HONOLULU – Utah State was the second victim of SMU’s upset-fest in the Hawaii Airlines Diamond Head Classic. The Aggies fell 77-74 to the Mustangs who also upset a then-top 50 NET team Iona on Thursday.
On Thursday, USU seemed to work out the kinks that led to its upset loss to Weber State on Monday by working over Seattle to the tune of a 28-point win. The Aggies shot 50.8 percent from the field in that win but that shooting was conspicuously absent by the next day. Utah State shot just 37.5 percent overall this time out and the Aggies were 10-for-36 from three. Had Sean Bairstow not hit a last-second and ultimately meaningless three, it would have been the worst 3-point shooting night of the year.
SMU, on the other hand, started out the game shooting very hot, making 12 of its first 18 field goal attempts. That hot shooting produced a 27-15 lead for SMU with 8:13 to play in the first half. The Mustangs got quite a few of those early points off of turnovers, and for the game they had a 22-2 advantage in that category. USU head coach Ryan Odom said it was the “key stat” in the game and a “major factor” and something the team tried to address at halftime.
Utah State did have a bright spot in the first half. After going down by that 12 point deficit of 27-15, the Aggies went on a 15-3 run to tie the game at 30 apiece. However, SMU responded well to that run, ending the half on a 10-2 run for a 40-32 lead going into the break.
“I think that was kind of the story of the night,” Odom said. “Every time we would have a chance to take the lead, something like (a run) would happen.”
That 15-3 stretch was one of two major comeback bids the Aggies made in the game, though USU had a third opportunity it squandered early in the second half. For a roughly nine-minute stretch starting early in the second half where SMU went 2-for-12 from the field including eight straight missed shots. The Aggies closed the gap during that span from 46-38 to 54-50. But USU just couldn’t eliminate that lead as they struggled to make or even take shots as turnovers were also an issue at times.
Later, the Aggies did put together a combination of offense and defense, creating an 8-0 run that brought USU within one point, 63-62 with 3:46 left to play. Just like in that first half run, though, SMU responded, helped in part by Utah State mistakes.
The Aggies had the ball with a chance to take its first lead since 5-2 in the opening minutes, but Ashworth stepped on the base line for a turnover. On the other end USU forced a wild mid-range shot by Zhuric Phelps, but Phelps chased his own rebound and sank a reverse layup to put SMU back up three.
Later, down 67-64 with a chance to tie or get back within one, Zee Hamoda lost the ball and committed a foul which sent Zhuric to the free throw line which put the Mustangs up 69-64.
The Aggies had one last shot at tying the game late but this time it came down to defense. SMU had the ball with 56 seconds left to play and a 71-68 lead. A stop would give USU a chance to tie but instead it gave up a 3-pointer to the Mustangs. And if that didn’t end the game, a turnover immediately after by Max Shulga did. The rest of the game was an exercise in free throws for SMU and desperate 3-point attempts for USU.
There were some good performances by individual Aggies, isolated from an overall poor game. Sean Bairstow scored 18 points including a career-best four made threes. He also had eight rebounds, second only to another man who had a great individual game, Trevin Dorius. The senior center grabbed nine rebounds, scored six points and had two blocks in 14 minutes of play. Shulga had 18 points to tie Bairstow for the team lead in points and had a team-best four assists.
A regression to the mean shooting-wise has contributed enormously to Utah State’s two losses this week. The Aggies entered the week shooting 50.8 percent from the field overall and 45.7 percent from three. In USU’s two losses they’ve combined to shoot just 39.5 percent overall and 30.5 percent from deep. Though Odom felt this game’s flaws were more in ball handling that led into the shots the Aggies took.
“You’re going to make and miss shots,” Odom said. “We didn’t handle the ball as well as we needed to. And we’ve got to give each other more space to work with. And again to try to get the other team in a scramble situation. I’m not worried about our shooting.”
Utah State will have one more chance to salvage momentum before conference play begins. It’ll be the final game of this Hawaii tournament, played on Christmas Day with a one-day break for all teams involved. As of the publication of this recap the Aggies’ opponent has yet to be determined. It’ll be the loser of the game between Washington State and Hawaii which began shortly after the USU-SMU matchup concluded. The Aggies’ game will tip off at 4:30 p.m.
