This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated.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.

Logan • With just over one minute remaining in Utah State's battle with Nevada on Saturday night at the Spectrum, Chris Smith stepped behind a screen at the top of the key and fired.

The crowd of 9,659 held its breath.

If Smith's high-arcing jumper went in, the Aggies would have come all the back from an 18-point deficit, taken the lead and positioned themselves to win what coach Tim Duryea had called their biggest game of the season.

Smith missed.

His jumper bounced off the rim, and Nevada eventually survived. The Wolf Pack made nine of their final 10 free throws to seal an 89-84 victory.

"I should hit that shot," Smith said.

Dogged by foul trouble throughout the game, Smith still finished with 19 points. Teammate Jalen Moore added 17 for the Aggies, who lost their third straight game, fell to 11-9 overall and dropped to 3-6 in the Mountain West Conference.

"Those last [few] minutes," Smith said, "we should have toughed it out. … When we get hit in the mouth, we can't be scared."

Said Duryea: "We didn't make any plays in winning time. We made a lot of mistakes on both ends. … You've got to make some plays when the game is on the line, and we didn't make any tonight."

The game turned in Nevada's favor during a three-minute stretch of the first half.

After Lew Evans scored from underneath to give the Aggies a 22-16 lead, the Wolf Pack exploded.

Cameron Oliver hit a 17-foot jump shot to trigger a 16-0 run. Nevada, which was 5-for-34 from the 3-point line in its previous two games, then buried four straight. The Wolf Pack needed only six possessions to score their 16 points.

"We got punched in the mouth," said Utah State senior Darius Perkins, "and we didn't respond."

Said Duryea: "A sub-par performance defensively. … Credit to Nevada, but you have to have more of a defensive presence than that."

By halftime, the Wolf Pack extended their lead to 49-35. The Aggies contributed by missing five of their six free throws and turning the ball over nine times.

Utah State also committed back-to-back turnovers to start the second half. Nevada parlayed them into easy baskets to build a 53-35 lead with 19 minutes left.

"We were deer-in-the-headlights on those first two possessions," Duryea said.

Still, the Aggies fought back.

They converted seven straight possessions — Moore scored five points — during a 17-6 run over the next four minutes. But Utah State never got the lead and could not finish the comeback.

"We just moved the ball more," Perkins said, referring to the Aggies' play in the second half.

For Nevada, D.J. Fenner finished with 21 points. Marqueze Coleman added 20 and he made six straight free throws in the final 34 seconds to help the Wolf Pack win for only the fourth time in 22 trips to Logan.

"They are a great team," Smith said. "… They have a lot of different players who can score."

And the Aggies?

"We've been in almost every game," Smith said. "It's not like we're getting blown out. But we have to find a way to win these games."

Said Duryea: "That's how fine the line is between winning and losing in this league."

Email: luhm@sltrib.com

Twitter: @sluhm