ejected in the Long Beach State game.

He then found himself not starting for the first time in his Aggie career against Cal State Bakersfield for what coach Morrill called "a responsibility reminder."

"I felt like it was my fault I was in the doghouse," Pane said. "I just had to put some extra time in and get myself out of the doghouse."

Pane capably directed the Aggie offense for what may have been his best overall game as an Aggie. The Midland Junior College transfer scored 19 points, shooting an efficient 5 of 7 from the field. He also added one assist and had just one turnover.

"I was getting wide-open shots because they were doubling down on the bigs," Pane said. "I put a lot of time in the gym this week while we were off. I put a lot of reps up because I've been shooting wide-open shots. I just ran the sets that were called and was ready to shoot and be aggressive."