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Tucson, Ariz. • Tai Wesley untucked his jersey, fought back tears, put his head down and headed for the Utah State bench, his illustrious career having come to a disappointing end.
For Wesley and six Aggie seniors, the quest of winning an NCAA Tournament game will go unfulfilled. A loss to Marquette in 2009 was first. Last season it was Texas A&M. On Thursday night, it was Kansas State.
USU, lost to the Wildcats 73-68, despite a furious rally in the final minutes in a Southeast Region second round matchup. For most of the game, No. 12 Utah State looked outclassed, like it didn't belong on the same court with its Big 12 counterpart.
"It's always tough when it ends," Stew Morrill said. "It goes so fast, something we talk about all the time. They obviously got a lot of good things done, but we had a tough stretch in the first half where we didn't function well. I was pleased with how hard we played. We never gave in. That's what they've been all about."
Indeed, the Aggies didn't go down without a fight. They trailed by as much as 14 points in the second half, but scrapped until they made a game of it.
But No. 5 Kansas State was too strong, too physical, too athletic on this night. The Wildcats used 22 points from All-American guard Jacob Pullen, many of them coming on free-throws in the final moments.
Pullen, a senior, suffered from food poisoning on Wednesday, with there being a question as to how effective he would be. However, he made just enough shots and received just enough help from his teammates. Curtis Kelly scored 15 points and was an issue in the paint all night long. Shane Southwell and Rodney McGruder both scored 10 points, while Will Spradling made a few back-breaking three-pointers.
But most of all, K-State was more physical. Much like their win over BYU in the 2010 tournament, the Wildcats were on another level athletically.
"We were expecting them to be tough," Wesley said. "They're a big, strong, physical team. And we knew we had our hands full coming in. We just wanted to match our physicality and play harder than them."
Wesley finished his career with 18 points, 16 of them coming in the second half. Brockeith Pane scored 17 points, and Pooh Williams had 16 points. But Pane and Wesley struggled mightily in the first 20 minutes, and their futility allowed Kansas State, one of the best defensive teams in the country, to build an 11-point halftime advantage.
It was a lead that USU could never overcome. The Aggies were able to rally by pushing the ball in transition, getting easy baskets and getting to the free-throw line. But when the game moved to the halfcourt, it became difficult for Utah State to put the ball in the basket.
Then there were the turnovers, eight in the first half, four in the first five minutes alone. Utah State's offense disappeared at the worst times. The Aggies backed down to the physicality of the game, and USU found itself looking like a team that deserved a seemingly unfair seeding on Selection Sunday.
A Brian Green jumper brought USU within 73-68, the final score, but the Aggies could get no closer, as there wasn't enough time to extend the game any further.
Utah State finishes 30-4 on the season, one win shy of setting a school record. The Aggies will say goodbye to six seniors who won a total of 108 games during their time at USU, a school record. But for all of the accomplishments, that group failed to win an NCAA tournament game in three consecutive tries.
"I'm extremely proud of this group and what they've accomplished," Morrill said. "I'm proud of how they've handled themselves and represented the university."
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