2019–20 Utah State Aggies men's basketball team

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2019–20 Utah State Aggies men's basketball
Utah State Aggies logo.svg
Jamaica Classic champions
MWC Tournament champions
ConferenceMountain West Conference
2019–20 record26–8 (12–6 MW)
Head coach
  • Craig Smith (2nd season)
Assistant coaches
  • Austin Hansen
  • Eric Peterson
  • David Ragland
Home arenaSmith Spectrum
Seasons
2019–20 Mountain West Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 6 San Diego State 17 – 1   .944 30 – 2   .938
Utah State † 12 – 6   .667 26 – 8   .765
Nevada 12 – 6   .667 19 – 12   .613
UNLV 12 – 6   .667 17 – 15   .531
Boise State 11 – 7   .611 20 – 12   .625
Colorado State 11 – 7   .611 20 – 12   .625
New Mexico 7 – 11   .389 19 – 14   .576
Fresno State 7 – 11   .389 11 – 19   .367
Air Force 5 – 13   .278 12 – 20   .375
San Jose State 3 – 15   .167 7 – 24   .226
Wyoming 2 – 16   .111 9 – 24   .273
† 2020 MW Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2019–20 Utah State Aggies men's basketball team represented Utah State University in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Aggies, led by second-year head coach Craig Smith, played their home games at the Smith Spectrum in Logan, Utah as members of the Mountain West Conference. They finished the season 26–8, 12–6 in Mountain West play to finish in a three-way tie for second place. They defeated New Mexico, Wyoming and San Diego State to become champions of the Mountain West Tournament, their second consecutive Mountain West Tournament championship. They earned the Mountain West's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. However, on March 12 it was announced that the NCAA Tournament would be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Previous season[]

The Aggies shared the regular-season Mountain West title with Nevada, and defeated New Mexico, Fresno State, and San Diego State to win the Mountain West Tournament to earn the Mountain West's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament for their first appearance since 2011. They lost in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament to Washington.

Offseason[]

Departures[]

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Tauriawn Knight 1 G 6'1" 170 Freshman Edmond, OK Transferred
Dwayne Brown Jr. 2 G/F 6'6" 220 Senior Conyers, GA Graduated
John Knight III 3 G 6'2" 195 Sophomore Jackson, MS Transferred to SUU
Crew Ainge 4 F 5'11" 180 RS Sophomore Wellesley, MA Transferred to Babson
Quinn Taylor 10 F 6'8" 240 RS Senior Houston, TX Graduated
Ke'Sean Davis 13 F 6'7" 225 Junior Compton, CA Left team
Ben Fakira 21 F 6'10" 240 Freshman Sydney, Australia Left team

Incoming college transfers[]

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous college
Carson Bischoff 1 G 6'4" 210 Junior Ogden, Utah Junior college transfer from Treasury Valley CC
Alphonso Anderson 10 F 6'6" 220 Junior Tacoma, Washington Junior college transfer from North Idaho College
Marco Anthony 44 F 6'5" 225 Junior San Antonio, Texas Transfer from Virginia
Kuba Karwowski 52 C 7'2" 220 Junior Warsaw, Poland Junior college transfer from

Recruiting[]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Liam McChesney
PF 		Prince Rupert, BC Charles Hays 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Nov 12, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN grade: NR
Sean Bairstow
SF 		Brisbane, QLD Churchie 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Feb 27, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN grade: NR
Cade Potter
PF 		Orange, CA Orange Lutheran 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Sep 1, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: –   Rivals: –  247Sports: #65
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved 2019-10-15.

Preseason[]

Mountain West media poll[]

The Mountain West Conference media poll was released on October 15, 2019. The Aggies were unanimously selected by MW media members as the preseason favorites.[1]

Media poll
Predicted finish Team
1 Utah State
2 San Diego State
3 New Mexico
4 Nevada
5 Boise State
6 Fresno State
7 UNLV
8 Air Force
9 Colorado State
10 Wyoming
11 San Jose State

Preseason All-MWC teams[]

Sam Merrill and Neemias Queta were selected to the All-MWC Preseason Team. Merrill was additionally selected as the Mountain West Preseason Player of the Year.[2]

Roster[]

