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Utah State Aggies
2021–22 Utah State Aggies men's basketball team
UniversityUtah State University
First season1903–04
All-time record1604–1119 (.589)
Head coachRyan Odom (1st season)
ConferenceMountain West Conference
LocationLogan, Utah
ArenaSmith Spectrum
(capacity: 10,270)
NicknameAggies
Student sectionThe Hurd
ColorsNavy blue, white, and pewter gray[1]
     
Uniforms
Home jersey
Team colours
Home
Away jersey
Team colours
Away
Alternate jersey
Team colours
Alternate
NCAA tournament Elite Eight
1939, 1970
NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen
1962, 1964, 1970
NCAA tournament appearances
1939, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1970, 1971, 1975, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1988, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2019, 2021
Conference tournament champions
1988, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2011, 2019, 2020
Conference regular season champions
1926, 1930, 1935, 1936, 1980, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2019

The Utah State Aggies are a Division I men's college basketball team that plays in the Mountain West Conference, representing Utah State University. In the 17 years that former coach Stew Morrill was at the helm, Utah State had the 4th highest winning percentage in the nation at home, behind only Duke, Kansas, and Gonzaga.[2] As of the end of the 2018–19 season, the Aggies have an all-time record of 1,604 wins and 1,119 losses (.589 win pct).

History

The first basketball team on Utah State's campus was organized in 1902 and consisted of only women. A men's team was organized in 1904, at which point the women's club fell into obscurity.

The Aggies enjoyed mixed success early in their history, notching sporadic NCAA tournament appearances and alternating winning in the then-smaller postseason bracket with not winning much at all. Perhaps the most notable event in Utah State basketball history occurred on February 8, 1965, with the tragic death of Wayne Estes. Estes was a 6'6" forward for the Aggies, and was the nation's second leading scorer in 1965, behind only Rick Barry, at 33.7 ppg. He had just amassed 2,000 career points with a 48-point showing in a home victory over the University of Denver, when he stopped at the scene of a car accident in Logan. While crossing the street, Estes accidentally clipped a downed power line with his head and was electrocuted. The Los Angeles Lakers had planned on drafting him in the 1st round of the NBA Draft, where he likely would have gone on to win several championships with the team. Following Estes's death, he was posthumously awarded 1st team All-American honors.

The men's basketball team wasn't adversely affected by the constant shuffling of conference affiliations and independent status that blighted the USU football program throughout the mid-to-late 20th century. The program, however, did endure a lengthy stint as an independent program, from 1937 to 1978—although in that period, basketball independence was not the financial and competitive obstacle that it would become in the ESPN era. All the while, it remained the most resilient and popular sport at USU, enjoying steady success for decades. During the 1960s and '70s, the Aggies spent a great deal of time in both major national polls, finishing the season in the AP Top 25 three times and in the Coaches' Poll Top 25 seven times during those two decades.[3] USU reached the NCAA Sweet 16 in 1962, and the Elite 8 in 1970.

The Aggies enjoy a particularly strong home-court advantage at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, where they were 193–13 in the Morrill era.[2]

During the 2008–09 season, USU led the nation in field goal percentage with 49.8%. In addition, they were 2nd in win/loss percentage and 5th in assist-to-turnover ratio.[4] In 2009–10, the Aggies led the nation in 3-point percentage with an incredible 42.5%.[5]The Aggies have spent time in the national rankings, reaching as high as #19 in the Coaches' Poll in 2003–04, and #17 in 2008–09. During the 2009–2010, the Aggies reached as high as #26, one spot out of the actual rankings, before falling back to #31 for the postseason poll.[6] The Aggies finished the season in 2011 ranked #19 in the AP poll. In 2019, although not ranked in the preseason poll, the Aggies finished the season again ranked in the AP poll, coming in at #25. 2020, saw the Aggies ranked #17 in the preseason poll.

Utah State has also won the Old Oquirrh Bucket nine times, including both of the last two seasons. The Bucket is the award given each year to the best college basketball team in Utah, based on records against in-state opponents.

