GAME NOTES: The Utah State Aggies try to follow up a stellar defensive performance when they challenge the Boise State Broncos in Mountain West Conference action at Taco Bell Arena.

The Aggies opened up the conference schedule in style on New Year's Eve with a massive 61-33 blowout of lowly San Jose State. The victory was certainly expected, but the depths to which SJSU has fallen is still difficult to grasp. Utah State, which has now won 25 straight home conference openers, limited the Spartans to just 12 points in the first half as the hosts secured their fifth win in the last six outings overall.

Meanwhile, the Broncos have lost two straight and a total of four games overall, with a pair of those defeats coming against nationally-ranked foes. The latest setback for Boise State took place on Wednesday night as it nearly pulled off the upset before taking a tumble against 24th-ranked Colorado State (71-65) in the conference opener.

As far as the all-time series is concerned, USU holds a 29-9 advantage over the Broncos and has won seven of the last eight encounters. However, the teams split last season, which each winning on its home floor.

Before they can take all the credit for the beat down of San Jose State, the Aggies should concede that the Spartans were missing every single one of their double-digit scorers for one reason or another and used a total of only seven players in the loss. Utah State led by at least 20 points throughout the second half as it held the visitors to just 20.0 percent shooting from the floor and 6-of-28 behind the 3-point line.

Offensively, the Aggies were led by Jalen Moore who recorded a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds, shooting 4-of-5 beyond the arc and also registering three blocked shots. Chris Smith pitched in with 14 points, making both of his free-throw attempts, which means the rest of the roster combined to convert only 6-of-18 at the stripe.

Moore has now scored in double figures in all but one game this season, averaging 15.5 ppg which is a huge improvement over his 5.6 ppg a season ago when he was a starter in only five of 32 appearances. Moore also ranks first on the glass with 7.5 rpg, but the team as a whole is still being beaten on the boards by an average of 8.0 rpg. Just a freshman, David Collette is providing some strength in the paint with his 5.3 rpg, to go along with 13.5 ppg.

With a 14-point lead in the first half, the Broncos appeared poised to steal away a crucial decision from Colorado State and push the Rams back out of the national rankings in the process. However, the second half saw the visitors shoot only 2-of-13 behind the 3-point line, opening the door for a CSU comeback win. Mikey Thompson posted 20 points for the Broncos, the only player in double figures, as he shot just 5-of-15 from the field.

Thompson is second in scoring among active players with his 10.1 ppg, but with Anthony Drmic (15.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg) out for the foreseeable future after having ankle surgery, he and the rest of his teammates will have to pick up significant slack. Derrick Marks, who has also missed a couple games, paces the program with 16.0 ppg, shooting an impressive 54.3 percent behind the 3- point line, will need much more help if the Broncos are to continue their strong play now that the MWC schedule has arrived.

The Broncos have to guard against a letdown in this meeting after coming so close to knocking off a nationally-ranked opponent from within the conference. As long as the hosts can contain Moore they'll have a shot at their first MWC win of the campaign.