LOGAN – Utah State is one of the final 10 undefeated Division I basketball teams remaining and will put that fact on the line against another solid opponent. Loyola Marymount recently jumped into the top-100 in the NET and unlike the other top-100 teams on USU’s schedule so far, this game won’t be played in the Spectrum. The Aggies will once again be shorthanded in the backcourt.
How to watch
- Tip-off: 10:30 p.m. MT
- Location: Michelob ULTRA Arena | Las Vegas, NV
- Broadcast: Sports Network LLC
- Aggie GameDay Coverage on KVNU (102.1 FM/610 AM & KVNU mobile app): 9:30 p.m. MT
- KVNU Aggie Call (102.1 FM/610 AM, KVNU mobile app): Immediately after game ends
Injuries
Utah State
G – Rylan Jones – OUT (Concussion)
Jones missed USU’s last game vs San Francisco after entering concussion protocol. He remains out with no timetable for a return.
Loyola Marymount
G – Dameane Douglas – OUT (Ankle)
Douglas has missed the entire season to date with an ankle injury. He played 13 games last year averaging 10.8 points per game.
Projected Starters
Utah State (7-0)
- G – Steven Ashworth (6-1, Jr.) – 19.0 points | 2.7 rebounds | 4.9 assists
- G – Max Shulga (6-4, Jr.) – 12.1 points | 6.1 rebounds | 4.7 assists
- G/F – Sean Bairstow (6-8, Sr.) – 8.1 points | 3.9 rebounds | 1.1 assists
- F – Taylor Funk (6-9, Gr.) – 17.7 points | 8.6 rebounds | 2.6 assists
- C – Trevin Dorius (7-0, Sr.) – 4.1 points | 2.9 rebounds | 0.1 assists
- 6th Man – Dan Akin (6-9, Gr.) – 13.7 points | 7.7 rebounds | 0.7 assists
Loyola Marymount (8-3)
- G – Cameron Shelton (6-2, Sr.) – 18.2 points | 5.5 rebounds | 3.5 assists
- G – Jalin Anderson (6-4, Jr.) – 9.7 points | 2.3 rebounds | 2.9 assists
- F – Justin Ahrens (6-6, Sr.) – 7.1 points | 2.7 rebounds | 1.1 assists
- F – Keli Leaupepe (6-6, Sr.) – 15.1 points | 7.0 rebounds | 1.3 assists
- C – Rick Issanza (7-1, Jr.) – 3.7 points | 3.8 rebounds | 0.2 assists
Team Statistical Ranks
Stats and ratings are from Basketball Reference (except the NET ranking). All ranks are out of 363 Division I teams.
Utah State
- Pace – 73.3 (45th)
- Offensive Rating – 116.7 (11th)
- Defensive Rating – 98.3 (180th)
- Field Goal % – 49.9 (18th)
- 3-point % – 44.6 (2nd)
- Rebounding % – 54.5 (49th)
- NET Rank – 17th
Loyola Marymount
- Pace – 69.9 (157th)
- Offensive Rating – 108.4 (110th)
- Defensive Rating – 97.6 (167th)
- Field Goal % – 45.9 (131st)
- 3-point % – 35.9 (104th)
- Rebounding % – 53.6 (86th)
- NET Rank – 89th
Loyola Marymount fits right in with the caliber of teams Utah State has been facing all year — tough but not necessarily elite. The Lions rank 89th in the NET, a fair ways behind Bradley (69th) and Oral Roberts (73rd) and solidly ahead of San Francisco (114th).
The Lions already have multiple wins away from home, including against a Mountain West team — Colorado State. They humiliated the Rams in Fort Collins 87-71 just over a week ago. Loyola also downed Nevada by double-digits, 64-52, on Dec. 3. The feather in the Lions’ cap is a neutral site win over Wake Forest in mid-November.
Leading the way for Loyola is the duo of senior guard Cameron Shelton and senior forward Keli Leaupepe. Shelton leads the team with 18.2 points per game and has scored at least 20 points in five of his last six appearances.
“Shelton’s having a great season right now, averaging close to 20 a game,” USU head coach Ryan Odom said. “He’s their primary player. He’s good in ball screens. He’s good shooting behind the arc. He’s good porching in the lane. He’s just a tough matchup and makes big plays for them.”
Leaupepe is a walking mismatch threat, weighing in at a stocky 250 pounds with a 6-foot-6 frame and possessing inside and outside scoring skills. Despite that height he’ll play both power forward and center, which Odom said would provide a “stiff challenge” for USU’s bigs.
“Leaupepe is a unique player,” Odom said. “Physical size, not a jumper necessarily but can shoot threes, can drive the ball and expose mismatches. Can get fouled going to the basket. Rebounds the ball.”
Shelton and Leaupepe form one of the better pick-and-roll duos, with Shelton one of the most efficient pick-and-roll ball-handler scorers and Leaupepe being one of the most effective pick-and-pop bigs in the country.
Utah State will once again be without starting point guard Rylan Jones who will miss his second straight game with a concussion. Odom said Jones is ahead of schedule on his recovery but did not provide a timeline. Steven Ashworth will start in Jones’ stead for a second straight game.
The competency of Jones’ replacement starter is far from in question, considering Ashworth is the Aggies’ leading scorer on the year. Rather, it’s about who else can fit into the role of distributor and ball-handler. Max Shulga was a key ball-handler in USU’s win over San Francisco but Odom expressed confidence in the ability of most of his guards and wings to handle the ball if needed.
“All of our guys can handle,” Odom said. “So we can put Zee (Hamoda) in it. We can put Sean (Bairstow) in it. We can put R.J. (Eytle-Rock) in it. We can put Max in it, obviously. The way we run our offense they’re all kind of interchangeable. So, that’s a positive thing for us.”
This will be a matchup of teams that both love the 3-point shot. The Aggies rank second in the country in 3-point percentage and also 46th in attempts from three. Loyola ranks fourth in total 3-point attempts and are perfectly capable of catching fire as well, making 35.9 percent as a team. Leaupepe is making 40.5 percent of his threes and the Lions have another 40-plus percent shooter in Chance Stephens. Stephens comes off the bench as a spark plug and actually leads Loyola in 3-point attempts at just over six per game. Shelton is also a capable 3-point shooter as he makes 39.2 percent of his attempts.
“It’s similar to two games ago, Utah Tech. You look at them and say ‘Alright, they’re a pretty good 3-point shooting team,’” Odom said. “But it’s more about the totality of their team. It’s not just two guys. It’s a lot of guys that can make threes.”
