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Show Monday, Nov. 9, 2009 Page 9 MondaySports Utah State University • Logan, Utah • www.aggietownsquare.com MEN’S BASKETBALL Ags ride big first half to easy victory By TIM OLSEN sports editor Another exhibition game another blowout win for Utah State Saturday night at the Spectrum. Jared Quayle led USU with 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting – including five 3-pointers – as the Aggies ran over their Canadian competition, 65-40. Similar to USU’s first exhibition game, the Aggies started hot, scoring the first 15 points of the game. USU connected on seven of its first eight field goal attempts, while forcing Trinity Western to miss its first seven attempts. Guard Calvin Westbrook finally put the Spartans on the board when he connected on a two-point jumper more than five minutes into the game. “That parts really positive,” said USU head coach Stew Morrill of the Aggies’ fast start. “We’re ready to go when the game starts, making shots, making plays, playing good defense and not letting them score. It was a great way to start the game, hopefully we can keep that up.” And at least through the first half, keep it up is exactly what the Aggies did. Behind some hot shooting and aggressive defense, USU continued to build on its lead. Leading 24-9 with six minutes remaining in the opening period, Quayle connected and three straight 3-pointers and assisted guard Brian Green on another whipping the Spectrum crowd into a frenzy. “I’ve got to give credit to my teammates setting good screens and just running the offense and throwing back and getting me the ball and I was wide open,” said the senior sharpshooter. “I was hitting the shots, but they were doing all the work.” Quayle hit all five of his field goals in the opening period, including a scorching 4-of-4 from beyond the arc. Junior forward Tai Wesley was also perfect from the floor, going 3-of-3 from the field while connecting on 5-of-6 free throws. After 20 minutes of play, Quayle was tied with the Spartans, and the Aggies headed to the locker room up 44-14. “(Setting the tone) is key we want to try and do that every game, that’s important for us. If we come out sluggish and not on it, we’re going to get beat,” Quayle said. “Our coach emphasizes that we need to come out and be on top of it and get into them defensively early, and that sets the tone and we can have a good first half and carry on into the second half.” That early tone, however, did not carry over into the second half. Trinity Western threw a defense twist at the Aggies in the second half – a 1-3-1 extended zone – and the Aggie offense sputtered. After shooting over 60 percent in the first half – including 75 percent from the 3-point line – the Aggies dropped off dramatically. USU connected on only 6-of-22 shots in the second half (27 percent) and was even worse from long range, only knocking down 2-of-12 3-pointers (16.7 percent). The Spartans – who had beaten Utah Valley earlier in the week – held to Aggies to 21 second half points, while outscoring them by five over the final 20 minutes. “I think the first half we played well, defensively we were on it,” said junior forward Matt Formisano. “The second half I think they beat us by five, and we kind of had a let down. That’s something we need to work on, being more consistent playing both halves well.” Playing consistently is something Morrill said his team needs to work on and improve at. The Aggies will need to learn quickly as they start a three game road trip to open the season Friday at Weber State. “We’ve got to continue to play as hard as we’re playing. We’ve got to not get to wrapped up in the fact that it’s the road,” Morrill said. “Through the years we’ve been pretty good on the road. We’ve got to get excited, get ready and go play.” The coach, though, is wary of the Wildcats who are led by Morrill’s former assistant Randy Rahe. “It’s their official opener on their homecourt,” he said. “We went down there a couple years ago and didn’t fare too well. That will probably be brought up.” – t.olsen@aggiemail.usu.edu AGGIE GUARD JARED QUAYLE, 21, elevates and shoots during USU’s exhibition game Saturday night. Quayle had a team high 19 points and knocked down five 3-pointers. TYLER LARSON photo WOMEN’S SOCCER Boise State ends USU’s season at WAC tourney USU FORWARD SHANTEL FLANARY, 7, attempts a shot on goal during the Aggies’ match against San Jose State earlier in the year. The Ags lost to Boise State Friday, 1-0. CODY GOCHNOUR photo By LANDON HEMSLEY staff writer The USU women’s soccer season ended with a 1-0 loss to the Boise State Broncos in the semifinal match of the WAC tournament Friday afternoon at the Boas Soccer Complex in Boise, Idaho. Boise eroded away the Aggie defense on attempt after attempt early in the second half. In the 55th minute, Boise earned a free kick on the right-side edge of the penalty box on a Heather Pond foul. Molli Merrill extended to send the kick out of bounds. On the corner kick, Aggie forward Shantel Flanary put the ball off her head and back to the corner. Lindsey Smart applied the pressure and forced the Boise attacker to go baseline in order to set up a cross, which Smart deflected out of bounds. Boise sent the next corner kick into the side netting. It appeared as though the Aggies had dodged a bullet or three and got off easy. Not so. Merrill sent the ensuing goal kick into the midfield where Boise’s Maureen Fitzgerald onetouched it forward to Erica Parks. Parks split the Aggie line between Natalie Norris and Sydne Garner, penetrated the box, earned a one-on-one with Merrill and put the ball far side to score the match’s only goal. “The ball got squirted through the middle of our back line,” said USU head coach Heather Cairns of the play. “Syd (Garner) was tracking her down, and for some reason she stopped. That created a one-on-one situation with Molli. It looked like an ordinary play where Syd was marking the girl, and then for some reason she just stopped. There was some miscommunication on our back line, and the girl just snuck right in.” - See END, page 11 |