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Las Vegas • Utah State coach Stew Morrill has made just one change to his starting lineup all season.
It's become a win-win-win situation for the Aggies.
Following an 89-84 loss at USC on Dec. 7, Morrill decided to start freshman Julion Pearre (pronounced Perry) in place of sophomore Jojo McGlaston.
Since the switch, Pearre has emerged as a future cornerstone of the program, McGlaston has blossomed in his role as sixth man, and Utah State has won eight of 11 games.
The improving Aggies are 11-7 overall and 4-2 in the Mountain West Conference heading into Saturday's game against UNLV at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Pearre, a 6-foot-3 guard from North McKinney (Texas) High School, will again start against the Rebels as Utah State attempts to remain among the early leaders in the league race.
As a high school senior, Pearre averaged 17 points, 6.5 rebounds and three assists for North McKinney, which finished 25-6 overall and 13-0 in its district.
"… He is a very good shooter with a high basketball IQ," Morrill said after Utah State signed Pearre. "Julion is a good athlete … with a tremendous upside."
In his first college game, it showed. Pearre scored 10 points in a 72-61 comeback win over Weber State.
Then, nothing.
Literally.
In a five-game stretch, Pearre failed to score. He missed 19 straight shots, including seven from the 3-point line. His minutes dipped from 28 in the opener against Weber to 11 in a 91-81 loss to BYU.
On a deeper and more experienced team, Pearre's shooting slump might have buried him in the rotation. But on the young and rebuilt Aggies, Morrill had little choice but to keep playing one of his most promising freshmen.
Jackpot.
Off the bench against USC, Pearre scored 15 points on 4-for-9 shooting.
"I kept telling him he was going to make shots," Morrill said. "He's too good a player not to make some shots."
At practice the next day, Morrill recalled, "I walked by him while we were stretching and said, 'Told you.' And he said. 'Thanks, coach.' But he's a freshman. He was just in a little slump."
Six days later, Morrill moved Pearre into the starting lineup. In a 50-47 win at Utah Valley, Pearre scored his 11 points in the second half. His 3-pointer with 6:18 left tied the game, at 35-35.
"Julion has been playing well," Morrill said afterward. "He deserved to start and I thought he was really good in the second half. He made some big shots."
Pearre has continued to improve, on both ends of the floor. His true breakout game came two weeks ago in a 66-60 loss to New Mexico, when he scored a career-high 18 points.
"Julion Pearre had a great game … maybe his best game as an Aggie," Morrill said. "He's just all about the right things — effort and concentration and doing anything he can to try and defend and try to run your offense. He's a very conscientious freshman."
Twitter: @sluhm —
Utah State at UNLV
P At the Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas
Tipoff • 6 p.m.
TV • CBS Sports Network
Radio • 610 AM, 95.9 FM, 102.1 FM
Records • Utah State 11-7, 4-2; UNLV 10-9, 1-5
Series • UNLV leads 29-3
Last meeting • UNLV, 73-62 (Feb. 15, 2014)
About the Aggies • They are 4-4 on the road, including 2-1 in the Mountain West. … They come off a 70-54 win at Nevada. … Their top scorers are sophomore F Jalen Moore (16.0) and freshman C/F David Collette (12.5). … Junior G Chris Smith shoots 46.1 percent from the three-point line. … Opponents shoot only 27.1 percent on three-pointers.
About the Rebels • They are 8-2 at home, losing only to Nevada (64-62) and New Mexico (71-69). … They are 2-5 since defeating Pac-12 frontrunner Arizona on Dec. 23. … They average 17.8 three-point attempts per game. … Freshman G Rashad Vaughn averages a team-high 17.4 points. … Sophomore F Christian Wood averages 14.4 points.