WBB Recap: Aggies Topple San Jose State, Fall At Nevada

Utah State 74, San Jose State 61

LOGAN – Things are coming together for Utah State. After another proof-of-concept win for Wes Brooks and his staff, this time in the form of a wire-to-wire 13-point win, it’s difficult to see it any other way. In their first full game since Aaliyah Gayles suffered an undisclosed lower body injury, the Aggies took care of business and dispatched San Jose State in a 74-61 victory.

Gayles is considered week-to-week and is expected to return by the end of the regular season. It will be a huge help to get her back on the court, but until then, the Aggies appear to be in good hands. Specifically, the hands of Sophie Sene, Jamisyn Heaton and Marina Asensio, as evidenced by their notable contributions in Utah State’s win over the Spartans.

San Jose State is the rare team that Utah State has had reliable success against in Mountain West. When the Aggies extended their winning streak over the Spartans to four games, that success continued.

The Aggies, just as it seems they have done all year, made some major amendments to the history book. This was Utah State’s largest margin of victory against a Division I opponent this season and the largest against a conference opponent since the Aggies topped Nevada 93-75 near the end of last season. They're now 6-6 overall and 2-1 in conference play. It’s their best record 12 games into the season since the 2018-19 season and the first time Utah State has reached six wins before the calendar turned over to a new year since earning eight before the 2017 leg of the 2016-17 season. In conference play, the 2-1 start is USU's best since 2020-21.

The win over SJSU also represents a five-game home winning streak for the Aggies, their first ever on Stew Morrill Court, and the first of that length since 2016-17. That five-game winning streak has given the Aggies a 5-1 home record, which is also the best record since that same season.

Utah State was the better team against San Jose State and didn’t waste time as it set out to prove it. The Aggies took over the game early, and though it got close a few times, they never surrendered control.

Sene has gotten into the habit of getting Utah State out of the gate, and she scored the first bucket of the game, leading to a 6-0 lead in the opening minutes. Utah State’s lead held as the Spartans inched closer, getting as close as 19-16 before Utah State retaliated with an 11-0 run.

The Spartans broke up the run with a three-pointer to make it a 30-19 game, but Utah State still outscored SJSU 8-3 the rest of the way and took a 38-22 lead into the half.

The Aggies struggled to open the third quarter, and they saw their lead again dwindle to three points when Maya Anderson converted a steal into a 16-footer. With the Spartans within three again, Karyn Sanford had seen enough and hit a layup and a three-pointer. Her five unanswered points turned into a 10-2 Aggie run to take control in time for the fourth quarter.

The Spartans made a few feeble attempts to tighten the race late, but every move they made was countered by the Aggies, who added five points to their lead in the final frame.

Making a few more tweaks to the history book, the Aggies outrebounded the Spartans 57-39, their most since pulling down 66 against San Jose State in 2013. The Aggies also dished out 21 assists, which ties their season high and is their most since 2022.

The Spartans attempted only five free throws, the fewest attempts from the line that Utah State has allowed since giving Utah Valley four in 2023. It was just the ninth time the Aggies have allowed five or fewer free throws since the program returned in 2003-04.

Sene, Heaton and Asensio all added a personal touch to the record book. Sene and Heaton both notched double-doubles, the first time Utah State had two in one game since 2022-23, when Tamiah Robinson and Olivia Wikstrom did it. Asensio had a career-high nine assists, the most by an Aggie since Emmie Harris in 2021-22. 

In total, Sene and Heaton each had 19 points, tied for a team high and behind only San Jose State’s Maya Anderson, who recorded a game-high 23. Sene also had a team-high in rebounds with 13, tying the game high with Amira Brown, and recorded a block. Heaton was 7 of 12 on field goals, 1 of 2 from deep and 4 of 4 from the stripe, and she added 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals without recording a single foul in 27 minutes of play. 

Asensio’s night included seven points, six rebounds and three steals. Elise Livingston had six points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals. Sanford came off the bench and was the third Aggie in double figures with 16 points, seven rebounds and a steal. Rachel Wilson had two points and five rebounds.

Nevada 58, Utah State 40

RENO – After a 13-point win gave the Aggies their best start in years, Utah State suffered a heat check loss on the road to Nevada, 58-40.

It was a continuation of a concerning pattern for the Aggies as they again struggled on the road. Utah State’s 6-7 record features a stark home-and-away split. The Aggies are 5-1 at home and 1-6 on the road. Their one win was against Cal State Bakersfield, and they are 0-2 in conference games on the road.

With traces of Utah State’s loss at Colorado State, it was another defensive battle. Utah State’s offense had bounced back with a 74-point performance in a win over San Jose State, but once again came up short in a low-scoring defensive slog. The Aggies held the Rams, who currently boast an average of 69.3 points per game, to 55. Nevada got away from them a bit more than the Rams did and scored 58 to bring its average up to 54.1, but the game still would have been within reach if the offense had converted more opportunities.

Missed opportunities were, ultimately, the theme of the game for the Aggies. Utah State pulled down only eight offensive rebounds and was outrebounded 34-25. The Aggies were 14 of 54 from the field and shot at an 8.7 percent clip from deep, hitting only two three-pointers all game on 23 attempts. The Aggie defense kept the Wolf Pack out of rhythm and held them to a 2-of-17 shooting performance from deep, but it wasn’t enough.

Utah State also missed out on performances from key players. Sophie Sene, Jamisyn Heaton and Elise Livingston combined for two points on 0-for-13 shooting. The only points from the trio came from a trip Heaton took to the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.

Utah State did get a massive performance from Marina Asensio, who notched 20 points – a huge portion of the starting lineup’s 24 and the team’s 40. It was a season high for the senior guard, who cruised past her previous high of 16 for her eighth double-digit performance of the year. She also added a rebound, two assists, a steal and a block. 

Karyn Sanford, who broke out of a slump against San Jose State, kept rolling with 10 points for her sixth double-digit performance of the year. This was her first time stringing back-to-back double-digit games together since she had 11, 10 and 11 in Utah State’s first three games of the year. She also had a rebound and a steal.

Rachel Wilson pitched in as well and had six points and four rebounds. Sene did manage seven rebounds and an assist, and Heaton added four rebounds and an assist.

Nevada tallied four points before Aitana Rosello Lopez got the Aggies on the board, but the Wolf Pack finished their 7-2 run to open the game. The Aggies got within one point three times the rest of the way in the frame, but were stymied each time, and the Pack took a 16-11 lead by the end of the stanza.

That grew to a 10-point lead when Nevada capped a 9-0 run with a jumper from Izzy Sullivan. Asensio hit a layup to break up the run, but Utah State’s offense was held to just six points in the quarter, and the Aggies fell to a 28-17 deficit by halftime.

Thanks to more defense, the Aggies made inroads in the third, but only slightly. They held the Wolf Pack to eight points on 3-of-17 shooting in the quarter and added 10 points of their own to draw within single digits heading into the final frame. That’s when Heaton hit her pair of free throws to make it a seven-point game at 36-29 with 9:16 remaining.

The Aggies, who had five unanswered points and were on a 7-2 run, looked like they were starting to build some momentum at the right time, but it fizzled out when Nevada hit back-to-back buckets. Asensio fought back with an and-one to cut it back to eight, but Nevada rattled off six straight points. Though Sanford hit a triple with 3:21 to play to make it a 46-35 game, it wasn’t enough to spark a late-game comeback, and three more Nevada points gave the Wolf Pack a 14-point lead with under two minutes to play as the game slipped away.