Dec. 27, 2006

LOGAN, Utah -

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GAME 13
UTAH STATE (9-3) vs. CS BAKERSFIELD (4-5)
Sat., Dec. 30, 2006 • 7:05 p.m. MT • Logan, Utah
Dee Glen Smith Spectrum (10,270) • Aggie Radio Network • WAC.tv

GAME DAY HEADLINES
• Utah State is in its 102nd season of basketball and has an overall record of 1,333-969 (.579).

• Over the last eight years, Utah State is 37-8 (.822) following a loss, and of those eight back-to-back losses five have occurred during the regular season and three during the postseason.

• Against non-conference opponents, Utah State has won 42 straight regular season home games which is the second-longest streak in the nation, trailing only Duke (49). The last time USU lost a non-conference home game during the regular season was to BYU (82-73) on Jan. 8, 2000. Overall, Utah State has won 18 straight home games against non-conference opponents and 42 of its last 44 overall.

• Utah State head coach Stew Morrill is 199-66 (.751) in his ninth season as the Aggies head coach and is just one win shy of recording his 200th victory in school history. Morrill is second all-time at USU in wins, trailing only E. Lowell Romney who had a 225-157 (.589) record in 22 years as USU's head coach from 1920-41.

• Utah State has a modest six-game home winning streak and a 116-11 (.913) overall home record under Morrill.

• Utah State is 45-15 (.750) in the month of December under Morrill, and has won 40 straight home games during the month. The last time USU lost a home game in December was on Dec. 5, 1999 to Colorado State (64-61).

• Utah State is 86-21 (.804) versus teams from the state of California over the last eight years, which includes a 49-4 (.925) home record.

• Utah State is 78-26 (.750) in games played on Saturday under Morrill, including a 4-2 record this year. USU is also 12-6 in known games played on Dec. 30.

UP NEXT
Utah State (9-3) will host Cal State Bakersfield (4-5) in the Gossner Foods Classic Night on Sat., Dec. 30 at 7:05 p.m. in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. Fans can watch the game live via the internet at www.WAC.tv.

AGGIES ON THE AIR
Fans can listen to all of Utah State's games live on KVNU 610 AM in Logan and on 1320 AM or 1230 AM in Salt Lake City.

LOOKING AT UTAH STATE
Utah State is 9-3 on the season after losing at Santa Clara 77-75 in overtime on Saturday. The Aggies are led by junior guard Jaycee Carroll who is averaging 21.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, while shooting 58.8 percent from the field, 44.4 percent from three-point range, and 91.7 percent from the free throw line, while junior forward Stephen DuCharme is averaging 11.3 points and 6.1 rebounds, while shooting 65.5 percent from the field and 72.4 percent from the free throw line. Senior guard/forward Durrall Peterson is third on the team in scoring with 9.6 points per game. As a team, USU is averaging 72.2 points and shooting 49.3 percent from the field, 36.0 percent from three-point range, and 76.5 percent from the free throw line, while its opponents are averaging 65.8 points and shooting 46.4 percent from the field, 34.8 percent from three-point range, and 66.1 from the free throw line.

GOSSNER FOODS HOLIDAY CLASSIC TO RETURN NEXT YEAR
Due to scheduling conflicts, Utah State University was unable to secure three other teams for the 2006 Gossner Foods Holiday Classic. Thus, Utah State will play just one game this year against Cal State Bakersfield on Sat., Dec. 30 at 7:05 p.m. in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. The event will be referred to as Gossner Night and it will be sponsored by Dolores Wheeler and Gossner Foods, just as the Gossner Foods Classic would. Utah State University does plan on returning to a four-team Gossner Foods Holiday Classic tournament next season.

COMPUTER RANKINGS
As of Wed., Dec. 27, Utah State has an RPI of 56 in the country and a strength of schedule of 171 according to the Pomeroy Ratings by Ken Pomeroy, while the WAC is currently ranked 11th out of 32 conferences. USU also has a sagarin rating of 104 in the country.

UTAH STATE STANDING ITS GROUND
Through 12 games this season Utah State has taken 23 charges, led by senior Durrall Peterson who has a team-high 13. During the 2005-06 season, Utah State took a total of 27 charges in 32 games.

UTAH STATE NINTH IN THE NATION IN FREE THROW SHOOTING
As of Wed., Dec. 27, Utah State ranks ninth in the nation in free throw shooting at 76.5 percent. USU is also 32nd in the nation in field goal shooting at 49.3 percent.

