The No. 25 Utah State men’s basketball team hopes to continue its hot start to the season with the preseason favorite to win the Mountain West title in town.
Boise State (12-4, 4-1 MWC) will face the Aggies (15-1, 5-0 MWC) at Dee Glen Smith Spectrum in Logan, Utah on Saturday. The Broncos were picked to win the conference in the media’s preseason poll, earning 19 first-place votes. Utah State was picked to finish No. 6.
Instead, the Aggies are in the driver’s seat to win the conference crown. They’re one of two teams that are undefeated in Mountain West play, the other being New Mexico (13-3, 5-0 MWC), which hosts San Diego State on Saturday.
The Aggies lead the conference with a .490 team field goal percentage and rank No. 2 with 83.4 points a game.
Utah State’s hot start this season is even more impressive given the fact that the Aggies had to replace head coach Danny Sprinkle, who left for Washington last year after leading the Aggies to their first Mountain West regular-season title.
Utah State also had to replace leading scorer Great Osobor, who followed Sprinkle to Washington, talented scorer Josh Uduje, who transferred to San Jose State, and point guard Darius Brown II, who exhausted his eligibility.
Boise State at Utah State Betting Odds
Utah State is a 4.5-point college basketball betting favorite against Boise State, and the Over/Under is 147.5 points.
The Moneyline for Utah State is at -225 and at +180 for Boise State.
The Aggies lead the all-time series against Boise State, 38-21, and the Broncos are looking for their fifth all-time road win over Utah State.
Boise State at Utah State On TV
The Mountain West game featuring Boise State and Utah State will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
Tip-off is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET on Saturday.
Boise State at Utah State Prediction
I predict Utah State wins, 74-65, but I’m taking the under in a matchup of two of the best defenses in the Mountain West. Boise State is giving up 65.9 points a game, which ranks No. 2 in the conference. The Aggies are giving up 67.4 points a night, which ranks No. 3.
The Broncos have the pieces to upset Utah State. Tyson Degenhart is the reigning Mountain West Player of the Year, and he ranks No. 3 in the league with 17.7 points a night. He’s joined in the post by St. John’s transfer O’Mar Stanley and Arizona transfer Dylan Anderson.
Boise State is also getting a boost from a pair of transfers. Former San Jose State point guard Alvaro Cardenas is averaging 11.1 points a night and ranks No. 2 in the conference with 108 assists. Former NAIA All-American Javan Buchanan is pouring in 10.6 points a night.
The Broncos shot the ball better in a win over UNLV on Tuesday than in a home loss to San Diego State last weekend, but Boise State’s shooters have been erratic this season.
That’s not the case for Utah State. The Aggies have been consistent, especially leading scorers Mason Falslev and Ian Martinez, both of whom are averaging 16.8 points a night. Falslev and sixth-man Karson Templin are also shooting 47% from 3-point range.
