SUU, Utah State basketball: Happy to be home, Aggies host Southern Utah

LOGAN — Home, well-rested and well-fed, Utah State welcomes Southern Utah to the Spectrum tonight for what may be a very un-neighborly holiday weekend get-together.

The Aggies, 2-2 after Tuesday's pounding of Idaho State, are in the midst of a 5-game homestand and will be playing a stretch of nine home games of the next 11 contests on the schedule.

"We're excited to be back home playing in the Spectrum," Utah State coach Stew Morrill said. "I think sometimes people lose sight of how difficult it is to win on the road. We lost a couple of games that, maybe, we could have won. It will be nice to be playing at home."

USU is still trying to get itself into the playing form it expected before the season began. With an injury to starting swingman Pooh Williams keeping the athletic junior out of the lineup for the first three games, the Aggies struggled at times to slow down the penetration of quick shooting guards or small forwards.

Williams is back, though, and after starting against Idaho State, it became clear the kind of impact he has on the team.

"We missed Pooh," Aggie forward Tai Wesley said. "His defense and presence out there make us a better team."

But not just on the defensive end.

Williams is capable of driving to the hole and scoring. His mid-range jumper is solid and he had become a more reliable threat from 3-point range at the end of his sophomore season.

With him on the floor, the Aggies have another weapon and that frees up Wesley and Nate Bendall in the post a little more.

Wesley and Bendall have been nothing short of stellar in Williams' absence and are quickly making USU fans worry less about how the team will fare without WAC player of the year Gary Wilkinson hanging around.

Wesley is averaging 13.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, while Bendall is contributing 11.8 points and 7.0 boards. Together, they have made 40-of-66 shots and 20 of 25 free throws.

Southern Utah, of course, would like nothing more than to enter the Spectrum and snap USU's 35-game home-court winning streak.

A year ago, when Utah State played at the Thunderbirds' Centrum, SUU gave the Aggies all they could handle in a 72-65 USU win.

Led by senior guard Davis Baker, the T-Birds are 3-3 but are coming off a tough loss to Tennessee Tech. Baker scores 15.7 points and grabs 4.5 rebounds per game. Junior Ryan Brimley is adding 11.3 points per game for the Roger Reid-coached team, and sophomore center Matt Massey is chipping in 10.8 points and 7.7 rebounds per outing.

Aggies on the air

Utah State (2-2) vs. Southern Utah (3-3)

Tonight, 7 p.m.

Smith Spectrum, Logan

TV: CW 30

Radio: 610 AM, 1230 AM, 95.9 FM, 91.1 FM (Cedar City)

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