GAME NOTES – Eighth-Seeded Utah State Men's Basketball Faces ...

Opening Tips• Utah State is playing in its 24th NCAA Tournament all-time, including for the second straight year and fourth time in the last six years. (USU also qualified for the 2020 NCAA Tournament prior to it being canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.) Since the turn of the century, USU has played in 12 NCAA Tournaments (2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024). • With its 88-72 win against TCU in the first round, Utah State snapped its 10-game losing streak in the NCAA Tournament and posted its first win since defeating Ohio State 77-68 in overtime of the 2001 NCAA Tournament. • Utah State's 16-point win against TCU (88-72) is its largest NCAA Tournament win in school history, bettering its 10-point win (91-81) against UTEP in 1970. • This is just the second time that Utah State has played in the round of 32 of the NCAA Tournament since seeding started in 1980. In 2001, USU lost to fourth-seeded UCLA in the second round, 75-50. Prior to the 2001 season, the last time USU advanced past the first round of the NCAA Tournament was in 1970 when that Aggie team defeated UTEP (91-81) in the round of 32, defeated Santa Clara (69-68) in the Sweet 16, and lost to No. 2 UCLA (101-79) in the Elite Eight. • Utah State won its first outright Mountain West regular season title in its 11 years in the league. USU has now won or shared 18 conference championship all-time (1918, 1926, 1930, 1935, 1936, 1980, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2019, 2024). • No. 20 Utah State men's basketball was well represented in the league's postseason awards as voted by the league's head coaches. Head coach Danny Sprinkle was named the Steve Fisher Coach of the Year, while junior wing Great Osobor was named both the Player and Newcomer of the Year and junior guard Josh Uduje the Co-Sixth Man of the Year. • Osobor and graduate guard Darius Brown II each earned first team all-MW accolades, while senior guard Ian Martinez was an honorable mention selection. Brown was also named to the defensive team. • Junior wing Great Osobor was named an Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American, as announced by the organization on Tuesday. Osobor is the eighth Aggie men's basketball player to be recognized as an All-American by the AP and the first since Neemias Queta was an honorable mention All-American in 2021. • Brown tied the program single-season record with 224 assists during the 2023-24 campaign. He is one assist away from surpassing the all-time record, passing Kris Clark who had 224 helpers in the 2007-08 campaign. • Utah State's 14 wins away from home this year (eight road, six neutral) are tied for the most in the Mountain West and tied for fourth in the nation. • Utah State is one of just three teams in the nation returning zero points to its 2023-24 roster, joining New Mexico State and Northwestern State. The Aggies also have the second-fewest returning rebounds (0.004 percent) and are tied for the second-fewest returning assists (0.003 percent), both behind NMSU. -USU-