There is plenty on the line as Mountain West newcomer Grand Canyon travels to the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum to face conference-leading Utah State tonight.
The Aggies (23-5, 13-4 MWC) and Antelopes (18-10, 11-6) are two of five Mountain West teams still in contention for the Mountain West regular-season title and the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament. Utah State is tied with San Diego State for first place in the league. Grand Canyon is currently in fifth place, but it’s only two games behind the leaders.
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There’s no doubt Utah State would love to capture its second outright Mountain West title in program history in its final season in the league. The Aggies will join Boise State, San Diego State, Fresno State, Colorado State, Oregon State, Washington State, Texas State, and Gonzaga in the new Pac-12 later this year. Utah State captured its first outright regular-season championship in 2023-24.
Grand Canyon joined the Mountain West this year after more than a decade in the Western Athletic Conference. The Antelopes have won three of their past four games, including a 73-63 road win over San Diego State.
The Lopes are venturing into another daunting arena tonight. Utah State is 12-1 at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum this season, and it’s averaging 9,591 fans a game.
UNLV transfer Jaden Henley leads Grand Canyon and ranks No. 5 in the Mountain West with 17.8 points a game. Makaih Williams is adding 13.8 points a night, while 6-foot-8, 240-pound forward Nana Owusu-Anane is chipping in with 9.4 points and 8.7 rebounds a game.
Utah State has dropped back-to-back games. The Aggies lost, 80-77, to Nevada, which is in fourth place in the conference, and they fell to San Diego State, 89-72, on Wednesday.
The Aggies are led by likely Mountain West Player of the Year Mason Falslev, who ranks No. 7 in the conference with 16 points a game. He leads the team with 5.5 rebounds a night and 56 steals, and he’s No. 3 on the team with 79 assists. Vanderbilt transfer MJ Collins Jr. ranks No. 3 in the conference with 17.9 points a game.
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Grand Canyon at Utah State Odds
Utah State is a 10.5-point college basketball betting odds favorite on BetMGM as of this writing, and the Over/Under is at 148.5 points.
The Moneyline is at -600 for the Aggies and +425 for the Antelopes.
Grand Canyon at Utah State on TV
The Mountain West game featuring Grand Canyon and Utah State will be televised on FS1.
Tip-off is scheduled for 10 p.m. ET.
Grand Canyon at Utah State Prediction
I predict Utah State wins 73-70, but I don’t think the Aggies will cover the spread.
Grand Canyon may be the team nobody wants to face in the Mountain West Tournament. The Antelopes have enough talent, experience, and depth to beat any team in the conference. The problem is they’re inconsistent. Sometimes they look unbeatable, such as their 73-63 win over Utah State in January. And then sometimes they lose to Wyoming at home.
Utah State hasn’t been at its best the past couple of games, but the Aggies have too much talent and experience to lose a third-straight game, especially with so much riding on each game in the final week of the regular season.
Falslev had one of his best games of the season against Grand Canyon, posting 25 points and 12 rebounds. He’s going to need some help tonight from Collins and big men Karson Templin and Adlan Elamin if Utah State is going to defend its home turf and stay in the title hunt.
