For a second time this week, Utah State will be on the road, this time at ExtraMile Arena to take on Boise State. The Aggies could hardly be off to a better start to Mountain West play, sitting at 4-0, but pretty much the opposite can be (and has been) said of the Broncos. Boise State is 1-3 in conference games so far, though it has also faced one of the toughest schedules early on.
Here’s all of the necessary info ahead of this game for the Aggies.
How to watch
- Tip-off: Jan. 10, 2026 at 7 p.m. (Mountain Time)
- Location: ExtraMile Arena (Boise, ID)
- TV Broadcast: CBS Sports Network
- Radio Broadcast: KVNU (102.1 FM, 610 AM) / kvnutalk.com / KVNU mobile app
KVNU Aggie GameDay pregame show with Stockton Jewkes and J.D. Walker: 6 p.m.
KVNU Aggie Call: Immediately after Coach Jerrod Calhoun’s post-game comments
- Text (435) 554-1175 or call (435) 753-5868 during the pregame or postgame show to give your thoughts and reactions for the game.
Projected Starters
Utah State (13-1, 4-0 MW)
- G – Drake Allen (6-5, Sr.) – 6.0 points | 2.9 rebounds | 5.1 assists
- G – Mason Falslev (6-4, Jr.) – 15.5 points | 5.8 rebounds | 2.6 assists
- G – MJ Collins (6-4, Sr.) – 20.1 points | 2.5 rebounds | 1.6 assists
- F – Adlan Elamin (6-9, Fr.) – 5.1 points | 1.8 rebounds | 0.4 assists
- F – Zach Keller (6-10, Sr.) – 2.6 points | 1.5 rebounds | 0.4 assists
Boise State (9-6, 1-3 MW)
- G – Dylan Andrews (6-2, Sr.) – 10.0 points | 3.3 rebounds | 3.7 assists
- G – Aginaldo Neto (6-3, Fr.) – 5.9 points | 1.4 rebounds | 1.8 assists
- F – Andrew Meadow (6-7, Jr.) – 12.5 points | 3.7 rebounds | 1.0 assists
- F – Javan Buchanan (6-7, Sr.) – 12.5 points | 4.8 rebounds | 1.9 assists
- F – Drew Fielder (6-11, Jr.) – 13.4 points | 5.3 rebounds | 1.3 assists
In the Broncos’ most recent game, they made a change to the starting lineup, moving freshman Aginaldo Neto in with RJ Keene, who had started 13 straight games, moving to the bench. Drew Fielder, who had started every game up until Wednesday, also came of the bench in favor of Dominic Parolin.
Utah State and Boise State Team Stat Ranks Preview (Jan. 10)
Stats and efficiency ratings via KenPom.com, all rankings are out of 365 teams.
| Stat | Utah State | Boise State |
|---|---|---|
| NET Rank | 16th | 67th |
| Pace Rank | 77th | 231st |
| Offensive Efficiency | 120.7 (24th) | 111.2 (122nd) |
| Defensive Efficiency | 98.4 (26th) | 98.4 (25th) |
| 3-Point % | 36.8 (45th) | 33.0 (212th) |
| 3-Point Attempt Rate | 36.4 (245th) | 42.3 (131st) |
| Offensive Rebounding % | 37.6 (28th) | 30.5 (196th) |
| Defensive Rebounding % | 70.1 (138th) | 77.1 (2nd) |
| Turnover % | 17.2 (179th) | 17.5 (196th) |
| Opponent Turnover % | 22.7 (8th) | 15.8 (268th) |
Two really great press conference talks with Utah State men’s basketball head coach Jerrod Calhoun and MJ Collins. I’ll post videos of both in this thread, starting with Coach Calhoun.There’s plenty of talk about the upcoming game against Boise State, but also a lot more… pic.twitter.com/MrVijkofP0
— Jason Walker (@jwalker_sports) January 8, 2026
Here’s MJ Collins’ presser. One of the longer player press conferences we’ve had but Collins spoke very well about the upcoming game and about both his progress as a player and the team bonding since they all came together in the summer. pic.twitter.com/QR6Ko8mhUZ
— Jason Walker (@jwalker_sports) January 8, 2026
Availability Report
The following is drawn from the official availability reports posted by the Mountain West. Per-game stats, if applicable, are included in parenthesis.
UTAH STATE
BOISE STATE
- Julian Bowie – OUT
- Javan Buchanan (12.8 pts, 4.8 reb, 1.9 ast) – QUESTIONABLE
Utah State Keys to Victory
Don’t get dominated on the boards
The Broncos are not only the best rebounding team in the conference, they’re also one of the best in the whole country, ranking second in defensive rebounding percentage. That hasn’t translated a ton to offensive rebounds, but Boise State has played a lot of teams capable of boxing out its bigs. The Aggies, on the other hand, have struggled at times to keep other teams from grabbing their own misses. Should Boise State end up having a cold shooting game, a very easy way for them to overcome that could be crashing the glass and making Utah State work for every defensive board.
Utah State doesn’t have to dominate the rebounding battle. Heck, they probably don’t even need to win said battle. They key will be not getting blown out on the boards. Grab most defensive rebounds, snag a few on offense and that should be enough for the Aggies.
Exploit advantage in guard play
Boise State’s issues with guard play are well-known at this point, especially after its head coach, Leon Rice, explicitly called them out after the Broncos’ 75-58 loss to Grand Canyon on Wednesday. The three best guards in this matchup will be wearing Utah State colors (the most optimistic Aggie fan might argue Utah State has five guards better than the best Broncos guard, though that’d be going a bit far). Drake Allen, MJ Collins and Mason Falslev need to be at their best on both offense and defense. The Aggies will work to put the Broncos in the blender with pick-and-roll play and then harass their backcourt with pressure defense. If all goes well there, Boise State will have a tough time using their size advantage in the frontcourt.
Kick the Broncos while their down
There’s certainly a risk in this game that Boise State will be playing at its most motivated since early in the season. After the Broncos lost to a Division II team, they went out and obliterated Utah Valley 101-77 in what was easily their most impressive offensive output of the season. Two months later and Boise State has hit a new low with this 1-3 start to conference play. Rice didn’t just call out his guards after the GC loss, he called out the whole team. And the last time the Broncos felt as embarrassed after a loss as they are now, they demolished a quality team by 24 points.
Computer Prediction Scores
- KenPom — Utah State win 74-72
- Haslametrics — Utah State win 73-71
- EvanMiya — Utah State win 75-73