Post season history

NCAA Tournament

Utah State is 6–24 (.207) in its NCAA tournament history. In recent years, the team has won invitations to the tournament in 1998 (under coach Larry Eustachy), 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010 (all under Morrill). From 1978 to 2005, Utah State was a member of the Big West Conference. In both 2006 and 2010, the Aggies received at-large bids to the tournament after losing in the WAC tournament championship game. Despite a stellar season in 2003–04 and a national top-25 ranking toward the end of the season, the Aggies did not receive an at-large tournament bid after being upset in the conference tournament, making them the last top-25 team in college basketball to be snubbed from the tournament. This decision earned the derision of coach Morrill, as the Aggies held a 25–3 record along with their ranking.

In 2009, USU won the WAC tournament championship game, defeating Nevada in Reno. The team went on to lose in the first round of the NCAA tournament to Marquette, 58–57. The most recent NCAA Tournament success was a first-round upset over fifth-seeded Ohio State University in 2001.[7]

The 2010 team received an at-large bid from the selection committee after losing in the WAC tournament final to New Mexico State. The 12th-seeded Aggies then lost their opening round game to Texas A&M.

The Aggies would have appeared in the 2020 NCAA Tournament after being champions of the 2020 Mountain West Tournament, however, the NCAA Tournament was cancelled amid the 2020 coronavirus outbreak.

Year Seed Round Opponent Result
1939 Elite Eight
Regional 3rd Place		 Oklahoma
Texas		 L 39–50
W 51–49
1962 Round of 25
Sweet Sixteen
Regional 3rd Place		 Arizona State
UCLA
Pepperdine		 W 78–73
L 62–73
L 78–88
1963 Round of 25 Arizona State L 75–79OT
1964 Round of 25
Sweet Sixteen
Regional 3rd Place		 Arizona State
San Francisco
Seattle		 W 92–90
L 58–64
L 71–75
1970 Round of 25
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight		 UTEP
Santa Clara
#2 UCLA		 W 91–81
W 69–68
L 79–101
1971 Round of 25 BYU L 82–91
1975 Round of 32 Montana L 63–68
1979 10 W Round of 40 (7) USC L 67–86
1980 11 W Round of 48 (6) Clemson L 73–76
1983 10 MW Round of 48 (7) Iowa L 59–64
1988 10 MW Round of 64 (7) Vanderbilt L 77–80
1998 13 W Round of 64 (4) #20 Maryland L 68–82
2000 12 S Round of 64 (5) #20 Connecticut L 67–75
2001 12 E Round of 64
Round of 32		 (5) Ohio State
(4) #15 UCLA		 W 77–68OT
L 50–75
2003 15 W Round of 64 (2) #6 Kansas L 61–64
2005 14 MW Round of 64 (3) #9 Arizona L 53–66
2006 12 E Round of 64 (5) #17 Washington L 61–75
2009 11 W Round of 64 (6) #23 Marquette L 57–58
2010 12 S Round of 64 (5) #23 Texas A&M L 53–69
2011 12 S Round of 64 (5) #21 Kansas State L 68–73
2019 8 MW Round of 64 (9) Washington L 61–78
2021 11 S Round of 64 (6) Texas Tech L 53–65

NIT

The Aggies have appeared in 10 National Invitation Tournaments, with a combined record of 2–10.

Year Round Opponent Result
1960 Quarterfinals
Semifinals
3rd Place Game		 Villanova
Providence
St. Bonavneture		 W 73–72
L 62–68
W 94–81
1967 First Round Rutgers L 76–78
1978 First Round Nebraska L 66–67
1984 First Round Southwestern Louisiana L 92–94
1995 First Round Illinois State L 87–93
2002 Opening Round Montana State L 69–77
2004 First Round Hawaiʻi L 74–85
2007 First Round Michigan L 58–68
2008 First Round Illinois State L 57–61
2022 First Round Oregon L 72-83

CIT

The Aggies have appeared in one CollegeInsider.com Tournament. Their record is 4–1.

