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The Aggies went their third consecutive game without senior guard Shane Rector, though Rector did warm up with his wrist taped prior to Saturday's home game against Wyoming.
Rector suffered a sprained wrist in Utah State's game against Nevada on Feb. 1, and he missed road games against Boise State and Colorado State. He did participate in practice drills at the end of this week, but Aggies head coach Tim Duryea said following Saturday's game that Rector would likely get an MRI in the next day or two to be sure nothing was missed.
Rector, a 6-foot-2 senior guard, moved to a bench role at the start of January as freshman Sam Merrill jumped into the starting lineup. Rector is the team's third-leading scorer and has enjoyed minimal increases in his shooting percentage (44.4 percent), 3-point shooting percentage (36.4 percent) and points per game (9.9) from last season.
"He's a guy we miss," Duryea said earlier this week. "He was playing well of the bench. He gives us playmaking, gives us scoring, gives us a guy who can make defensive plays in terms of making things happens with steals and those kind of things. He's a big part that we're missing right now."
Rector has also been a go-to guy in late-game free throw shooting situations this season. He has gone 10-for-11 from the free throw line with less than one minute remaining, including with 1.6 seconds left in overtime of an 80-79 win at Utah Valley on Dec. 10.
Rector's immediate impact figures to come in aspects of the game other than scoring.
"He's working on the defensive side," Duryea said. "The fact that it's his shooting wrist is really the big problem. Obviously, when you shoot the ball it is all wrist action, and it is his right wrist. If it was his left wrist, he would've probably missed one game. The fact that it is his right wrist is problematic."
Taylor Time
Redshirt sophomore forward Quinn Taylor has recorded season highs for points in back-to-back games off the bench after his 14-point effort on Saturday. He scored 11 points at Colorado State on Tuesday night.
Taylor and Alexis Dargenton grabbed three offensive rebounds apiece, and the Aggies scored 14 second-chance points in Saturday's win against Wyoming. Because of Wyoming's ability to score in transition, the Aggies limited themselves to two players attacking the offensive glass throughout the game.
"I feel like tonight I got a couple easy baskets down low from our guards driving it and just finding me," Taylor said. "They did a great job penetrating, attacking, getting down hill on their screens."
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