From the Associated Press:
Desmond Penigar scored 20 points to lead Utah State to an 86-52 victory over the Whitman College Missionaries Tuesday night.
Utah State's (2-0) size overpowered the Division-III Missionaries (1-3) as the Aggies held Whitman's top two scorers, Mark Bouma and Rich Harris, scoreless in the first half and forced the team to make 11 attempts from outside the arc.
The Missionaries didn't fare much better in the second half of the game as the Aggies put together a 13-4 run, and held Whitman silent for the last 2:24.
Casey Nelson led Whitman with 11 points.
Nate Harris scored 11 points for USU and guard Mark Brown had 10. The Aggies also got a boost from their reserves as USU got 43 points from the bench.
The win gave the Aggies their ninth consecutive home victory, and they are 83-5 at home over the last six seasons.
The Fans Perspective
By Vadryn
UStateags.com Guest Contributor
When the introductions were getting ready to begin, I looked around at the stands and thought I was at a Ute football game. Thankfully the CV crowd shuffled in unfashionably late, the final count breaking 6000.
We played a very methodical, slow tempo first half that really kept Whitman at ease. While not terrible, the team lacked energy and enthusiasm. At halftime, the score was just 34-28 for USU, which was an embarrassment, given Whitman not even being D1. We were out rebounded and out-hustled and I'm sure Stew quitely pointed that out during his halftime speech. ;*)
In the 2nd half it was clear the team was playing with more energy and the lead started to creep out. A nice 3 by Mark Brown pushed it out to 18 and we didn't look back from there.
Lots of guys saw a lot of minutes. Chad Evans, who didn't get in vs. ISU, played 13 minutes and he was very active. This was a coming-out party for Nate Harris, though, who showed some prowess in the paint, rebounded well, blocked a couple shots and scored 11 points.
Mark Brown really controlled the show. He was seemingly bored with the lack of challenge. He simply had his way with a reserved Whitman defense, so Aggie fans still haven't seen what Redbird fans saw on Saturday. I can't wait to see Brown lace 'em up vs. Boyette because I think he's the kind of player that lives for the challenge and will elevate his game for it.
Who most impressed me? Butler. Cardell Butler has talent and athleticism to spare. They guy dunks like he was born with the ball in his hand. He's got great hops, the ability to create his shot from almost anywhere on the court... and yet he plays within the system. He dished a couple sweet assists when a ball-hog would have raised for the J. He hit the glass and defended solid all night. Level-headed, quite leadership. You can sense that he's just beginning to tap into his game. A lot like Mark Brown, I believe, in that sense. I expect that he will absolutely take over some games this year.
Hat's off for the walk-on KC (Comadena) who got in with 2 minutes left, had one shot to get in the book and cooly drilled a 3 from the corner. Whitman countered, hoping to silence the crowd with a quick 3 as the team seemed to celebrate. Nate Harris flew out and blasted the attempt into the 3rd row. It was a nice sequence there at the end of the game.
One last NOTE: Puzey left in the 1st half with what appeared to be a groin pull. He looked to be in a lot of pain and never returned. If anyone gets an update on his condition and if he'll be ready to go in Hilo, please let us know.
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