Jerrod Calhoun Tells How He Has Utah State Breaking Records In Year One

Dec 16, 2024, 3:35 PM | Updated: Dec 17, 2024, 2:18 pm

KSL Sports

LOGAN, Utah- The Jerrod Calhoun-led Utah State Aggies have made history with their 10-0, setting a new standard with the best record to begin a season in program history.

They notched their tenth win at home against a South Florida team that did their best to spoil the Aggies’ perfect record. It was a tight game for much of the first half, but Utah State was able to stretch to a 10-point lead at one point, however the deficit for USF was only seven at halftime.

RELATED: Utah State Tramples South Florida Bulls To Stay Undefeated

Coming out of the locker room, the Bulls simply could not match Utah State’s scoring pace. Despite taking eight fewer shots in the second half, the Aggies’ efficiency skyrocketed by nearly 20%, and Utah State was able to outscore USF by 15 to close out the game. Mason Falslev carried the bulk of the load, posting a near-triple-double stat line of 27 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists with a team-high 39 minutes.

𝙒𝙒𝙒𝙒𝙒𝙒𝙒𝙒𝙒𝙒𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙏𝙀𝘼𝙈 🤘

10-IN-A-ROW for your Aggies!#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/Br9GXn1YrY

— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) December 14, 2024

Following the record-breaking victory on Saturday, new Head Coach Jerrod Calhoun joined DJ and PK on the KSL Sports Zone to talk about not only the impressive record but also his team’s approach as the Aggies near the beginning of conference play.

Jerrod Calhoun On Utah State’s Culture And System

First-year Utah State Head Coach Jerrod Calhoun is coming over from Youngstown State and is attempting to build a lasting culture right out of the gates. Despite filling out his roster with more than a hand full of transfers, Calhoun did inherit a few returners from last year’s roster who he credits with leading the new arrivals.

Utah State’s Returners

“I think the returning players have done an unbelievable job of leading our program,” said Coach Calhoun.

Not only are the returners pushing to help their new teammates build chemistry, but they are also leading with their production.

Ian Marinez, Mason Falslev, and Karson Templin have all taken huge leaps from last year’s averages in categories like points, rebounds, and assists, and much of this has to do not only with the familiarity they have with one another but also with the freedom and flowing ball movement that Jerrod Calhoun’s new system provides.

“We have a nice system, I think kids like playing in it, we wanna play fast, we wanna score the basketball,” Calhoun said describing his philosophy, “Ian Martinez is a prime example, his last four years in college, he’s been a negative assist-to-turnover guy, which means he’s not making great basketball decisions. Now this year, he’s got 35 assists and 13 turnovers.”

Martinez has 4.8 more points and 1.7 more assists than last year and is flourishing in Jerrod Calhoun’s scheme, and he’s not the only one.

“You know what’s great about Mason [Falslev] is he doesn’t take any off days,” Coach praised his sophomore guard, “He’s one of the most fierce competitors I’ve seen. Practice habits, attention to detail, and just overall joy being around him, it’s a really, really special relationship.”

Mason Falslev had a fantastic first year in 2023-24, finishing in the running for Mountain West Freshman of the Year, and is picking up right where he left off. Falslev has had the largest year-to-year jump in production of any of Utah State’s continuing members with spikes in all three categories, increasing by 6.1 points, 0.9 assists, and 2 rebounds.

Mason is making an early case for Mountain West Player of the Year with three Player of the Week Awards secured only a month into the season.

Mason Falslev is the Player of the Week for a second straight week and third time this year after leading @USUBasketball to a win over South Florida, helping the Aggies to a program-record 10-0 start to the season. The sophomore came up just shy of a triple-double with 27 points,… pic.twitter.com/Ox1HpkuzmA

— Mountain West (@MountainWest) December 16, 2024

Utah State’s Newcomers

“I think the new guys have come in and really, really bought into the culture of our program which is ‘we over me’, putting others before themselves,” Calhoun said about his seven transfers, “The connectivity amongst our group is really, really special.”

