Ok, Here's Utah State in a nutshell....This has the potential to be a very difficult game for us. Stew Morrill is simply one of the best coaches in the country. He's a master at having his team prepared, he's very good in game as well. Plus, Blaine Taylor, ODU's head coach, coached under Morrill for years, so there's that dynamic as well.
This Utah State team will have a chance to win 30 games this season. The Aggies are far and away the best team in the WAC and have eight seniors. This is supposed to be the year they go to the Big Dance and actually win a game. That's why they took this game, Morrill thinks he has the team to play with us, and I have to say that he's right on that.
Anyway, here is their personnel. Thing is, this is a strength game. Our strength is the fact that we have, IMO, the very best backcourt in the country. USU has two of the better wing defenders in the country in Williams and Newbold. It should be a great test for both schools, because this should be anything but a walk for the Hoyas. And our post defense will be tested. No joke. If Wesley were 6-9 instead of 6-6, we'd be talking about a first round pick.
PG: Brockeith Pane - Is a different kind of point guard from what USU usually has because he plays more of a playground style of ball and is a playmaker instead of a game manager. He's great at getting into the lane off the dribble and can finish over bigs. He's also seen two of the best point guards in the country in BYU's Jimmer Fredette and Weber State's Damian Lilliard. He's a junior college transfer who's shown no fear so far. He clashes with Morrill sometimes over tempo, and he hasn't made perimeter shots. But he's already, IMO, one of the best point guards in the WAC. Him and Chris are built the same. Should be a good matchup there.
SG: Tyler Newbold - This is who Austin should guard because you won't have to pay attention to him. He can't score. He's a four-year starter and a great glue guy. Runs the offense well, does a lot of little things that doesn't show up. He has great form on his jumper. Is sneaky athletic and has great lift when he shoots......it just never goes in...He led the team in three-point percentage as a freshman and it's been downhill from there. He's been in a season long slump and in many ways, he's really hindered his team offensively.
But man, can he defend. Newbold is strong, smart, knows exactly where to be at what time to be there. He's a great defender, really harassed Fredette and was the only Aggie to be effective against Lilliard, who's being touted as a first round pick in next year's draft, (NBAdraft.net). That makes him pretty important. But Austin should guard him because then he can save most of his energy for the offensive side of the floor. Jason should guard Pooh Williams......which brings us to.......
SF: Pooh Williams - Another great defender. Was actually the defensive player of the year in the WAC last season, but hasn't arguably been the best defender on his own team....go figure. Williams is much different from Newbold. He's extremely athletic, left handed, good off the dribble. He defends on athleticism and has shut down a lot of people that way. For my money, I think he starts on Freeman, although I think Newbold may be better off there. Pooh will score, likes to drive left, and will punch it if given an alley to the basket. He hasn't shot it well at all from deep this season, but is still much more of a threat than Newbold to put the ball in the basket. I saw him actually take over a few games offensively last season, but he's still like the fourth option in the Aggies offense.
PF: Tai Wesley - This right here is who the Hoyas should be very worried about. Im not sure we have anyone that can guard him. Hollis is too small, Julian too slow, Nate too young. Our best option may actually be Henry because the only weakness Tai has is finishing over real length. But as for his game? He's the best low post scorer we will have seen this season. He has Kevin McHale like moves, can shoot with either hand, is extremely patient in the paint, a great passer out of double teams and has the strength to get where he wants. As I said, if he were three inches taller, we'd be talking about an NBA guy. I think we'll need to double him because USU runs a lot of its offense through him. Although, Tai has a penchant for getting into foul trouble like clockwork. That's the only reason BYU won that game, that plus the officials completely, and I mean completely jobbed the Aggies. Utah State, to me, is a better team than BYU and should've won. Wesley will probably be the WAC player of the year. He's not an NBA guy, but he's a great college basketball player.
C: Brady Jardine - Great athlete, jumps through the roof. That allows him to play much bigger than his size. Has at least 35 inch vertical hops and snatches rebounds above the rim. When you see him, he doesn't look like it. Looks like Opie Cunningham a little bit. But he gets up, he blocks a ton of shots from the weakside, and he cleans up misses. He's actually pretty fun to watch. Was recruited as a small forward, but really developed over time. Has posted two consecutive double-doubles and averages almost 10 rebounds a game.
Off the bench - Brian Green: This is the kind of shooter that you don't leave alone. Lacks size, he's only 5-10. But is a sniper from deep. And he makes them under pressure. Limited off the dribble, strictly catch and shoot, but he plays well off Wesley and gets a lot of open looks anyway.
James Walker - Utah State's most hyped freshman in years. 6-2 point guard, pretty athletic, but also in Morrill's doghouse. May or may not see time here.
Nate Bendall - USU's biggest player at 6-9...and started every game last season...but has been injured and will probably see limited minutes for the rest of the season. Can stroke it from midrange and can rebound when he's right, but his foot may never be 100 percent again.
Utah State plays Denver tonight, who also runs the Princeton, although it's alot different than ours. Defending against the Aggies will be a challenge for our bigs. When it comes to it, we're a better team with better players. But this is the kind of team we'll see in the first or second round. When you think of USU, think Northern Iowa of last season, great mid-major team with tons of senior experience that won't be scared in any atmosphere. That's why this will be a great test for both teams