DID YOU KNOW?
Utah State is one of just five teams in the country to win at least 23 games in each of the last seven seasons joining Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas and Syracuse. Overall, Utah State teams have won 20-plus games in a season 21 times.

NEXT WEEK
Utah State will open Western Athletic Conference play on the road at Boise State on Thur., Jan. 4 at 7:05 p.m. (MT), and at Fresno State on Sat., Jan. 6 at 8:05 p.m. (MT).

SCOUTING CAL STATE BAKERSFIELD
Cal State Bakersfield is 4-5 on the season after defeating Cal State Los Angeles 64-50 and Pepperdine 82-76 in its last two games. The Roadrunners, who have played all nine of their games on the road this year, are led by senior guard Dwuan Rice who is averaging 16.1 points per game, while senior forward Richard Andrews is averaging 13.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. Senior center Carl Damus also scores in double-figures with 10.1 points per game. As a team, Cal State Bakersfield is averaging 73.0 points and shooting 42.8 percent from the field and 32.0 percent from three-point range, while its opponents are scoring 70.1 points and shooting 43.4 percent from the field and 35.8 percent from three-point range. The Roadrunners return three starters and five lettermen from last year's team that went 21-8 on the season and finished in second-place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association with a 15-5 league record. CS Bakersfield concluded its season with an 81-75 loss at Seattle Pacific in the second round of the NCAA Division II Tournament.

UTAH STATE-CAL STATE BAKERSFIELD SERIES
Utah State and Cal State Bakersfield will be meeting for just the second time ever this weekend with the Aggies owning a 1-0 advantage in the series. The only other time the two teams played one another was on Jan. 4, 1977 in Logan with the Aggies recording a 110-89 victory.

LAST MEETING AGAINST THE ROADRUNNERS
Blair Martineau scored 21 points and Mike Santos added 16 points and 10 rebounds to lead Utah State to a 110-89 win against Cal State Bakersfield on Jan. 4, 1977 in Logan, Utah. Darryl Owens and Dean Hunger each added 13 points for the home team, while Steve Pinegar scored 11 points. Cal State Bakersfield led 27-22 after the first 10 minutes of play, before Utah State finished the half on a 24-12 run to lead 46-39 at the break. The Aggies then out-scored the Roadrunners 64-50 in the second-half to notch the 21-point win. Cal State Bakersfield was led by Mylow Rucker's 26 points, while Warren Jackson had 22 points. Utah State finished the game by shooting 52.2 percent from the field and 80.0 percent from the free throw line (16-20), while the Roadrunners shot 50.0 percent from the field and 76.0 percent from the charity stripe (19-25). USU also out-rebounded CSUB 49-39, and recorded 17 more assists (27-10) in the game.

DUCHARME RECORDS SECOND STRAIGHT DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Junior forward Stephen DuCharme recorded his second straight double-double in Utah State's last game against Santa Clara on Saturday. Against the Broncos, DuCharme recorded a season-high 11 rebounds and tied his season-high with 22 points on nine-of-17 shooting. DuCharme recorded his first career double-double two nights earlier against IPFW as he scored 13 points and added 10 rebounds. Over his last two games, DuCharme is averaging 17.5 points and 10.5 rebounds, while shooting 56.0 percent from the field (14-25), and 85.7 percent from the free throw line (6-7).

CLARK PLAYING MUCH BETTER DURING HIS LAST TWO GAMES
Junior guard Kris Clark has played much better during his last two games against IPFW and Santa Clara. Entering the game against the Mastodons, Clark had not scored a single point in USU's four previous game before scoring a season-high four points. He then scored a season-high six points in his next game at Santa Clara, as he made his first three-point basket of the season as he was two-of-three from behind the arc. During his last two games, Clark is averaging 5.0 points and 4.5 assists, while shooting 66.7 percent from the field. During those two games, he has committed just three turnovers.

HAMMER RECORDS CAREER-HIGHS AGAINST SANTA CLARA
Junior guard Nick Hammer had one of his best games of the season at Santa Clara as he recorded a career-high seven rebounds and played a career-high 23 minutes in the game. He also recorded a career-high two blocks and scored four points as he was two-of-two from the field. After not scoring a single point during a five game stretch earlier this season, Hammer is averaging 3.5 points and 3.3 rebounds during his last four games, while shooting 41.7 percent from the field.

CARROLL SCORES SEASON-HIGH 29 POINTS AGAINST IPFW
Junior guard Jaycee Carroll scored a season-high 29 points against IPFW Thursday night as he was nine-of-14 from the field, four-of-seven from three-point range, and seven-of-eight from the free throw line. He also added eight rebounds, and a season-high tying four assists in the game. It is the eighth time this year and 21st time in his career that he has scored 20-plus points in a game.

