Women’s Basketball vs. Utah State Preview

by Zach

The Lobos (11-10, 4-6) return to action Wednesday Night, where they find themselves trying to figure things out and get things going in the right direction again. It could be a tough task, as they take on a tough team in the Utah State Aggies (11-11, 6-5). While the overall record for the Aggies doesn’t look great, they controlled the first game between the two teams winning 72-56. One thing is certain: the Lobos need to find ways to score the ball to have any chance to win. They have scored only 94 points in their last two games, which has dropped their season scoring average to 62.3 points per game. There is still time to make sure that this isn’t a lost season, but there is a decent chance this season will get away from the Lobos if things keep going this way.

Coming off last season’s great run at the end of the season, including a trip to the finals of the Mountain West Tournament, Lobo fans had great hope going into this season. However, I think people didn’t realize how good Antiesha Brown was for the Lobos, and without players stepping up to fill her void, it has been difficult for the Lobos to find the success they had at the end of last year. Of course, although last year was certainly a success, the Lobos did have struggles scoring last year as well. To me, this means the Lobos need to find an offense that will work with the players they have, and the ones that are coming in net year.

Utah State Aggies

The Aggies are led by fourth-year Head Coach Jerry Finkbeimer, who had plenty of success at Oral Roberts University out in Tulsa, OK. So, although the Aggies are coming off a tough season, in which they finished 8-23 overall and 5-13 in Mountain West action, it will just be a matter of time before Finkbeimer has his team competing for conference titles. The team is starting to turn the corner, and while they won’t be in the conversation for the regular season title this season, they are a team no one wants to see in the MWC Tournament. Next year has the potential to be a banner year for the Aggies, as they will probably have the best player in the conference as well as a pair of really good freshmen.

The star player for Utah State, and maybe the best player in the conference, is sophomore Funda Nakkasoglu, who is averaging a very impressive 21.5 points, just under 5 assists, and 2.6 rebounds per game. The Lobos have to limit Nakkasoglu’s easy buckets and not allow her to have a career night, which could allow her to beat the Lobos by herself. I expect the Lobos to try to throw different defenses at the Aggies to try to make Nakkasoglu work for every point that she gets.

Team Stat Comparison

  • Points Per Game: Lobos 62.3; Aggies 69
  • Points Allowed Per Game: Lobos 59.3; Aggies 67.8
  • Field Goal Percentage: Lobos 37.6%; Aggies 41.1%
  • Three Point Percentage: Lobos 28%; Aggies 28.7%
  • Free Throw Percentage: Lobos 64.3%; Aggies 73.6%
  • Defensive Field Goal Percentage: Lobos 37.3%; Aggies 38%
  • Defensive Three Point Percentage: Lobos 31.3%; Aggies 33%
  • Rebounds Per Game: Lobos 40.6; Aggies 41.7
  • Assists Per Game: Lobos 13.4; Aggies 11.7
  • Turnovers Per Game: Lobos 15.4; Aggies 15
  • Turnovers Forced Per Game: Lobos 15.4; Aggies 14.4

Matchup to Watch

What I’ll be watching for in this game will be how the Lobos attack Nakkasoglu, who guards her, and the defenses the Lobos throw at the Aggies as a whole. I will also be watching how the Lobos offense looks and to see any adjustments the Lobos made in preparation for this game. If the Lobos are able to find easy ways to score, the Lobos should have a chance to win the game. If they don’t, they’ll have a hard time keeping up with the Aggies.

Prediction

I don’t feel confident in this game, as the Aggies are the kind of team that can give the Lobos a lot of trouble. Since the Aggies have a huge advantage on the offense, it could get ugly for the Lobos if they aren’t able to score at a good rate, which they haven’t done consistently in a while. I put the Lobos odds of winning this game at 30%, with the final score being 65-60 Utah State win.

MW Standings

  1. CSU 10-0
  2. FSU 9-1
  3. BSU 9-2
  4. UNLV 6-5
  5. USU 6-5
  6. SJSU 6-5
  7. UNM 4-6
  8. WYO 4-8
  9. Nevada 3-7
  10. SDSU 2-9
  11. AFA 0-11

MW Picks

I went 4-1 for my picks on Saturday to improve to 42-17 on the season. Here are my picks for Wednesday Night’s action:

USU AT UNM

CSU AT BSU

Nevada AT AFA

FSU AT SDSU

UNLV AT SJSU

Game Info

Who: New Mexico (11-10, 4-6) vs. Utah State (11-11, 6-5)

Where: WisePies Arena AKA The PIT, Albuquerque, NM

When: Wednesday February 10, 7 PM MT

Radio: 610 AM

Stream: Campus Insiders