Darius Brown II hits 3-pointer to give No. 22 Utah State a 87-85 win over New Mexico
LOGAN, Utah (AP) Darius Brown II hit a 3-pointer with five seconds to play, Ian Martinez scored 22 points and No. 22 Utah State secured its first outright Mountain West regular-season title with an 87-85 win over New Mexico on Saturday night.
“I don’t know how to describe them,” Utah State coach Danny Sprinkle. “This will never be done in Division I basketball again. You don’t return a point, assist, all that and you win a Mountain West championship, not at this level.”
The game was tied 84-all when Brown hit a 3-pointer for an 87-84 lead.
“I was ready to shoot it,” Brown said. “When the shot clock is going down, you’re comfortable because you know there’s nothing to do but shoot it. As soon as I touched it, I knew it was going in.”
New Mexico’s Jaelen House hit a free throw with two seconds to go.
Great Osobor had 21 points - his 12th 20-point game of the season - and Brown finished with 19 for Utah State (26-5, 14-4), which has been a member of the conference since 2013.
Mustapha Amzil led the Lobos (22-9, 10-8) with 18 points and Donovan Dent had 17.
New Mexico found its offense early and started the first 10 minutes shooting 70% from the field and 60% from 3-point range. New Mexico got it done largely inside with 14 of its first 16 points coming in the paint.
“It’s hard because they’re so big and athletic,” Sprinkle said. “They have great touch and it didn’t seem like they missed anything inside six feet tonight.”
The Lobos’ JT Toppin had 10 first-half points while Utah State struggled to keep the Lobos off the offensive boards. New Mexico’s Nelly Joseph had eight first-half rebounds, four of them offensive.
Amzil provided a lift off the bench with three consecutive 3-pointers.
New Mexico held Utah State to just two free throws in the final four minutes of the first half while scoring nine points of its own to take a 44-39 halftime lead.
Utah State started the the second half with a 13-4 run to pull ahead, but New Mexico got hot from outside and jumped back on top 65-59.
The student section rallied after words were exchanged between the front row and House during a timeout. Utah State responded with dunks from Osobor and Kalifa Sakho to help retake a slim lead.
“I thought our guys fought admirably. It was back and forth, and they just made one more play than we did,” New Mexico coach Richard Pitino.
BIG PICTURE
Utah State earned its first outright Mountain West regular-season title in 11 years.
New Mexico ended its regular season losing three of its last four games and fell to a sixth-place tie with Colorado State.
UP NEXT
Utah State will play the winner of eighth-seeded Wyoming against ninth-seeded Fresno State in the conference tournament quarterfinals on Thursday.
New Mexico will play Air Force in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament on Tuesday.
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This story has been corrected to show that New Mexico will face Air Force, not San Jose State, on Tuesday.
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Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
20:00 | (Lobos gains possession) | |||
19:42 | +2 | JT Toppin makes two point layup (Jemarl Baker Jr. assists) | 2-0 | |
19:42 | Isaac Johnson turnover (bad pass) (Jaelen House steals) | |||
19:42 | Jaelen House misses three point jump shot | |||
19:40 | Jaelen House offensive rebound | |||
19:30 | +2 | JT Toppin makes two point layup (Jaelen House assists) | 4-0 | |
19:19 | Isaac Johnson offensive foul | |||
19:19 | Isaac Johnson turnover (offensive foul) | |||
19:05 | Donovan Dent turnover (bad pass) (Great Osobor steals) | |||
18:39 | Great Osobor misses two point layup | |||
18:39 | Nelly Junior Joseph defensive rebound | |||
18:39 | Jemarl Baker Jr. shooting foul (Great Osobor draws the foul) | |||
18:39 | Jemarl Baker Jr. misses three point jump shot | |||
18:39 | Darius Brown II defensive rebound | |||
18:39 | Jemarl Baker Jr. shooting foul (Great Osobor draws the foul) | |||
18:39 | Great Osobor misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
18:39 | +1 | Great Osobor makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 4-1 | |
18:26 | Nelly Junior Joseph offensive foul | |||
18:26 | Nelly Junior Joseph turnover (offensive foul) | |||
18:14 | +2 | Isaac Johnson makes two point jump shot (Ian Martinez assists) | 4-3 | |
17:45 | +2 | Jaelen House makes two point jump shot | 6-3 | |
17:31 | Jaelen House shooting foul (Darius Brown II draws the foul) | |||
