Having played their first seven games over a six-week period, the Aggies are suddenly in speed up mode.
With two more Western Athletic Conference contests on the schedule for this week, the Utah State men?s basketball team will have played its second set of seven games in just more than two weeks. Aggie head coach Stew Morrill called it an ?odd set of circumstances.?
The veteran coach wasn?t complaining, just hoping out loud his team is ready for a quick turnaround after opening league play on the road Saturday and Monday. Tonight USU (11-1, 2-0 WAC) hosts another WAC newcomer in Seattle (5-6, 0-1).
?You?re always worried about your preparation time, your energy level, all those kind of things,? Morrill said Wednesday. ?They always concern you as a coach. We should be in good spirits, should be excited to play. It?s our home WAC openers this weekend.?
After playing Seattle this evening, Idaho visits the Spectrum Saturday night.
The Aggies opened conference play with wins at UTSA (71-67) and Texas State (81-57). The game Monday was in the afternoon and the team was able to fly back to Logan on New Year?s Eve. USU began preparing for the Redhawks on Tuesday.
Seattle played just one league game, falling to Idaho at home, 71-64. The Redhawks were ahead late in the game, but the Vandals hit some 3-pointers to go in front.
?It was a very good game,? Morrill said of the Idaho-Seattle contest. ?Both teams played well, and it was a close game. Either team could have won.?
In preparing for the Redhawks, Morrill is well aware of two areas to be concerned about. Seattle will press, which is something the Aggies struggled with in the first half at Texas State. A year ago, the Redhawks beat USU in Seattle and the press had a lot to do with that.
Another area of concern is rebounding, especially on the offensive end. Seattle is plus seven rebounds overall and leads the WAC in offensive rebounding.
?Seattle always concerns you with their talent level and their athleticism,? Morrill said. ?Last year they gave us fits in Seattle. ... That?s an area we have been trying to get better at, taking care of the basketball. ... We?re going to have to handle some things on the fly, I?m sure, just like we did against the press by Texas State.?
After turning the ball over 12 times in the first half in their last outing, the Aggies had just three turnovers in the second half. USU also rebounded well after struggling a bit in that department. USU is plus 10.1 in rebound margin for the season.
The Aggies and Redhawks split a pair of games last season, each winning on their home court. Seattle did outrebound USU on both occasions.
?It?s easy to say ?You go block this guy out,? but then when you go to block him out and he?s quicker than you; it?s easier said than done,? Morrill said. ?It?s a big part of their (Redhawks) game plan. They exposed us a little bit with the rebounding last year. We?re a little better of a rebounding team than we were a year ago, though. Hopefully that will help us.?
Seattle does have some size and gets balanced scoring from its starting five. The Aggies were able to deal well with the big men at Texas State, who were the leading scorers. USU must be aware of players that can post up and also shoot the 3-ball.
?It starts with (Clarence) Trent,? Morrill said. ?He?s a handful.?
The Aggie coach went on to praise all of the Redhawks starters. Shooting guard Prince Obasi is 6-foot-3 and 205 pounds and likes to post up. Seattle likes to fire up 3-pointers, so that must be on USU?s radar as well when playing defense.
The Redhawks will also have their work cut out for them as the Aggies have won 10 games in a row and seem to be gaining momentum. Guard Preston Medlin is averaging 21 points an outing over the last four games, while Jarred Shaw and Kyisean Reed have continued to be solid in the middle. Spencer Butterfield has also been hot of late, averaging 15 points over the last four games he has played.
?He?s going to get the other team?s best perimeter defender every night out,? Morrill said of Medlin. ?That?s good news for Spencer (Butterfield), because he?s not playing too bad either. You want to put your best defender on Preston, and Spencer could potentially cause some problems.?
With two more Western Athletic Conference contests on the schedule for this week, the Utah State men?s basketball team will have played its second set of seven games in just more than two weeks. Aggie head coach Stew Morrill called it an ?odd set of circumstances.?
The veteran coach wasn?t complaining, just hoping out loud his team is ready for a quick turnaround after opening league play on the road Saturday and Monday. Tonight USU (11-1, 2-0 WAC) hosts another WAC newcomer in Seattle (5-6, 0-1).
?You?re always worried about your preparation time, your energy level, all those kind of things,? Morrill said Wednesday. ?They always concern you as a coach. We should be in good spirits, should be excited to play. It?s our home WAC openers this weekend.?
After playing Seattle this evening, Idaho visits the Spectrum Saturday night.
The Aggies opened conference play with wins at UTSA (71-67) and Texas State (81-57). The game Monday was in the afternoon and the team was able to fly back to Logan on New Year?s Eve. USU began preparing for the Redhawks on Tuesday.
Seattle played just one league game, falling to Idaho at home, 71-64. The Redhawks were ahead late in the game, but the Vandals hit some 3-pointers to go in front.
?It was a very good game,? Morrill said of the Idaho-Seattle contest. ?Both teams played well, and it was a close game. Either team could have won.?
In preparing for the Redhawks, Morrill is well aware of two areas to be concerned about. Seattle will press, which is something the Aggies struggled with in the first half at Texas State. A year ago, the Redhawks beat USU in Seattle and the press had a lot to do with that.
Another area of concern is rebounding, especially on the offensive end. Seattle is plus seven rebounds overall and leads the WAC in offensive rebounding.
?Seattle always concerns you with their talent level and their athleticism,? Morrill said. ?Last year they gave us fits in Seattle. ... That?s an area we have been trying to get better at, taking care of the basketball. ... We?re going to have to handle some things on the fly, I?m sure, just like we did against the press by Texas State.?
After turning the ball over 12 times in the first half in their last outing, the Aggies had just three turnovers in the second half. USU also rebounded well after struggling a bit in that department. USU is plus 10.1 in rebound margin for the season.
The Aggies and Redhawks split a pair of games last season, each winning on their home court. Seattle did outrebound USU on both occasions.
?It?s easy to say ?You go block this guy out,? but then when you go to block him out and he?s quicker than you; it?s easier said than done,? Morrill said. ?It?s a big part of their (Redhawks) game plan. They exposed us a little bit with the rebounding last year. We?re a little better of a rebounding team than we were a year ago, though. Hopefully that will help us.?
Seattle does have some size and gets balanced scoring from its starting five. The Aggies were able to deal well with the big men at Texas State, who were the leading scorers. USU must be aware of players that can post up and also shoot the 3-ball.
?It starts with (Clarence) Trent,? Morrill said. ?He?s a handful.?
The Aggie coach went on to praise all of the Redhawks starters. Shooting guard Prince Obasi is 6-foot-3 and 205 pounds and likes to post up. Seattle likes to fire up 3-pointers, so that must be on USU?s radar as well when playing defense.
The Redhawks will also have their work cut out for them as the Aggies have won 10 games in a row and seem to be gaining momentum. Guard Preston Medlin is averaging 21 points an outing over the last four games, while Jarred Shaw and Kyisean Reed have continued to be solid in the middle. Spencer Butterfield has also been hot of late, averaging 15 points over the last four games he has played.
?He?s going to get the other team?s best perimeter defender every night out,? Morrill said of Medlin. ?That?s good news for Spencer (Butterfield), because he?s not playing too bad either. You want to put your best defender on Preston, and Spencer could potentially cause some problems.?
