The days of opponents sagging off Carlon Brown and daring him to take jump shots appear to be over. And the days of Carlon Brown as a go-to scorer appear to be just beginning for the Utah Utes.

In Wednesday night's 68-67 nail-biter over Utah State before 9,699 at the Huntsman Center, Brown scored a career-high 22 points, with 14 of them coming in the second half.

More encouraging for Ute fans, most of Brown's points came via the jumper. He made a trio of three-pointers in the game and proved to himself and his teammates that he's more than capable of carrying his team for long stretches.

"I took 11,000 three-pointers this summer," Brown said. "I knew that if I wanted to become a complete player, I had to add a jumper to my arsenal."

Brown's night capped a back-and-forth affair that featured nine lead changes, seven ties, a raucous crowd and a duel of sorts between Brown and Aggies guard Jared Quayle.

As impressive as Brown was, Quayle may have been even better. He scored a career-high 27 points, with 20 of them coming in the second half. He grabbed a career-high-tying 11 rebounds and simply carried the Aggies when they couldn't find another scoring option.

"He's a beast," Utah coach Jim Boylen said. "He's unbelievably difficult to guard. He made shots that were contested, and I'd take him on my team any day."

What ultimately gave the Utes their first win of the season, after a disheartening loss to Idaho in Friday's season opener, was an 11-0 run midway through the second half that enabled Utah to erase a 47-40 deficit and forge a lead that proved vital to the victory.

Luka Drca proved key in that stretch, making a three-pointer to close the gap to 47-43, and shooting the passing lane a couple of possessions later, a steal that drew an intentional foul. He made both free throws and Brown hit a jumper on the ensuing possession.

"I saw what they were trying to do and I just kind of cheated the play," Drca said.

The Aggies, 1-1 on the season, fought back. Quayle's leaning three-pointer with 5:34 remaining gave Utah State a 54-53 lead. Brown came right back and hit a three of his own. Aggies center Nate Bendall connected on a layup to knot the score at 56, then Brown hit a ridiculously tough fadeaway in the lane.

That proved to be the last time USU tied the score. The Aggies had a chance to tie the game with 1:50 remaining, but Quayle threw the ball away, and the Utes hit their foul shots down the stretch.

Drca, the senior guard, was the only other Utah player to hit double figures, scoring 11 points.

For USU, Tai Wesley scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds, while Bendall garnered his first career double-double, scoring 12 points and grabbing 10 boards.

"This is a tough one to swallow," Utah State coach Stew Morrill said. "Give Utah credit, they found a way to win. But I also think that we found a way not to win it. This feels like we gave one away."

tjones@sltrib.com