Utah State basketball: Aggies looking to fine-tune in exhibition contest

LOGAN — Its team leader graduated and gone, its defensive ace injured and sidelined, and with a handful of talented newcomers fighting for playing time, Utah State's basketball team has one more chance to tinker with the lineup and fine-tune things before the regular season tips off next week at Weber State.

The Aggies, who face Trinity Western tonight at 7 p.m. in the Spectrum, will get injured starter Pooh Williams back in a week or two. But until then, Stew Morrill will be taking a long look at players like Preston Medlin, Tyrone White and Brian Green.

Those three, along with veteran swingman Tyler Newbold, will form USU's perimeter rotation to compliment the point guard play of Jared Quayle — the team's lone senior.

Trinity Western enters the game having split two games against Utah opponents on its exhibition swing through the Beehive State. After beating Utah Valley by 19, the Spartans fell to BYU, 74-56, Thursday night.

In addition to Quayle and Newbold, Utah State will have junior power forward Tai Wesley on hand to help the team cope with the loss of last year's WAC player of the year, Gary Wilkinson.

The Aggies finished the season with a 30-5 record and WAC regular-season and tournament titles before losing to Marquette in the first round of the NCAA Tourament.

Utah State beat Northwest Nazarene 85-51 last week in its exhibition opener, as the USU team shot 60.8 percent. The Aggies finished last season as the NCAA's top-shooting team for the second season in a row with a 49.6 percent average.

The game will not be broadcast on radio.

Aggie basketball

Utah State vs. Trinity Western

Tonight, 7 p.m.

Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, Logan

TV: none Radio: none

e-mail: jeborn@desnews.com