Year Round Opponent Result
2012 First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Championship		 Cal State Bakerfield
Idaho
Loyola Marymount
Oakland
Mercer		 W 75–69
W 76–56
W 77–69
W 105–81
L 67–70

Home-court advantage

Aggies cheering on their basketball team at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.

Utah State plays its home games at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, a 10,270-seat arena on the Utah State campus. The Aggies are 453–105 (.812) at the Smith Spectrum, which has housed basketball since 1970. Previous to the building of the Spectrum, Utah State's basketball teams played at the George Nelson Fieldhouse on campus. Under head coach Craig Smith, USU is 39–4 (.910) at home. Until a surprising early-season loss in 2009, USU boasted the second-longest home win streak in the nation, behind Kansas.

The Smith Spectrum features seats at court level, extremely-close to the players. The university also reserves an unusually-high percentage of seats, including at court level, for its students. This has aided the USU student section in becoming one of the most notoriously loud and raucous (and clever) in the nation, with major publicity in recent years. Various sources have called the Smith Spectrum among the hardest places in the nation for opposing teams to play.[8][9][10] In the '90s, when his teams were reaching the Final Four and competing at the highest echelons of college basketball, University of Utah coach Rick Majerus called the Smith Spectrum the toughest place in the country for his teams to play.[11] After a February 2010 game at the Smith Spectrum, Wichita State head coach Gregg Marshall said "Utah State has 4000 student tickets and they make some type of impression on the visiting team and it's just a party. It is one heck of a party. It's the best I've ever seen. In many, many years I've been at Duke and Kentucky and UConn and Syracuse and it's clearly the best I've ever seen in terms of atmosphere."[12]

An unofficial newsletter entitled "The Refraction" was published before each game day until it was discontinued in 2011.[13] One student fan, known as "Wild Bill", has also gained much renown as of late for his unique techniques to distract opposing free throw shooters.[11][14][15] Other Utah State traditions are their "I believe that we will win!" chant and "Winning team, losing team" chant that mocks the away losing team in the last seconds of a game.

Retired numbers

Utah State Aggies retired numbers
No. Player Position Career
5 Greg Grant F 1983–1986
6 Bert Cook SG 1950–1952
24 Cornell Green F 1960–1962
31 Marv Roberts F / C 1969–1971
33 Wayne Estes F 1963–1965

