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No. 17/23 Utah State Men's Basketball Game Notes at 2011 WAC Tournament Add Comment Mar 08, 2011
GAME 32
No. 17/23 Utah State (28-3, 15-1) vs. TBA
Friday, March 11, 2011 7 p.m. (MT) Las Vegas, Nev.
Orleans Arena (7,471) Aggie Radio Network
GAME DAY HEADLINES
Utah State is in its 106th season of basketball this year and has an overall record of 1,456-1,005 (.592). USU hasnt had a losing season since 1993, a span of 17 years.
Utah State is ranked in the top 25 (17th in coaches poll and 23rd in AP poll) for the seventh straight week, which is the longest streak since the 1970-71 team was ranked for 11 straight weeks.
Utah State is 13-4 (.765) all-time in the WAC Tournament and 23-7 (.767) in conference tournament play under head coach Stew Morrill. All-time, USU is 36-25 (.590) in conference tournaments which includes a 13-5 (.722) record in the semifinals. Morrill is 30-18 (.625) all-time in tournament play. USU is also 18-10 (.643) against current members of the WAC in tournament play.
Utah State is looking for its eighth tournament championship as it won six postseason titles in 27 years as a member of the Big West Conference, and won its first-ever WAC Tournament Championship in 2009.
Under Morrill, Utah State has advanced to the championship game of its conference tournament in nine of the last 11 seasons and has won five tournament championships (2000, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2009). USU has also played in four of the last five WAC Tournament championship games.
With its 15-1 WAC record, Utah State is one of just six teams across the country with just one league loss joining Xavier (Atlantic 10), Belmont (Atlantic Sun), Utah Valley (Great West), Bucknell (Patriot) and Oakland (Summit).
Utah States 28 wins are a regular season school record and tied with the 1999-2000 and 2000-01 USU teams for the second-most wins in school history. USUs 28-3 record is also the best start to a season in school history after 31 games, and its three regular season losses are the second-fewest in school history behind the 2003-04 team that went 25-2 during its regular season.
Utah States 28 wins are tied for the fifth-most in the nation behind Belmont (30), Kansas (29), Ohio State (29) and San Diego State (29). Utah State, BYU and Coastal Carolina all have 28 wins.
Utah State (28-3) is one of just five teams in the nation with three or fewer losses along with Kansas (29-2), Ohio State (29-2), San Diego State (29-2) and BYU (28-3).
As of Monday, Mar. 7, Utah State has an RPI of 17 and a strength of schedule of 122 according to RealTimeRPI.com, while the Western Athletic Conference is ranked 13th.
UP NEXT
Utah State (28-3, 15-1), who is ranked No. 17 in this weeks ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and No. 23 in this weeks Associated Press Poll, is the No. 1 seed in the 2011 Western Athletic Conference postseason tournament in Las Vegas, Nev., and will face fourth-seeded Idaho (18-12, 9-7), fifth-seeded Hawaii (18-11, 8-8) or eighth-seeded San Jose State (15-14, 5-11) in the first of two semifinals on Friday, Mar. 11 at 7 p.m. (MT). The game will not be televised but will be aired live on KVNU 610 AM/95.9 FM in Cache Valley and 1320 AM along the Wasatch Front.
UTAH STATE AS THE NUMBER ONE SEED
Utah State is the No. 1 seed in the WAC Tournament for the fourth straight year and the top seed at its conferences postseason tournament for the 10th time in school history. Utah State is 14-6 (.700) in tournament play as the No. 1 seed and has won three tournament championships (1998, 2000, 2009). Among its six losses as the top seed are two in the quarterfinals, two were in the semifinals, and two were in the championship game.
UTAH STATE RECEIVES DOUBLE-BYE IN TOURNAMENT PLAY FOR THIRD TIME
Although the Western Athletic Conference is utilizing a new format for its conference tournament this year, Utah State is somewhat familiar with the setup as the same format was in place during its last two years in the Big West Conference (2004, 2005). During its final two years in the Big West, Utah State received a double-bye into the semifinals in both 2004 and 2005. As the top-seed in 2004, USU lost in the semifinals to Cal State Northridge, 63-62. In 2005, USU was the second-seed and defeated Cal State Fullerton, 84-77, and No. 16 Pacific, 65-52.
UTAH STATE NATIONALLY RANKED FOR THIRD TIME IN LAST EIGHT YEARS
Utah State is ranked 17th in the nation in the latest ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll released Monday and 23rd in the latest Associated Press poll. USU was ranked 21st in last weeks coaches poll and 25th in the AP poll. Utah States No. 17 ranking in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll is the highest-ever ranking for Utah State in that poll which expanded from 20 to 25 teams prior to the 1990-91 season. USU was also ranked 17th in coaches poll earlier this year and during the 2008-09 season. USU was also ranked No. 21 in the AP poll on Feb. 7, which is the highest by an Aggie team since the 2008-09 team was also ranked 21st. USU was ranked 19th in the weekly AP poll during the 2003-04 season. Overall, it is the second time in the last three years and the third time in the past eight seasons that Utah State has been ranked in both polls. The last time a Utah State team was ranked higher than 17th in any poll was at the end of the 1974-75 season when it was ranked 13th in the final United Press International Coaches poll.
UTAH STATES RECORD AS A RANKED TEAM UNDER MORRILL
With its No. 21 national ranking this week, Utah State has now been ranked during three different seasons (2004, 2009, 2011) under Morrill. In those three seasons, Utah State has played a total of 29 games as a top 25 team and went 8-3 as a ranked team during the 2003-04 season, 4-3 during the 2008-09 campaign and 10-1 thus far this year for a combined record of 22-7 (.759) as a top 25 team.
UTAH STATE WINS SEVENTH CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP UNDER MORRILL AND 16TH ALL-TIME
With its fourth-straight Western Athletic Conference regular season championship this year, Utah State has now won seven league titles under head coach Stew Morrill and 16 conference championships all-time in school history (1918, 1926, 1930, 1935, 1936, 1980, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011).
UTAH STATES FOUR STRAIGHT WAC CHAMPIONSHIPS A SCHOOL RECORD
Utah States four consecutive regular season Western Athletic Conference championships is a school record and the longest streak by a WAC team since Nevada won five straight league titles from 2004-08. The previous school record for consecutive conference titles was two during the 1935-36 seasons in the Rocky Mountain Athletics Conference and the 1997-98 seasons in the Big West Conference.
UTAH STATE HAS WON SEVEN TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIPS
Utah State won six Big West Tournament championships while a member of that league (1979-2005), and won its first-ever WAC Tournament championship in 2009. Those seven tournament championships are the most by any current member of the Western Athletic Conference. Louisiana Tech has the second-most league titles among WAC schools with six as it won three tournament titles while a member of the American South Conference and three as a member of the Southland Conference. Hawaii has won three WAC Tournament championships, while Nevada and New Mexico State have won two WAC Tournament championships, and Boise State one. Fresno State and New Mexico State both won three Big West Tournament championships, while San Jose State won two tournament championships as a member of the Big West Conference.
NUMBER ONE SEEDS IN THE WAC TOURNAMENT
The first WAC Tournament was held in 1984 and over the last 27 years, the top seed has won the tournament 11 times, while the second seed has won it eight times, the third seed has won it twice, the fourth seed has won it four times and the fifth seed has won it once. There has never been a seed lower
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