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Utah State basketball standouts Sam Merrill, Neemias Queta earn NABC honors

Utah State's Sam Merrill drives as New Mexico's Corey Manigault defends during the first half of a Mountain West Conference tournament NCAA college basketball game Thursday, March 5, 2020, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Isaac Brekken)

Two players from the Utah State men’s basketball team received awards from the National Association of Basketball Coaches for their play in the 2019-20 season, which was cut short after the NCAA canceled its postseason tournament due to the coronavirus.

Senior guard Sam Merrill was named to the all-District 17 first team, and sophomore center Neemias Queta to the second team. Both players received those accolades after last season.

Merrill and Queta are the only duo in the Mountain West Conference named all-district for two consecutive years, and just two of 10 players from District 17, which made up entirely of the MWC.

Players from Utah State have made all-district each of the last four years.

Merrill averaged a team-high 19.7 points this past season became the second leading scorer in Aggies history. He surpassed 2,000 career points and will end his USU career with 2,197, which also ranks second all time in MWC history. He also led the Aggies in assists, averaging 3.7 per game.

Queta was the team’s second leading scorer at 13 points per game, and also averaged 7.8 rebounds and 1.7 blocks, which led the conference. Despite missing part of the 2019-20 season with a knee injury, Queta made a significant impact on the defensive end and also shot 62.4% from the field.