“Cowboys push Aggies to the brink, but end up eliminated 70-67.”

LOGAN, Utah (Dec. 4, 2024) – The Wyoming Cowboys used the recipe of three-point shooting and defense to push the undefeated Utah State Aggies to the brink with a 70-67 loss in their MW Conference opener on Wednesday at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum in Logan, Utah to bring you to the abyss. UW made 12 three-pointers in the game and held USU well below its season offensive average.

“Overall, I’m happy with the performance, but not happy with the result,” UW head coach Sundance Wicks said. “We are still a young team, where we are as Cowboys and the belief that the boys showed and their preparation was outstanding. The game plan worked but in the end they won more games.

The Cowboys were led by Obi Agbim with 17 points for his eighth game in double figures this season. He also recorded ten assists for his first career double-double, the most of his career. Kobe Newton added 17 points with a career-high five three-pointers. Jordan Nesbitt He almost missed a double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds. Dontaie Allen added nine points with a season-high three triples.

The Pokes shot 50 percent from the field and hit a season-high 46 percent with 12 three-pointers. Utah State shot 41 percent from the field and 29 percent from behind the arc. USU shot 50 percent this season and 38 percent from behind the arc. The Aggies did the damage as the line went 19 of 26. Utah State also had a 35-27 lead.

Both teams got off to slow starts offensively, with Wyoming holding the Aggies to 1 of 6 from the field to open the game. The Pokes added a few more shots in the first four minutes and took a 7-3 lead. The Aggies fought back and tied the game at 11-11, but a three-pointer tied the game Kobe Newton made it a 14-11 game with 12 minutes left in the first frame.

Nesbitt and Touko Tainamo added two three-pointers midway through the first frame for a 20-16 lead. The Cowboys went scoreless for more than four minutes while the Aggies tied the contest, but an Allen three-pointer gave UW a 23-20 lead with just over five minutes left in the half.

The Wyoming defense found a groove, holding USU to 1 of 9 from the field and taking a 27-22 lead on an Agbim jumper. A rare four-point play by Utah State made the score 29-28 with less than 90 seconds left in the first stanza. The Aggies added a three-pointer and a free throw to take a 32-29 halftime lead.

A quick 5-0 run by the Cowboys gave UW a 34-32 lead early in the second half. Wyoming held Utah State without a field goal for the first five minutes of the half, but USU took a 38-36 lead with 14:55 left.

Utah State went on a 6-0 run to take a 46-39 lead, but Nesbitt reached double figures with a three-pointer for a four-point game with less than 12 minutes left. With less than ten minutes left in the contest, USU extended its lead to eight points.

Allen hit his third triple of the game and Newton added another, with Wyoming making it a 56-52 contest with 7:31 left. The Pokes would then make it a 56-56 contest, with USU going scoreless for more than two minutes with less than six minutes remaining. Newton gave Wyoming a brief lead with a three-pointer.

Utah State went on a 6-0 run to take a 54-59 lead with less than four minutes left. Newton made a three-pointer to make it a two-point contest at 66-64, but a quick layup from USU made it 68-64 with a minute left. Another layup made it six points with 34 seconds left, and another three from Newton made it a 70-67 game with six seconds left. On the inbounds, Nesbitt earned a steal and nearly made a half-court throw to tie the game, but UW fell 70-67.

The Aggies were led by Ian Martinez with 23 points. Mason Falslev added 19 points on the night.

Wyoming will stay on the road and return to non-conference competition with a trip to South Dakota on December 10th, scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m. MT.