17:31 | +1 | Darius Brown II makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 6-4 | |
17:31 | +1 | Darius Brown II makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 6-5 | |
17:20 | Donovan Dent turnover (bad pass) (Ian Martinez steals) | |||
17:17 | +2 | Ian Martinez makes two point dunk (Darius Brown II assists) | 6-7 | |
17:17 | Jemarl Baker Jr. shooting foul (Ian Martinez draws the foul) | |||
17:17 | +1 | Ian Martinez makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 6-8 | |
16:58 | Jaelen House misses two point layup | |||
16:56 | Nelly Junior Joseph offensive rebound | |||
16:53 | +2 | Nelly Junior Joseph makes two point layup | 8-8 | |
16:45 | +2 | Great Osobor makes two point layup (Darius Brown II assists) | 8-10 | |
16:45 | JT Toppin shooting foul (Great Osobor draws the foul) | |||
16:45 | Great Osobor misses regular free throw 1 of 1 | |||
16:45 | Lobos defensive rebound | |||
16:30 | +2 | JT Toppin makes two point hook shot (Jaelen House assists) | 10-10 | |
16:16 | +2 | Darius Brown II makes two point layup | 10-12 | |
16:01 | +2 | Nelly Junior Joseph makes two point hook shot (Jaelen House assists) | 12-12 | |
15:40 | +2 | Great Osobor makes two point jump shot (Darius Brown II assists) | 12-14 | |
15:22 | Donovan Dent misses two point layup | |||
15:20 | JT Toppin offensive rebound | |||
15:17 | +2 | JT Toppin makes two point layup | 14-14 | |
15:00 | +2 | Mason Falslev makes two point jump shot (Darius Brown II assists) | 14-16 | |
14:45 | Mason Falslev shooting foul (Tru Washington draws the foul) | |||
14:45 | TV timeout | |||
14:45 | Tru Washington misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
14:45 | Tru Washington misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
14:45 | Kalifa Sakho defensive rebound | |||
14:32 | +2 | Great Osobor makes two point layup | 14-18 | |
14:17 | Donovan Dent turnover (bad pass) (Darius Brown II steals) | |||
14:07 | Darius Brown II misses three point jump shot | |||
14:05 | Mason Falslev offensive rebound | |||
13:57 | Jaelen House personal foul (Great Osobor draws the foul) | |||
13:47 | Great Osobor misses two point layup | |||
13:45 | Great Osobor offensive rebound | |||
13:40 | +2 | Great Osobor makes two point jump shot | 14-20 | |
13:40 | Ian Martinez personal foul | |||
13:35 | +2 | Donovan Dent makes two point layup | 16-20 | |
13:04 | Darius Brown II misses three point jump shot | |||
13:02 | Lobos defensive rebound | |||
12:47 | +2 | Donovan Dent makes two point layup | 18-20 | |
12:32 | Quinton Webb personal foul (Great Osobor draws the foul) | |||
12:32 | +1 | Great Osobor makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 18-21 | |
12:32 | +1 | Great Osobor makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 18-22 | |
12:19 | +3 | Mustapha Amzil makes three point jump shot (Tru Washington assists) | 21-22 | |
12:05 | Josh Uduje misses three point jump shot | |||
12:03 | Donovan Dent defensive rebound | |||
11:55 | Donovan Dent misses two point layup | |||
11:53 | Great Osobor defensive rebound | |||
11:48 | +3 | Ian Martinez makes three point jump shot (Darius Brown II assists) | 21-25 | |
11:32 | Donovan Dent turnover (lost ball) (Great Osobor steals) | |||
11:27 | +2 | Darius Brown II makes two point layup (Great Osobor assists) | 21-27 | |
10:59 | +3 | Mustapha Amzil makes three point jump shot (Donovan Dent assists) | 24-27 | |
10:37 | Great Osobor misses three point jump shot | |||
10:35 | Nelly Junior Joseph defensive rebound | |||
10:17 | +3 | Mustapha Amzil makes three point jump shot (Donovan Dent assists) | 27-27 | |
9:50 | Ian Martinez misses three point jump shot | |||
9:48 | Nelly Junior Joseph defensive rebound | |||
9:43 | Darius Brown II personal foul (Donovan Dent draws the foul) | |||
9:43 | TV timeout | |||
9:40 | Tru Washington misses three point jump shot | |||
9:38 | Darius Brown II defensive rebound | |||
9:18 | Donovan Dent blocks Javon Jackson's three point jump shot | |||
9:16 | Aggies offensive rebound | |||
9:16 | Darius Brown II turnover (bad pass) (Quinton Webb steals) | |||
9:15 | Mason Falslev personal foul (Quinton Webb draws the foul) | |||
9:03 | JT Toppin misses two point layup | |||
9:01 | Darius Brown II defensive rebound | |||
8:52 | +2 | Ian Martinez makes two point layup | 27-29 | |
8:44 | Darius Brown II personal foul (Donovan Dent draws the foul) | |||
8:30 | Great Osobor blocks JT Toppin's two point hook shot | |||
8:28 | Darius Brown II defensive rebound | |||
