Game On Gauchos!

You've enjoyed Vadryn's post-game analysis, but now AggieSports joins the UStateAgs.com family by providing game previews for each Aggie basketball game.

5…4…3…2…1…Game over.  The Gaucho bench clears as the team leaps to center court in celebration of their Big West Tournament championship victory!  UCSB is going dancing for the first time since 1990!  After beating UCSB 5 straight times, this time it was the Aggies walking off the court with the bitter taste of defeat shoved into their mouths.  Do any of the returning Aggie players still have a little bitterness stuck between their teeth?  Do you think Stew may find a few minutes today to show a little game film to the team that ends in a UCSB mid-court celebration?  I hope so. 

The event:  UCSB Vs. USU

The time: 8:05 P.M. MST

The Place: The Dee Glen Smith Spectrum

The Station:  ESPN

That’s right, this Saturday night the UCSB Gauchos come rolling back into town to take on the USU Aggies.  This game being the only Big West game of the season televised nationally on ESPN with the exception of the BW Tournament championship game at the end of the year.  UCSB brings with them a disappointing 5-8 record, 2-1 in conference, while the Aggies sit at 11-3, also 2-1 in conference play.  Interesting side note: Besides the identical conference records, the two teams share another common denominator…both teams have big impact players trying to recover from groin injuries.

Last night, the Aggies played to an 81-67 win at home over Cal Poly, an outing that came in response to last Saturday’s game at Pacific.  During that performance, the Tigers played the role of teacher, while the Aggies seamed satisfied to play the role of student.  In fact, Pacific sent Utah State home from their “field trip” with lots of questions….

1^st question:  Where’s the outside shooting?  I want to know are there any Aggies staying after practice to work on the “3”?

2^nd question:  Who is C. Butlers Psychic?  I mean, how did he know the Aggies were out of it before the game even started?  He kept yelling, “It’s over, it’s over” while scratching the front of his neck during starting line-ups…haha

So did the Poly game bring any answers?  Utah State shot 55% from the field, 39% from “3” point land, and Butler played very limited minutes.

Last night also found the Gauchos a victor while visiting Idaho.   The return of Fullove, and a balanced offence attack that shot 49% from the field gave UCSB the 62-53 win.  Previous to that game, it was Fullerton that had played teacher and UCSB the student losing in their own classroom to a Titan team that played with a lot of heart.

1^st question: Does UCSB have a 5 man out on the court anywhere?  Is there an inside game to be found?

2^nd question:  How long before Fullove will be playing at 100% after the groin injury. 

So did the Idaho game bring any answers?  The inside offensive presence of the Gauchos still remains their biggest concern.  Fullove is back.  After missing 10 days of action, Fullove saw limited practice time on Monday.  He did play 24 minutes in the Idaho game, shot 4-7 from the field, 1-4 from behind the arch and finished with 12 points on the night.  

Saturday night’s game should be a great one.  The Gauchos desperately needed confidence, and picked some up with the win against a good Idaho team.  USU should pull a sell-out crowd for the ESPN coverage and the fans will be getting all crazy-like!

Below is a recent “interview” held with a good friend and die-hard UCSB supporter.  I can’t reveal my “secret” source, but he is very “close” to the Gaucho basketball team.  Well, ok, he goes by “zzzza” on the Big West and UCSB message boards:

AS:   What did last years tournament win over USU mean to the Gaucho program, players and fans?

Zzzza:  “Well, it meant a lot. The Gauchos ha