Aggies Dig In With Defense

The Big West Conference is adding another two California teams next season, but as far as men’s basketball is concerned, Utah State owns the league.

The Aggies, behind a tenacious defense, won their third Big West tournament title in the last four seasons late Saturday night with a 50-38 victory over Pacific at the Anaheim Convention Center.

Utah State, 12-3 in the Big West tournament since 1996, earned the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. The Aggies hope they get a better seeding than they did a year ago, when they drew defending champion Connecticut in the opening round.

Saturday’s victory marked the first time that a team has repeated as Big West champion since Nevada Las Vegas, which is no longer in the conference, won three straight titles from 1989-91.

Utah State (27-5) finished in second place, two games behind UC Irvine, in the regular-season standings. But the Aggies came into Anaheim with renewed vigor and out-muscled their three opponents.

Utah State, 22-1 this season and 63-2 in the last three years when leading at halftime, took a 10-point halftime lead by holding Pacific to 15 points, the fewest number of points scored in the first 20 minutes against the Aggies by any Big West team this season. It marked the third time in the last four games that the Aggies have held an opponent under 20 points in the first half.

“Coach told us tonight to just play defense and rebound,” Utah State’s Curtis Bobb said. “Don’t worry about scoring. Defense and rebounding would win us the championship. In the last three days, we held Cal State Fullerton to 30% shooting, held Boise State to 30% shooting and now Pacific to 30% shooting. I think we proved our point.”

Pacific cut the Aggies’ lead to 25-21 at the start of the second half, but Utah State used a 16-5 run for a 41-26 lead after a turnaround bank shot by forward Shawn Daniels with 7:47 to go.

Pacific (18-12) took a 7-6 lead, but Utah State used a three-point basket by guard Bernard Rock to go ahead, 9-6.

A driving layup by Pacific guard Maurice McLemore tied the score, 9-9, but Utah State got the lead back for good with 11:50 to go in the first half when reserve guard Dion Bailey hit an eight-foot bank shot.

The Aggies extended the lead to 14-9 and they closed the half by making seven of eight free throws as part of an 11-6 run that led to a 25-15 lead.