Utah State men's basketball: Aggies survive a scare

LOGAN — Utah State has been looking for emotion.

The Aggies may have found it in the form of Tai Wesley and his emergence as a team leader couldn't come at a better time for USU.

"I've definitely felt if fall on my shoulders," Wesley said of the leadership role Utah State has been searching for in recent weeks. "We've only got one senior and that's Jared (Quayle) and he's not very vocal ... so I've definitely felt the pressure."

With 18 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a block, Wesley showed himself ready to assume that leadership role in Utah State's 79-72 win over Morehead State Monday night in the opening round of the Basketball Travelers Invitational.

"He's got to step up and be a leader," USU coach Stew Morrill said. "We need him to do that and he's certainly a guy that will stick his nose up and be physical."

Against the Eagles, the Aggies (7-4) certainly needed some players to step up and not just in a vocal way.

Morehead State (4-5) came into the game with the nation's leading rebounder in Kenneth Faried. But the junior all-America candidate was held in check by Utah State's Nate Bendall.

In fact, Bendall's defense was so solid, Morrill said, that USU opted to stop double-teaming the 6-foot-8 rebounding machine. Of course, part of that decision was made because the Aggies couldn't afford to leave anyone open in the second half.

After building a seemingly-comfortable 15-point lead just minutes into the second period, the Aggies couldn't stop the Eagles.

Morehead State rallied and closed the gap to as few as three points on a pair of occasions on the strength of 66.7 percent shooting over the final 20 minutes.

"Well, our offense was better and it had to be for us to have a chance to win," Morrill said. "They started to drive us and take us off the dribble and use their athleticism. Boy, we were in a lot of trouble."

But every time the Eagles made a run, the Aggies had an answer.

Often times it was Wesley. Other times it was Bendall, who scored a career-high 18 points. Also in that mix were swingman Tyler Newbold (15 points) and point guard Jared Quayle, who had all nine of his points in the second half to go along with seven rebounds and seven assists.

"That was important," Morrill said. "They made some run and momentum was in their favor. ... But we responded when the game was on the line."

The win was the 27th in a row at the annual holiday tournament Utah State hosts and it came after a loss a few days earlier that players and coaches alike called embarrassing.

But Wesley — who said he called Gary Wilkinson, last year's vocal senior leader, earlier in the day to talk about what he needed to do — was up to the task and Morrill was glad to see the effort on the floor, in the locker room and in the stat sheet.

"We desperately needed a win after the Long Beach game," Morrill said.

And with perhaps the team leader the Aggies have been looking for stepping up, Utah State got it.

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