This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2010, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Logan • The win was methodical. Not much worry for Utah State or its fans. Not a great or horrible performance by the Aggies.
Instead, the 71-48 victory over Idaho State on the first night of the World Vision Invitational was simply solid. USU led the entire way before 8,145 at the Spectrum. The Aggies received a bit of hot-shooting from Brian Green, a little of everything from Tai Wesley and never found itself in danger of losing. Utah State was the better team and played like it.
"It was just kind of a grind out there," Green said. "We played an extremely unselfish game tonight. We moved the ball, we got open shots. That's what you have to do in a tournament like this where there's three games in as many nights."
The Aggies received a great game from their bench, as the reserves scored 40 of the final point total. Green scored 12 of his game-high 17 in the first half. Brady Jardine had nine points, 10 rebounds and a fastbreak dunk that sent the Spectrum into a frenzy. In all, every reserve other than freshman Brad Brown scored.It was enough to compensate for some of the starters having off games.
"It's nice to see the bench play like this tonight," Utah State head coach Stew Morrill said. "We needed a game like that from them. Brady gave us energy and {Green} was able to make some shots. And he made plays off the dribble as well. We got ourselves an early cushion and that's what carried us to the win tonight."
The Aggies dominated statistically. They had 20 assists and turned the ball over just nine times. They outrebounded the Bengals 26-21. They hit 9-16 three-pointers, they got themselves to the free throw line nine times. Wesley finished with 11 points and seven rebounds. He was the only other USU player in double figures. Broderick Gilchrest led Idaho State with a game-high 19 points and four assists.
Utah State will face Western Michigan on Wednesday. The Broncos were defeated by Troy on Tuesday in a 102-99 overtime game.
Highlights
R Utah State's Brian Green hits five 3-pointers on his way to 17 points.
• USU receives 40 points from its bench.