Awards

Consensus Second Team All-Americans

Third Team All-Americans

AP Honorable Mention All-Americans

Conference Player of the Year

First Team All-Conference

Season-by-season results

2020–21 Mountain West Conference
men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 16 San Diego State† 14 – 3   .824 23 – 5   .821
Utah State 15 – 4   .789 20 – 9   .690
Colorado State 14 – 4   .778 20 – 8   .714
Boise State 14 – 6   .700 19 – 9   .679
Nevada 10 – 7   .588 16 – 10   .615
Fresno State 9 – 11   .450 12 – 12   .500
UNLV 8 – 10   .444 12 – 15   .444
Wyoming 7 – 9   .438 14 – 11   .560
San Jose State 3 – 13   .188 5 – 16   .238
Air Force 3 – 17   .150 5 – 20   .200
New Mexico 2 – 15   .118 6 – 16   .273
† Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll
Season Head Coach Conference Overall Conference Tournament Postseason
Big West Conference
1993–94 Larry Eustachy 11–7 (T-2nd) 14–13 Quarterfinals
1994–95 Larry Eustachy 14–4 (1st) 21–8 Quarterfinals NIT, First Round
1995–96 Larry Eustachy 10–8 (4th) 18–15 Finals
1996–97 Larry Eustachy 12–4 (T-1st) 20–9 Semifinals
1997–98 Larry Eustachy 13–3 (1st) 25–8 Champion NCAA, First Round
1998–99 Stew Morrill 8–8 (4th) 15–13 Quarterfinals
1999–00 Stew Morrill 16–0 (1st) 28–6 Champion NCAA, First Round
2000–01 Stew Morrill 13–3 (2nd) 28–6 Champion NCAA, Second Round
2001–02 Stew Morrill 13–5 (T-1st) 23–8 Finals NIT, Opening Round
2002–03 Stew Morrill 12–6 (3rd) 24–9 Champion NCAA, First Round
2003–04 Stew Morrill 17–1 (T-1st) 25–4 Semifinals NIT, First Round
2004–05 Stew Morrill 13–5 (2nd) 24–8 Champion NCAA, First Round
Western Athletic Conference
2005–06 Stew Morrill 11–5 (T-2nd) 23–9 Finals NCAA, First Round
2006–07 Stew Morrill 9–7 (4th) 23–12 Finals NIT, First Round
2007–08 Stew Morrill 12–4 (T-1st) 24–11 Semifinals NIT, First Round
2008–09 Stew Morrill 14–2 (1st) 30–5 Champion NCAA, First Round
2009–10 Stew Morrill 14–2 (1st) 27–8 Finals NCAA, First Round
2010–11 Stew Morrill 15–1 (1st) 30–3 Champion NCAA, First Round
2011–12 Stew Morrill 8–6 (4th) 21–16 Quarterfinals CollegeInsider.com finalists
2012–13 Stew Morrill 8–6 (T-4th) 21–10 Quarterfinals
Mountain West Conference
2013–14 Stew Morrill 7–11 (T-8th) 18–14 Quarterfinals
2014–15 Stew Morrill 11–7 (T-4th) 18–13 Quarterfinals
2015–16 Tim Duryea 7–11 (T-8th) 16–15 Quarterfinals
2016–17 Tim Duryea 7–11 (T-8th) 14–17 Quarterfinals
2017–18 Tim Duryea 8–10 (T-7th) 17–17 Semifinals
2018–19 Craig Smith 15–3 (T-1st) 28–6 Champion NCAA, First Round
2019–20 Craig Smith 12–6 (T-2nd) 26–8 Champion NCAA (tournament cancelled)
2020–21 Craig Smith 15–4 (2nd) 20–9 Finals NCAA, First Round

References

  1. ^ "Utah State University Visual Identity Guide" (PDF). Retrieved September 6, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Utah State Basketball". Stew Morrill and AllCoachNetwork.com. Retrieved 13 January 2010.
  3. ^ "2009-10 Utah State University Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Utah State University. Retrieved 23 February 2010.
  4. ^ "2009-10 WAC Men's Basketball Media Guide". Western Athletic Conference. Archived from the original on 22 January 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
  5. ^ "NCAA Basketball Stats--2009-2010". ESPN.com. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
  6. ^ "2010 NCAA Men's Basketball Rankings -- Postseason". ESPN.com. Retrieved 22 March 2010.
  7. ^ CNN Sports Illustrated.com (March 15, 2001). "Utah St. 77, Ohio St. 68". {{cite news}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  8. ^ "Utah State: Men's Basketball Season in Review". NCAA.com. Retrieved 19 February 2010.[permanent dead link‍]
  9. ^ "Top 10 College Basketball Arenas". BANews.net. Archived from the original on 6 March 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
  10. ^ "To Utah State". The Argonaut. University of Idaho. Retrieved 19 February 2010. [dead link‍]
  11. ^ a b "You Want Utah State's Bill". BigBlueCats.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
  12. ^ "The Refraction, Vol. 3, Issue 17" (PDF). The Refraction. Retrieved 2 March 2010.
  13. ^ "The Refraction - The unofficial gameday newsletter of The Spectrum". www.usustats.com. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
  14. ^ "When It Comes To The Art of Free Throw Distraction, Utah State's Shirtless Bill Sproat Is Without Peers". ESPN.com. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
  15. ^ "Utah State's Shirtless Bill will jinx your free throw, steal your nachos". NBCSports.com. Archived from the original on 23 February 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
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