Utah State Looks To Move Into Second Place In MWC Against Colorado State

LOGAN, Utah – The Utah State Aggies will battle for second place on Tuesday night when they travel to Fort Collins to face the Colorado State Rams.

The Aggies hold a 19-7 overall record and an 8-5 mark in Mountain West Conference play. They are in third place in the standings just a half of a game behind Colorado State for second place. Utah State is coming off of a 70-61 win over Boise State at home on Saturday night.

Colorado State is 17-8 overall and 8-4 in conference play. They have won their last three games including an 80-70 road win over Fresno State last Tuesday. The Rams have won 8 of their last 9 games. Their only loss during that stretch was to the Aggies in Logan on Saturday, January 25 with a 77-61 victory.

Utah State leads the all-time series against Colorado State 43-33. Since joining the Mountain West Conference in 2013, USU is 9-4 against the Rams, including a 3-1 record in Fort Collins.

Sam Merrill needs just four points to become the fourth Utah State player in school history to score 2,000 career points. Neemias Queta’s status is unknown after injuring his knee in the final seconds of the win over Boise State.

Aggies wrapping up three games in six days with a chance to take over second place in the MW standings. Utah State and Colorado State will tip at 7:30 p.m. on CBSSN.#AggiesAlltheWayhttps://t.co/yV7N3MN34x

— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) February 10, 2020

Which Defense Will Step Up?

On paper, it looks like the first team to score 80 points will win this game. The Aggies are fourth in the Mountain West Conference averaging 76.7 points per game, while Colorado State is barely behind Utah State in fifth with 76.5 points per contest.

CSU is third in the MWC in shooting 47 percent from the field. Utah State is sixth with 45 percent shooting. From beyond the arc, the Rams are shooting the fourth best three-point percentage with 37 percent and the Aggies are 8th at 32 percent perimeter shooting.

Normally, teams are trying to keep opponents off of the foul line but in this case, Utah State probably wouldn’t mind if the Rams had many attempts at the free throw line. Utah State is leading the conference in percentage with 77 percent free throw shooting, while CSU is last, shooting 68 percent.

⚡𝙀 𝙉 𝙀 𝙍 𝙂 𝙔⚡

It's just 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 in Moby.

Be a part of the energy this Tuesday.
State Pride vs Utah State🏔️

🎟️https://t.co/B603N6d0CA#TeamTogether | #CSURams pic.twitter.com/m8Yv4ZAdB3

— Colorado State Men’s Basketball (@CSUMBasketball) February 10, 2020

About Colorado State

Four Colorado State players are averaging double figures in scoring led by Isaiah Stevens with 13.4 points, 3 rebounds and 4.5 assists. Nico Carvacho is adding 12.6 points and 10.8 rebounds.

Carvacho leads the conference in rebounding and is second in the Mountain West in shooting 55 percent from the field.

Also, David Roddy is posting 12.2 points and 5.8 boards along with 10.9 points from Adam Thistlewood.

During the recent stretch for Colorado State, winning 8 of their last 9 games, they beat Wyoming by 11 points, San Jose State by 11, New Mexico by 32, Air Force by 13, Fresno State by 18, Nevada by one, UNLV by 18 and at Fresno State by 10 points.

The game between the Aggies and Rams will tip-off on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.