This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Las Vegas • Utah State got up early for its Mountain West Conference tournament opener against Wyoming on Wednesday.

The Aggies arrived at the Thomas & Mack Center at 7:30 a.m. for a pre-game shootaround. After a light 25-minute session, they returned to their hotel. The game started at 11 a.m.

"That's a unique game time for us," coach Tim Duryea said. "In this league, sometimes you play two o'clock games but never any earlier than that."

The morning tip didn't bother Utah State, which made 17 of its first 25 shots.

"I'm not sure we would have done [the early shootaround] except we were the only team in the league this year that didn't come here on a road trip. So we thought it was important, even though it was [early], that we get some shooting in on this floor. I think it helped us a little bit. I really do," said Duryea.

Aztecs up next

With the win, Utah State advanced to a quarterfinal game against top-seeded San Diego State on Thursday. Since joining the Mountain West, the Aggies are 0-6 against the Aztecs.

"We've got to rebound the ball, similar to what we did today," Duryea said. "That's Step 1 when you play them. You've got to rebound the ball, No. 1, and then you have to be patient-but-aggressive on offense. If you're not aggressive against them, they will chew you up and spit you out with that defense. You've got to be aggressive yet not force shots. There's a real fine line there."

Said point guard Shane Rector: "We know they are a good team. … [But] we feel we can play with them. And this is a tournament. Anyone can win one game. We're going to compete and try to do what we did today."

Briefly

Wyoming had only seven scholarship players available after coach Larry Shyatt suspended five players last week, including two key back-ups. Asked if the suspensions impacted the outcome against Utah State, Shyatt said, "No." … Duryea became the first Utah State coach since LaDell Andersen 1962 to win his first postseason game. … Wyoming shot 34 free throws — six more than any previous Aggie opponent.

luhm@sltrib.com

Twitter: @sluhm —