- Utah State secured wins against Colorado State and San Diego State, showcasing resilience.
- Coach Jerrod Calhoun praised the team's character and toughness in overcoming deficits.
- The Aggies focus on rebounding and teamwork as they approach the season's final month.
LOGAN — Looking to bounce back from back-to-back losses, Utah State traveled to take on Colorado State to play its fourth game in 10 days last Friday.
The Aggies trailed by as much as 13 in the second half to the Rams, but a strong finish to the game had Jerrod Calhoun's squad leaving Fort Collins with a 65-61 win and praise from the head coach.
"Just a character win. We've talked two, three days about having character," Calhoun said. "Very proud of the character of our team."
Eight days later, a similar sentiment resonated from Calhoun and the Aggies as the team gutted out a 76-71 win over the conference-leading San Diego State Aztecs.
"I didn't think we played very good offensively, so it's very gratifying to know you have great character kids, and you have really tough kids," Calhoun said. "This was a big test to our toughness."
Many similarities can be found in those two games, as Utah State trailed the Aztecs by double-digits at one point on Saturday, as well. Against Colorado State, the Aggies shot just 25% from 3-point range; and against the Aztecs, they missed their first 11 threes before Karson Templin connected on the team's first triple.
Despite the struggles offensively to start the game, Templin and the Aggies didn't waver.
"Sometimes when you don't see the ball go in, it's frustrating," Templin said. "We're confident in ourselves, even when we're behind. We know that eventually we're going to have breakthroughs, we're going to make shots, we're going to do the little things to put ourselves on top."
When crunch time came, in both games, Utah State made the plays they needed to on both ends of the floor to come away with a win. Utah State allowed Colorado State to make only two of its final twelve shots to end the game, while the Aggies knocked down seven of their final nine shots to get the win over San Diego State.
"The difference was we were the tougher team the last seven minutes of the game," Calhoun said.
After turning the ball over 16 times in the first 30 minutes to gift the Aztecs 18 points, the Aggies only turned it over twice in the final 10 minutes, allowing only just 3 points on those two turnovers.
Utah State finished with a 46-31 rebounding advantage over San Diego State, a stat that Calhoun has repeatedly emphasized is directly attributed to a team's toughness.
"To outrebound a Brian Dutcher team by 15 is an ultimate test of what you guys just talked about: character," Calhoun said. "Our kids have that. We have an unbelievable belief in each other, and it's we over me."
In all three of the team's losses this season, the Aggies have struggled on the glass. Utah State has been outrebounded a combined 111-91 in its three losses this season.
"It's all attention to detail. We've emphasized it the last few practices that we need to box out, rebound," Templin said. "We're a good rebounding team; it's just all a mental thing. You've just got to go get the ball."
When that attention to detail and toughness are present, and they outrebound their opponent, Utah State is 30-2 under Calhoun.
The Aggies have had some bumps and hiccups along the way to this point in the season, though these slip-ups may come back to help them more than bite them.
"You have to go through some struggles; you've got to lose some games. You've got to have some gut punches to see what type of people you have, what kind of character you have," Calhoun said. "Obviously, we've answered the bell."
As the calendar flips to February and the final month of the regular season looms, the Aggies now sit tied with San Diego State and New Mexico atop the conference standings, each with nine conference games remaining on the schedule.
Through that final stretch, Calhoun is looking for his team's experience and character to lift them to a strong finish, both through February and, more importantly, into March.
"That's a team that's starting to come together at the right time," Calhoun said. "Players have got to make plays in February, and we've got a lot of guys that can do it."