Many of the contributing transfers like Dexter Akanno, Drake Allen, and Aubin Gateretse came from situations where less talented rosters meant they had to carry more weight, but with a plethora of able-scoring players for the Aggies, the new additions have been able to settle into a role within the team.

“This group has done a tremendous job thus far of really just buying into whatever it takes,” Jerrod said of his newly constructed squad, “There’s gonna be certain nights when Falslev has it, or Ian Martinez, or whoever it may be, just really working together each night, and it really starts in practice, and you can see it day in and day out, this group doesn’t waste any days.”

With that said, there are still unavoidable growing pains that come with a group that has never played together before, specifically on the offensive end.

RELATED: The Anatomy of Utah State Basketball’s Record 9-0 Start

To this point in the season, Utah State’s two leading scorers, Ian Martinez and Mason Falslev, have combined for 38.5% of all points with a lot of inconsistency coming from the rest of the roster.

“We need certain guys to step up offensively,” admitted Calhoun, “I think our defense collectively has been really, really good, but we’ve got four or five new guys that are still trying to figure out the game offensively, some guys have just not made shots, so we’re fully anticipating some more offensive output from a various number of guys.”

While it is a great luxury to have select players who you can rely on to put points on the board, it will certainly make Coach Calhoun and his staff feel more confident and comfortable if they can trust more of their roster.

Utah State’s Remaining Non-Conference Schedule

Two more games are left before the Aggies begin league play, a home matchup against UC San Diego (9-2), and a daunting away game at Saint Mary’s (9-2), and while the Gaels are certainly the more challenging test, Jerrod Calhoun and Utah State are not looking past the Tritons.

“UC San Diego I really believe is the best team we’ll play in the non-conference thus far,” Calhoun said, “I think Saint Mary’s is probably the best but UC San Diego is not far behind, they are a tremendous basketball team in here tomorrow night, we have to be ready to go.”

If the Aggies are able to get out of the Spectrum unscathed against UC San Diego, they will then defend their undefeated record against one of the West Coast’s most consistently high-performing teams in their home gym.

“Saint Mary’s is one of the more difficult places to play, just been so good for so many years, know how to play tough,” Coach Calhoun said about the Gaels, “I think these are two really, really good opportunities as we head into Christmas to continue to try to build our resume for the NCAA Tournament.”

The Utah State Aggies will take on the UC San Diego Tritons at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum on Tuesday, December 17, at 7:00 p.m. MT. Tune into the action on the Mountain West Network.

Quick turnaround ➡️ Back to it tomorrow!

🆚 UC San Diego
➡️ 7:00 PM | Tuesday
➡️ The Spectrum

Tickets ➡️ https://t.co/jlIu8A7Kx3

Students, claim your tickets here: https://t.co/4CyxSfRQYg pic.twitter.com/OC8MOknIVT

— USU Men's Hoops (@USUBasketball) December 16, 2024

Jerrod Calhoun On The Mountain West Conference

“I’ve been a fan from afar for a number of years,” Jerrod admitted about the Mountain West, “Typically my routine was to put my kids to bed about 8:30 and then start watching Mountain West basketball about nine o’clock at night for really like the last five years.”

Last year, the Mountain West Conference saw a record six teams get into the NCAA Tournament field, including Utah State who earned the eighth seed in the Midwest region, beating TCU in the first round. The Mountain West will surely be a strong basketball conference once again this year, and Jerrod Calhoun believes that his team has the chance to stand out from the crowd.

“I think the thing that we have to do is bring a physical brand of basketball to this conference. It’s a toughness league, there’s no doubt about it. Historically it’s been a slow-paced league and we kind of like to play fast, so we’re a little bit different than most of the teams in this conference, and hopefully what we bring can have great success,” expressed Calhoun.

Utah State is one of only five remaining undefeated teams in the country alongside Oklahoma, Drake, Tennessee, and Florida. They are also receiving the eighth-most votes to be raked of any team outside of the AP Top 25.