8:18 | +2 | Darius Brown II makes two point jump shot | 27-31 | |
7:57 | Donovan Dent misses two point layup | |||
7:55 | Great Osobor defensive rebound | |||
7:48 | Donovan Dent personal foul (Ian Martinez draws the foul) | |||
7:48 | TV timeout | |||
7:48 | +1 | Ian Martinez makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 27-32 | |
7:48 | +1 | Ian Martinez makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 27-33 | |
7:22 | +2 | Mustapha Amzil makes two point hook shot (Jaelen House assists) | 29-33 | |
6:57 | +2 | Great Osobor makes two point layup | 29-35 | |
6:44 | Tru Washington misses two point layup | |||
6:42 | JT Toppin offensive rebound | |||
6:38 | +2 | JT Toppin makes two point layup | 31-35 | |
6:12 | Great Osobor turnover (lost ball) | |||
5:56 | +2 | Jaelen House makes two point layup | 33-35 | |
5:40 | Isaac Johnson misses three point jump shot | |||
5:38 | Jaelen House defensive rebound | |||
5:31 | Jaelen House misses two point layup | |||
5:29 | Isaac Johnson defensive rebound | |||
5:23 | Darius Brown II turnover (bad pass) (JT Toppin steals) | |||
5:17 | Jemarl Baker Jr. misses three point jump shot | |||
5:15 | Aggies defensive rebound | |||
4:53 | Isaac Johnson misses two point layup | |||
4:52 | Jaelen House defensive rebound | |||
4:52 | Isaac Johnson personal foul (Mustapha Amzil draws the foul) | |||
4:52 | +1 | Mustapha Amzil makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 34-35 | |
4:52 | +1 | Mustapha Amzil makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 35-35 | |
4:24 | +2 | Great Osobor makes two point layup | 35-37 | |
4:14 | Darius Brown II blocks Nelly Junior Joseph's two point layup | |||
4:12 | Great Osobor defensive rebound | |||
4:07 | Great Osobor misses two point layup | |||
4:05 | Jaelen House defensive rebound | |||
4:00 | Mustapha Amzil misses three point jump shot | |||
3:58 | Nelly Junior Joseph offensive rebound | |||
3:58 | +2 | Nelly Junior Joseph makes two point layup | 37-37 | |
3:58 | Great Osobor shooting foul (Nelly Junior Joseph draws the foul) | |||
3:58 | TV timeout | |||
3:58 | Nelly Junior Joseph misses regular free throw 1 of 1 | |||
3:58 | Great Osobor defensive rebound | |||
3:46 | Donovan Dent shooting foul (Darius Brown II draws the foul) | |||
3:46 | +1 | Darius Brown II makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 37-38 | |
3:46 | Darius Brown II misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
3:46 | Jaelen House defensive rebound | |||
3:36 | Javon Jackson shooting foul (Jaelen House draws the foul) | |||
3:36 | +1 | Jaelen House makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 38-38 | |
3:36 | +1 | Jaelen House makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 39-38 | |
3:20 | Great Osobor misses two point jump shot | |||
3:18 | Jaelen House defensive rebound | |||
3:12 | Javon Jackson shooting foul (Jaelen House draws the foul) | |||
3:12 | +1 | Jaelen House makes regular free throw 1 of 3 | 40-38 | |
3:12 | +1 | Jaelen House makes regular free throw 2 of 3 | 41-38 | |
3:12 | +1 | Jaelen House makes regular free throw 3 of 3 | 42-38 | |
2:47 | Darius Brown II misses three point jump shot | |||
2:45 | Mustapha Amzil defensive rebound | |||
2:37 | Jaelen House turnover (bad pass) | |||
2:16 | Great Osobor misses two point layup | |||
2:14 | Mustapha Amzil defensive rebound | |||
2:09 | Tru Washington misses two point layup | |||
2:07 | Nelly Junior Joseph offensive rebound | |||
2:03 | Nelly Junior Joseph misses two point layup | |||
2:01 | Nelly Junior Joseph offensive rebound | |||
1:53 | Nelly Junior Joseph misses two point layup | |||
1:51 | Javon Jackson defensive rebound | |||
1:47 | Javon Jackson misses three point jump shot | |||
1:45 | Nelly Junior Joseph defensive rebound | |||
1:26 | Nelly Junior Joseph turnover (lost ball) | |||
1:26 | Lobos 30 second timeout | |||
1:12 | Ian Martinez misses three point jump shot | |||
1:10 | Mustapha Amzil defensive rebound | |||
0:55 | Jaelen House misses three point jump shot | |||
0:53 | Great Osobor defensive rebound | |||
0:40 | Mustapha Amzil personal foul (Ian Martinez draws the foul) | |||
0:40 | Ian Martinez misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
0:40 | +1 | Ian Martinez makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 42-39 | |
0:13 | +2 | Donovan Dent makes two point layup | 44-39 | |
0:12 | Aggies 30 second timeout | |||
0:06 | Javon Jackson misses three point jump shot | |||
0:04 | Jemarl Baker Jr. defensive rebound | |||
0:00 | End of period |