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Logan • At this moment, Utah State is not a pretty basketball team to watch. The Aggies aren't efficient, they turn the ball over, they don't make free throws, and they don't shoot it well.

But for everything this team isn't, USU has youth and athleticism that could make things exciting two months from now if the Aggies start improving at a few of the above areas.

That doesn't mean there aren't going to be major bumps along the way. Saturday night's 65-62 escape of Southern Utah before 10,068 at the Spectrum served as ample proof of that. As close as USU came to an embarrassing loss, however, Stew Morrill was upbeat about the entire thing in the moments following.

"We're not going to feel bad about a win," Morrill said. "We're obviously a long way from being a very good basketball team. We have new guys that are really trying to find their way."

For the Aggies (2-1), this was potentially a very costly victory. Brady Jardine, projected to be an all-conference power forward this season, went down with a foot injury in the opening moments and didn't return. The extent of his injury isn't known, but it's feared to be a broken foot. He received X-rays on Saturday night, and Morrill conceded that Utah State may face a substantial period of time without him.

"We just hope it isn't season-ending," Morrill said. "We don't quite know what it is, but we definitely know it's something."

In Jardine's place, junior Kyisean Reed had his best game as an Aggie, scoring all 13 of his points in the second half and grabbing five rebounds. Freshman Steven Thornton scored 13 points as well. Those two combined to please the crowd with four high-flying dunks.

Former Sky View star Jordan Stone made an impact as well, scoring five second-half points and grabbing five rebounds in a seven-minute stretch.

"We all needed to step up for Brady," Reed said. "He got in my head in the second half. He told me that I had to bring it."

Those three made up for a big lack of execution. USU shot 3-14 from three-point range. The Aggies missed half of their 24 free-throw attempts, and Utah State had just 11 assists to eight turnovers.

Former Davis High star Jackson Stevenett led all scorers with 19 points, as Southern Utah led by as much as 37-30 in the second-half. Eventually, the Aggies were able to climb back into the game because of their defense. They scored 31 points off the bench and they turned 16 offensive rebounds into 13 second-chance points.

"We had to hustle for this one, but we did it," Thornton said. "Everybody was lazy at first, but we really stepped up and played better." —

Storylines

R Utah State rallies from a seven-point second-half deficit.

• Aggie forward Brady Jardine goes down with a potentially severe foot injury.

• The Aggies score 31 points off the bench in the win.