LOGAN, Utah
- Utah State men's basketball will be making its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance in the last 12 years when the 12th-seeded Aggies will face fifth-seeded Kansas State in the second round of the NCAA Southeast Regional on Thursday, March 17 at the McKale Center in Tucson, Ariz. Times will be announced Sunday night or Monday morning.
No. 17/23 USU (30-3 overall, 15-1 WAC) is making its third-straight NCAA Tournament appearance, as well as the Aggies' eighth in the last 12 years and ninth in the last 14 years. This will be Utah State's 20th NCAA Tournament appearance in the history of the program.
This is the third No. 12 seed for USU in the last four appearances and second in a row, as last year, 12th-seeded Utah State lost to fifth-seeded Texas A&M, 69-53, in the first round at Spokane, Wash.
Utah State made three-straight NCAA appearances as a No. 12 seed in 1998, 2000 and 2001, along with 2006. The Aggies are 6-21 in their previous 19 NCAA Tournament appearances, last winning a game in the NCAA Tournament in 2001 when they were also seeded 12th and defeated fifth-seeded Ohio State, 77-68, in overtime in the first round.
USU is fresh off its 77-69 win over Boise State in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament championship game Saturday night, the Aggies' second WAC Tournament title in the last three years. USU was the top seed in the tournament after winning its fourth-straight regular-season title.
Utah State is ranked in the top 25 (17th in ESPN/USA Today 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's 30 wins rank as the second-most in the country as Kansas, San Diego State and Ohio State all have 32 wins, while Belmont, Duke, BYU and USU all have 30 wins. The Aggies (30-3) are one of just four teams in the nation with three or fewer losses along with San Diego State (32-2), Kansas (32-2) and Ohio State (32-2). USU's 30 wins ties a school record, matching the 2008-09 squad (30-5).
Kansas State (No. 23 ESPN/USA Today, No. 19 AP) is 22-10, after losing to Colorado, 87-75, Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament. The Wildcats are led by senior guard Jacob Pullen with 19.5 points per game, one of three KSU players averaging double-digits, as sophomore guard Rodney McGruder averages 11.4 ppg and senior forward Curtis Kelly adds 10.3 ppg. McGruder leads the Wildcats in rebounding with 6.0 per game, while Kelly and junior forward Jamar Samuels register 5.3 boards per game. K-State head coach Frank Martin is in his fourth year at the helm of the Wildcats and has a 94-42 (.691) overall record.
Utah State also has three players averaging in double-digits, led by senior forward Tai Wesley, the WAC Player of the Year, with 14.7 ppg, while junior guard Brockeith Pane nets 11.6 ppg and senior guard Brian Green adds 10.6 ppg. Wesley also leads the Aggies with 8.0 rebounds per game, while junior forward Brady Jardine pulls down 7.1 rpg and senior forward Nate Bendall adds 5.9 rpg.
Pane was named the WAC Tournament MVP after a 19-point, four-assist effort in the championship game. Pane was joined on the All-Tournament team by senior forward teammates Tai Wesley and Nate Bendall, who posted 19 and 16 points, respectively, a new season-high for Bendall. Wesley pulled down a game-high nine rebounds while Bendall snared six boards. Pane scored a baker's dozen in the first half, while Wesley netted 15 of his points after halftime. It was Wesley third-straight all-tournament team selection.
Wesley was also one of 10 players named to the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) All-District VIII team, as well as named all-district first-team by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) along with being named the WAC's Player of the Year.
Utah State head coach Stew Morrill, who is in his 13th year at the helm of the USU program, has a 324-102 record with the Aggies and a 542-240 record in his 25 years overall as a head coach. Morrill was named the Don Haskins WAC Coach of the Year for the third-straight year this season. It was the sixth coach of the year honor during his illustrious career as he was named the Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year in 1991 while at Montana, and the Big West Conference Coach of the Year in 2000 and 2002 while at Utah State, along with earning WAC Coach of the Year honors in 2009, 2010 and 2011.
The winner of the Utah State-Kansas State game will play the winner of fourth-seeded Wisconsin and 13th-seeded Belmont on Saturday, March 19.
Fans should stay tuned to www.UtahStateAggies.com for complete NCAA Tournament information, including game time announcement and ticket information.