2019–20 Utah State Aggies men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
F 0 Klay Stall 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 245 lb (111 kg) RS Jr Basha HS Chandler, AZ
G 1 Carson Bischoff (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Weber HS Ogden, UT
G 2 Sean Bairstow 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Churchie Brisbane, QLD
F 4 Roche Grootfaam 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 265 lb (120 kg) Sr Covenant Christian Academy
College of Southern Idaho 		Paramaribo, Suriname
G 5 Sam Merrill 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr Bountiful HS Bountiful, UT
F 10 Alphonso Anderson 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jr Garfield HS
North Idaho College 		Tacoma, WA
F 13 Liam McChesney 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr Charles Hays Prince Rupert, BC
G 15 Abel Porter 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS Jr Davis HS Farmington, UT
G 22 Brock Miller 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS So Brighton HS Sandy, UT
C 23 Neemias Queta 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 245 lb (111 kg) So Benfica Barreiro, Portugal
G 24 Diogo Brito 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) RS Sr Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal
C 32 Trevin Dorius 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 240 lb (109 kg) RS Fr Wasatch HS Heber City, UT
F 34 Justin Bean 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS So Southmoore HS Moore, OK
G 44 Marco Anthony (I) Current redshirt 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Holmes HS
Virginia 		San Antonio, TX
C 52 Kuba Karwowski 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jr Warsaw, Poland
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results[]

