Box Score Feb. 05, 2014
Final Stats
LOGAN, Utah (AP) - Spencer Butterfield scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as Utah State broke a five-game losing streak by beating Nevada 83-75 Wednesday night.
Jarred Shaw scored 17 points and had 13 rebounds for the Aggies (13-9, 3-7 Mountain West Conference). Preston Medlin added 14, all in the second half, and Kyle Davis had 12.
The Wolf Pack (12-11, 7-3 MWC), who came in holding sole possession of third place in conference, were led by Deonte Burton with 23 points and Cole Huff with 21.
A 3-point shot by Jerry Evans brought Nevada to within two points, 52-50, with 9:10 to play, but 3-point shots by Medlin and Butterfield helped Utah State stretch its lead back to 72-60 with 2:55 remaining, and USU hit 7 of 8 free throws in the final minutes to seal the win.
USU shot 61.5 percent from the field in the second half, while Nevada was held to 44 percent. The Wolf Pack were only 5-of-20 from 3-point range. There were 50 free throws in the game, with USU hitting 25-of-31.
Nevada led almost the entire first half, leading 21-13 with 6:10 to play. In the closing minutes of the opening half, though, Davis hit four free throws and Butterfield knocked down a 3-point shot to give USU a 28-27 lead at halftime. Butterfield led all players with eight points at intermission.
The Aggies five-game losing streak was coach Stew Morrill's longest in 16 years at Utah State. Nevada had beaten Utah State in the last three meetings, including a 62-54 victory Jan. 11 in Reno. This is the Aggies first season in the Mountain West, where they are tied for second-to-last with Fresno State, which beat Air Force on Wednesday.
Nevada men's basketball postgame notes
Nevada is 12-11 overall and 7-3 in the Mountain West falling 83-75 at Utah State (13-9, 3-7 MW) tonight.
Nevada plays at #5 San Diego State (20-1, 9-0 MW) on Saturday at 7 p.m. The Aztecs won 67-65 at Boise State tonight. Saturday's game will air on ESPN3.
Senior guard Deonte Burton scored a game-high 23 points and moved past Marcelus Kemp (2004-08) into second on Nevada's career scoring list. Burton has 1,944 career points and Kemp totaled 1,935 during his career.
Burton led the Pack in scoring for the 17th time, scored over 20 points for the 13th time and posted a game-high for the 12th time this season.
Sophomore Cole Huff finished with 21 points marking just his second game of 20 or more points in his career. The other game was a career-high 31 earlier this season at Fresno State.
Junior Michael Perez scored in double figures for the 14th time and snapped a two-game stretch of not reaching double figures.
Senior guard Jerry Evans, Jr. had his five-game streak of scoring in double figures snapped as he finished with seven points. It's the second time this season he scored double figures in five consecutive games which is the longest streak of his career.
Junior forward Ronnie Stevens, Jr. made his first appearances after missing 12 games with a stress fracture that required surgery. Stevens played 14 minutes and had three rebounds.
Junior forward AJ West has four blocks in each of the last three games. West has five games this season with four or more blocks. He has a block in 11 of the 12 games in which he has played.
Head coach David Carter is 86-69 in his fifth season at Nevada.
-- @NevadaWolfPack --
