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Logan • Utah State freshman Julion Pearre made his 20th straight start Tuesday night against UNLV.

A 6-foot-3 guard from McKinney, Tex., Pearre moved into coach Stew Morrill's starting lineup for the first time on Dec. 13 in a 50-47 win over Utah Valley.

In the three games prior to the Aggies' battle with UNLV, Pearre averaged 12.7 points on 14-for-20 shooting, including 7-for-11 from the three-point line.

In Utah State's 85-79 win over Fresno State on Saturday night, Pearre scored 19 points. His end-to-end drive against a late-game full court press helped seal the victory. The win bumped USU's record in Pearre's starts to 13-6.

"He's been great from Day 1 in terms of attitude, effort and doing everything he can to help our team," Morrill said. "… [His] mom and dad can be pretty proud of that kid.

"Somebody asked me about him last week and I said, 'Do you have a daughter? You better hope she marries somebody like him.' He's a good, solid kid."

Defensively, Pearre usually draws the opponent's top perimeter threat.

Against Fresno, he was the primary defender on NBA prospect Marvelle Harris.

Against UNLV, he opened against Patrick McCaw, who Morrill called "one of the most highly-recruited freshmen in the country. … [But] that's what you get in the Mountain West Conference. You get good players night in and night out."

UNLV played without freshman guard and leading scorer Rashad Vaughn, who is sidelined until at least the Mountain West tournament because of a knee injury.

Vaughn averages 17.8 points. He scored 31 in the Rebels' 79-77 overtime win over the Aggies in Jan. 24.

Utah State, meanwhile, has avoided serious injuries.

"Knock on wood, we've been O.K.," Morrill said. "… We're a little beat up now. We have some nicks and bruises but nothing that will keep guys from playing. But they're irritants. They're hard on you as you play. They're hard on you physically and they're hard on you mentally."