It will be a battle between Mountain West opponents when the Utah State Aggies (15-13) welcome the Fresno State Bulldogs (21-9) to Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. Action begins at 9:00 pm ET on Saturday, Mar. 5 and can be seen on ES3.
The Aggies defeated Air Force 78-65 on Tuesday. Chris Smith was the game’s leading scorer with 23 points on 9-for-14 shooting. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, are coming off an 87-73 win over Colorado State on Wednesday. Julien Lewis led the game in scoring by accumulating 30 points on 11-for-16 shooting.
Over the last five games, Jalen Moore has taken his game to another level for the Aggies, averaging 15.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.8 blocks, and 2.0 three-pointers. Marvelle Harris has been hot for the Bulldogs. In the same five-game span, he is averaging 24.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 2.6 steals, 1.2 blocks, and 2.6 three-pointers.
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Bulldogs won the first game 75-68. Harris was a standout player in the game, producing 22 points, three rebounds, five assists, two steals, and two three-pointers.
The Aggies are looking to build on their records of 15-13 Straight Up (SU) and 11-14 Against The Spread (ATS). In their last 10 games, they are 7-3 ATS. Utah State will look to take advantage of the Bulldogs and their propensity to foul. Fresno State ranks 336th in the nation in fouls, averaging 22.3 per game.
On the other side, Fresno State has a SU record of 21-9 and an ATS record of 14-13. Teams seem to consistently miss shots against the Bulldogs, who are the 31st-best team in the nation in terms of opponent field goal percentage allowed at .421.
Fresno State beat Utah State in their most recent meeting this season, but the win was not enough to overtake Utah State in their recent head-to-head series. Its record is now 4-6 SU over the most recent meetings. Additionally, with a 5-4-1 record, Utah State has the advantage ATS. Fresno State held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once in the last five matchups. On the other side of the court, Utah State never accomplished this feat in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – Fres, ATS Winner – Fres
Notes
The Fresno State Bulldogs have a defensive rating of 99.6 (ranked 32nd), while the Utah State Aggies have an offensive rating of 107.6 (ranked 134th).
The Fresno State Bulldogs average 70.1 possessions per game and 1.069 points per possession. The Utah State Aggies earn fewer possessions with 67.6, but they score more points with 1.076.
Utah State has an average effective field goal percentage of 52.1%. Fresno State is 4-5 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
The Utah State Aggies average 22.0 three point attempts per game and are 12-10 when attempting at least 20 in a game. The Fresno State Bulldogs average 18.0 attempts and have a fantastic record (10-2) when attempting 20 or more.
Utah State ranks 94th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.20, while Fresno State ranks 72nd with an A/TO of 1.24.
Fresno State, the 89th-ranked team in rebounding, registers an average of 37.9 rebounds per game. Utah State does worse, ranked 222nd with 35.4.
Fresno State records 8.2 steals per game (ranked 18th). Utah State is 4-6 when allowing at least 8 steals.