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Oct 30, 2019*
7:00 pm 		No. 17 College of Idaho W 103–66 
 19 – Brito   11 – Anderson   7 – Bairstow  Smith Spectrum (6,017)
Logan, UT
Regular Season
Nov 5, 2019*
8:00 pm, ATTSNRM 		No. 17 Montana State W 81–73  1–0
  28 – Merrill   10 – Bean   4 – Porter  Smith Spectrum (7,331)
Logan, UT
Nov 8, 2019*
7:00 pm, Stadium 		No. 17 Weber State W 89–34  2–0
  18 – Bean   9 – Bean   10 – Porter  Smith Spectrum (8,840)
Logan, UT
Nov 12, 2019*
7:00 pm, Stadium 		No. 17 Denver W 97–56  3–0
  27 – Miller   15 – Bean   5 – Tied  Smith Spectrum (6,504)
Logan, UT
Nov 15, 2019*
7:00 pm, Stadium 		No. 17 North Carolina A&T
Jamaica Classic 		W 81–54  4–0
  21 – Anderson   10 – Bean   5 – Merrill  Smith Spectrum (8,864)
Logan, UT
Nov 18, 2019*
7:00 pm, Stadium 		No. 15 UTSA W 82–50  5–0
  21 – Merrill   11 – Tied   5 – Bean  Smith Spectrum (8,667)
Logan, UT
Nov 22, 2019*
2:30 pm, CBSSN 		No. 15 vs. LSU
Jamaica Classic 		W 80–78  6–0
  24 – Tied   12 – Bean   8 – Merrill  Montego Bay Convention Centre (1,452)
Montego Bay, Jamaica
Nov 24, 2019*
4:30 pm, CBSSN 		No. 15 vs. North Texas
Jamaica Classic 		W 68–59  7–0
  19 – Anderson   13 – Bean   3 – Merrill  Montego Bay Convention Centre 
Montego Bay, Jamaica
Nov 29, 2019*
9:30 pm, ESPNU 		No. 15 at Saint Mary's L 73–81  7–1
  24 – Bean   9 – Bean   7 – Porter  McKeon Pavilion (3,500)
Moraga, CA
Dec 4, 2019
9:15 pm, ESPN2 		No. 25 at San Jose State W 71–59  8–1
(1–0) 		 18 – Bean   14 – Bean   3 – Tied  Provident Credit Union Event Center (2,294)
San Jose, CA
Dec 7, 2019
4:00 pm, ATTSNRM 		No. 25 Fresno State W 77–70 OT 9–1
(2–0) 		 24 – Merrill   13 – Bean   5 – Brito  Smith Spectrum (9,815)
Logan, UT
Dec 10, 2019*
7:00 pm 		Saint Katherine W 94–49  10–1
  22 – Miller   14 – Bean   5 – Bairstow  Smith Spectrum (6,006)
Logan, UT
Dec 14, 2019*
5:00 pm, BYU TV 		vs. BYU
Old Oquirrh Bucket/Beehive Classic 		L 64–68  10–2
  14 – Anderson   10 – Bean   4 – Porter  Vivint Smart Home Arena (10,291)
Salt Lake City, UT
Dec 18, 2019*
5:45 pm, ESPN3 		vs. South Florida
Battleground 2K19 		W 76–74 OT 11–2
  21 – Merrill   9 – Bean   7 – Porter  Toyota Center (18,055)
Houston, TX
Dec 21, 2019*
12:30 pm, FS1 		vs. Florida
Orange Bowl Classic 		W 65–62  12–2
  21 – Merrill   9 – 2 tied   5 – 2 tied  BB&T Center (8,927)
Sunrise, FL
Dec 28, 2019*
2:00 pm 		Eastern Oregon W 129–61  13–2
  25 – Miller   12 – Bean   11 – Brito  Smith Spectrum (8,338)
Logan, UT
Jan 1, 2020
9:00 pm, CBSSN 		at UNLV L 53–70  13–3
(2–1) 		 17 – Bean   11 – Bean   3 – Porter  Thomas & Mack Center (7,571)
Las Vegas, NV
Jan 4, 2020
8:00 pm, CBSSN 		No. 13 San Diego State L 69–77  13–4
(2–2) 		 26 – Merrill   14 – Queta   5 – Porter  Smith Spectrum (10,017)
Logan, UT
Jan 7, 2020
9:00 pm, ESPN2 		at Air Force L 60–79  13–5
(2–3) 		 16 – Miller   5 – Bean   3 – Porter  Clune Arena (4,563)
Colorado Springs, CO
Jan 11, 2020
6:00 pm, CBSSN 		Nevada W 80–70  14–5
(3–3) 		 19 – Queta   8 – Merrill   8 – Merrill  Smith Spectrum (8,725)
Logan, UT
Jan 18, 2020
8:00 pm, ESPNU 		at Boise State L 83–88 OT 14–6
(3–4) 		 30 – Merrill   10 – Bean   4 – Porter  ExtraMile Arena (6,047)
Boise, ID
Jan 21, 2020
9:00 pm, ESPNU 		Air Force W 72–47  15–6
(4–4) 		 16 – Bean   13 – Bean   5 – Bean  Smith Spectrum (8,442)
Logan, UT
Jan 25, 2020
8:00 pm, ESPNU 		Colorado State W 77–61  16–6
(5–4) 		 28 – Merrill   9 – Bean   5 – 3 tied  Smith Spectrum (9,791)
Logan, UT
Jan 28, 2020
9:00 pm, ESPNU 		at Wyoming W 68–45  17–6
(6–4) 		 14 – Merrill   12 – Queta   4 – Brito  Arena-Auditorium (3,115)
Laramie, WY
Feb 1, 2020
8:00 pm, CBSSN 		at No. 4 San Diego State L 68–80  17–7
(6–5) 		 16 – Merrill   6 – Queta   12 – Merrill  Viejas Arena (12,414)
San Diego, CA
Feb 5, 2020
8:00 pm, CBSSN 		UNLV W 69–54  18–7
(7–5) 		 21 – Queta   11 – Bean   5 – Queta  Smith Spectrum (8,987)
Logan, UT
Feb 8, 2020
8:00 pm, CBSSN 		Boise State W 70–61  19–7
(8–5) 		 21 – Queta   16 – Bean   4 – Tied  Smith Spectrum (10,033)
Logan, UT
Feb 11, 2020
7:30 pm, CBSSN 		at Colorado State W 75–72  20–7
(9–5) 		 32 – Merrill   11 – Queta   5 – Merrill  Moby Arena (4,038)
Fort Collins, CO
Feb 15, 2020
8:00 pm, ESPNU 		at Fresno State W 71–59  21–7
(10–5) 		 24 – Merrill   11 – Bean   4 – Merrill  Save Mart Center (5,671)
Fresno, CA
Feb 19, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3 		Wyoming W 78–58  22–7
(11–5) 		 26 – Merrill   15 – Queta   5 – Brito  Smith Spectrum (9,452)
Logan, UT
Feb 25, 2020
9:00 pm, ESPN2 		San Jose State W 94–56  23–7
(12–5) 		 23 – Queta   13 – Bean   7 – Merrill  Smith Spectrum (8,925)
Logan, UT
Feb 29, 2020
8:00 pm, CBSSN 		at New Mexico L 64–66  23–8
(12–6) 		 18 – Queta   14 – Queta   7 – Brito  Dreamstyle Arena (11,215)
Albuquerque, NM
Mountain West Tournament
Mar 5, 2020
7:00 pm, CBSSN 		(2) vs. (7) New Mexico
Quarterfinals 		W 75–70  24–8
  29 – Merrill   15 – Bean   2 – Tied  Thomas & Mack Center (7,723)
Paradise, NV
Mar 6, 2020
8:30 pm, CBSSN 		(2) vs. (11) Wyoming
Semifinals 		W 89–82  25–8
  27 – Merrill   10 – Bean   7 – Merrill  Thomas & Mack Center (9,630)
Paradise, NV
Mar 7, 2020
2:30 pm, CBS 		(2) vs. (1) No. 5 San Diego State
Championship 		W 59–56  26–8
  27 – Merrill   12 – Bean   4 – Bean  Thomas & Mack Center (10,292)
Paradise, NV
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Mountain.

Rankings[]

See also: 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.
Week
Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Final 
AP 17 17 15 15 25 RV RV RV RV NR NR NR NR NR NR RV RV NR RV RV 
Coaches 19 19 16 15 RV RV RV RV RV NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR RV RV

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings

References[]

  1. ^ "Utah State picked to win 2020 MWC Men's Basketball Championship". The MW. October 15, 2019. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
  2. ^ "Mountain West Announces 2019-20 Preseason Men's All Conference Team". The MW. October 15, 2019. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
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