Merrill, Queta Lead Utah State Past Wyoming, Into MWC Tourney Title Game

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Utah State’s Sam Merrill and Neemias Queta led the Aggies past the Wyoming Cowboys and into the Mountain West Conference Tournament Championship game.

The Aggies beat the Cowboys 89-82 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on Friday, March 6.

Merrill and Queta combined for 48 points to carry the Aggies to victory.

AGGIES ADVANCE!@USUBasketball heads back to the Championship!#AggiesAllTheWay | #MWMadness pic.twitter.com/9mhhBI0OGh

— Mountain West (@MountainWest) March 7, 2020

After a pair of free throws by Wyoming’s Kwane Marble II, the Aggies and Cowboys were tied 66-66 with 4:45 remaining.

Merrill and Queta score nine of Utah State’s next 11 points to give the Aggies a double-digit lead with less than 90 seconds remaining.

SAM MERRILL WANTS NO PART OF YOUR CINDERELLA AND SMASHES YOUR GLASS SLIPPER pic.twitter.com/7BI5ELzoyS

— Matthew L Glade (@matthewLksl) March 7, 2020

Merrill finished the contest with a game-high 27 points on 9-15 field goals. He shot 3-6 from three-point range and went a perfect 6-6 from the charity stripe.

Queta scored 21 points on 8-11 shooting. He shot 5-12 from the foul line and added 6 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 steals. Queta was a monster on defense and cause the Cowboys problems all game long. He finished with 5 massive blocks on the night.

Utah State guard Brock Miller added 13 points off the bench.

The Aggies finished the game shooting 56.0 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from the arc.

After cutting the lead to 2, Merrill answers with a step back 3 and Queta follows it up with a big block. pic.twitter.com/5UiGbrctrq

— Matthew L Glade (@matthewLksl) March 7, 2020

USU’s defense limited Wyoming’s offense to 42.9 percent shooting for the game. The Cowboys shot 45.5 percent from downtown.

.@USUBasketball defeats @wyo_mbb and advances to tomorrow night's @MountainWest tourney championship game against @Aztec_MBB. #AggiesAllTheWayhttps://t.co/6nf06L607F

📷: Getty Images pic.twitter.com/8z8QmGbA74

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) March 7, 2020

Wyoming had five players score in double-figures in the loss.

Cowboys guard Kenny Foster had a team-high 18 points off the bench.

With the win, Utah State advanced to the MWC tourney title game against the No. 1 seed San Diego State Aztecs. The Aggies and Aztecs will tip-off on Saturday, March 7 at 3:30 p.m. (MDT). The game will broadcast on CBS Sports Network.

.@USUBasketball ADVANCES! The Aggies will face off against @Aztec_MBB in the @MountainWest Championship game tomorrow at 5:30 PM ET here on CBS Sports Network. pic.twitter.com/wTHjSKc4Rm

— CBS Sports Network (@CBSSportsNet) March 7, 2020

No. 5 ranked San Diego State swept the season series with Utah State 2-0. In the first meeting on January 4, the then No. 13 ranked Aztecs won 77-68 in Logan. On February 1, the Aggies fell to the then No. 4 Aztecs 80-68 in Southern California.