Utah State basketball: USU ends losing streak to beat Idaho, 77-67

MOSCOW, Idaho — The Utah State Aggies finally brought an end to their four-game losing streak on Thursday night, beating the Idaho Vandals, 77-67.

The Aggies had a good start, with freshman Marcel Davis instrumental in building an early lead. Davis and Jarred Shaw each had six points as Aggies went 18-3 in the first seven minutes. Shaw ended the night with 27 points for the Aggies.

Idaho fought back, going on a 11-2 run, and managed to bring the score within two points at 20-18. Some good shooting helped the Aggies widen the gap once more, and they went in at halftime with a six-point lead.

The Vandals kept it close at the start of the second half. Mansa Habeeb made a 3-point jumper to bring the Vandals back within two points at 46-44.

However, anything that the Vandals could muster, USU responded in like kind, and then some. TeNale Roland downed a 3-point bucket, followed by another, and it soon became clear that the Aggies were not giving up this lead.

The Aggies were shooting well all night. They finished with 60 percent from the field and, crucially, 79 percent from the free-throw line. They also had a huge 27 rebounds, compared with just 13 for Idaho.

After USU built a lead of 17 points, Idaho fought hard to get back into the game. However, there was nothing they could do to make up the huge deficit.

Davis, one of the standout players on the night, told KVNU, “The last couple of games we’ve gotten off to a slow start, so we wanted to start well today ... any time you can get easy baskets, it’s easy to get into a rhythm.

“They were saying ‘foul 0’… so I just went down there and knocked in a couple.

“(The win) means a lot to us, we’ve been on a losing streak, so it’s good to finally play hard and get the win.”

On playing without the injured Preston Medlin and Kyisean Reed, Davis said, “We still feel like one of the best teams in the league, and we’re gonna play like it.”

This win brings the Aggies to 15-5 for the season.