Utah State makes school history with 88-67 win over South Florida

LOGAN – Utah State had a week between games; And on each of those seven days, there was outside talk about how close the team was to making history.

But within the walls of Utah State, the players and coaches of the men’s basketball team didn’t say a word about the potential milestone.

“We never talked about making history,” Aggies coach Jerrod Calhoun said. “It was never discussed all week.”

The Aggies are a team that speaks for itself on the field. And on Saturday, their voices spoke as loudly as the student section on a sold-out day at the Spectrum.

Utah State defeated South Florida 88-67 to improve to 10-0 on the season. No other Aggies team has ever started the season winning its first 10 games.

“You think about all the teams in this program,” Calhoun said. “The number of coaches, the number of All-Americans, the all-league guys, the NCAA tournament teams, not one has ever started 10-0. It’s (proof) that we’re over me.” … I think that’s what sets us apart.”

Mason Falslev led the way with 27 points, nine assists and nine rebounds. Falslev said it’s “pretty crazy” that he’s on Utah State’s only basketball team to start 10-0.

Falslev said teammate Jaxon Smith told him during the last media timeout that he was just two assists and two rebounds away from a triple-double. Calhoun said he intentionally left Falslev in the game longer to see if the sophomore guard could reach the coveted stat line.

“I’m a player-coach,” Calhoun said. “I believe that the players’ hard work will be rewarded.”

“I grew up watching the Aggies,” Falslev said. “This is something I can hold onto forever – look back and say I was part of the best start in Utah State history.”

Ian Martinez scored 15 points and added five assists, but shot just 1 of 6 from the 3-point line. Karson Templin had 12 points while Aubin Gateretse contributed 11 points and six rebounds.

Utah State dominated the game, outscoring South Florida 52-28, and the Aggies also outscored the Bulls by a 27-14 margin.

The Aggies started slowly, falling 7-2, but an 8-0 run gave the Aggies some momentum. Falslev hit three straight 3-pointers in the first half, helping the Aggies build a 10-point lead.

Utah State then ended the first half on a scoring drought that lasted nearly three and a half minutes, and South Florida took advantage with an 8-0 run, cutting the deficit to 6 after trailing by as many as 14 points.

The Aggies went on a winning streak in the second half, scoring on seven consecutive shots to take an 18-point lead. Overall, they shot almost 61% in the second half.

Utah State hosts UC San Diego on Tuesday. Calhoun said the Trojans are the “best team” the team will face early in the season.

“As good as 10-0 feels, we need to show great determination and attention to detail over the next 48 hours,” Calhoun said.