CARROLL BEING GUARDED WELL FROM THREE-POINT RANGE
For the third time in his last four games, junior guard Jaycee Carroll has not made a three-point basket as he was 0-of-2 from behind the arc against Santa Clara. Carroll had made at least one three-pointer in each of his first eight games of the season, before not making a three in three of his last four games.

DUCHARME CONTINUES TO SHOOT WELL FROM THE FIELD
Junior forward Stephen DuCharme continues to shoot for a high percentage as he is converting 65.5 percent of his field goals (57-87) on the year. DuCharme would ranks first in the WAC and 11th in the nation in field goal percentage, but he does not have enough made field goals to qualify. DuCharme is averaging 4.75 field goals per game, and needs to average 5.0 made field goals per game to qualify for the national and conference stats.

AGGIES CONTINUE TO GET SOLID SCORING FROM ITS BENCH
For the 11th time in 12 games this year, Utah State has gotten good production from its bench as USU's reserves scored 21 points and grabbed 14 rebounds at Santa Clara on Saturday. On the year, USU's bench is averaging 21.6 points (259) and 8.7 rebounds (104) per game. Utah State had a season-high 50 points from its bench against Drake, and got a season-high 14 rebounds from its reserves at Santa Clara.

UTAH STATE SHOOTING WELL FROM FREE THROW LINE
Utah State is shooting very well from the free throw line this season as it leads the WAC and ranks ninth in the nation in free throw shooting at 76.5 percent. Over its last four games, Utah State is shooting 84.0 percent from the charity stripe (63-75).

UTAH STATE STRUGGLING ON DEFENSE
Through 12 games, Utah State is struggling on defense as it is allowing its opponents to shoot 46.4 percent from the field and 34.8 percent from three-point range. During those 13 games, five USU opponents have shot over 50 percent from the field. During the entire 2005-06 season, only four USU opponents shot over 50 percent from the field.

AGGIES IN CLOSE GAMES
Utah State had won eight straight and 12 of its last 14 games decided by six or fewer points before losing at Santa Clara by two points (77-75 ot) on Saturday. USU is now 4-1 on the season in games decided by six or fewer points.

UTAH STATE LOSES THIRD STRAIGHT OVERTIME GAME
Utah State lost its third straight overtime game with its 77-75 loss at Santa Clara on Saturday. Ironically, all three of those overtime games have been on the road. The last time USU won an overtime game was also on the road, as it won at Oral Roberts 72-67 on Nov. 19, 2005.

UTAH STATE CONTINUES TO STEAL THE BALL
Utah State has traditionally not looked to record a lot of steals, but that has changed this season as the Aggies rank second in the Western Athletic Conference with 7.33 steals per game. In fact, USU has recorded 31 steals during its last three games. Last year, Utah State averaged just 5.16 steals per game to rank last in the WAC.

CARROLL 19TH ALL-TIME IN SCORING AT UTAH STATE
With his 14 points at Santa Clara on Saturday, junior guard Jaycee Carroll now ranks 19th all-time in school history with 1,254 points. Carroll is now one point shy of tying Rich Haws (1973-75) for 18th-place all-time with 1,255 career points.

CARROLL HAS EIGHT 20-POINT GAMES THIS YEAR
Junior guard Jaycee Carroll had scored at least 20 points in a game eight times this season and 21 times in his career. In fact, Carroll scored 20 or more points in seven straight games this year, which was the longest streak by a Utah State player since Greg Grant scored 20-plus points in seven straight games during the 1985-86 season.

CARROLL HAS LED UTAH STATE IN SCORING IN ALL BUT TWO GAMES
Junior guard Jaycee Carroll has led Utah State in scoring in 10 of its 12 games this year. The only two times Carroll did not lead USU in scoring was against Utah Valley State when senior guard/forward Durrall Peterson scored 20 points, and against Santa Clara when junior forward Stephen DuCharme had 22 points.

CARROLL FIRST IN THE WAC IN TWO STATISTICAL CATEGORIES
Junior guard Jaycee Carroll currently ranks first in the Western Athletic Conference and ninth in the nation in scoring with 21.9 points per game. Carroll also ranks first in the league and 17th in the nation in free throw percentage (.917). Carroll also ranks second in the WAC in field goal percentage (.588), fifth in three-point shooting (.444), and 14th in rebounding (5.6).

CARROLL NINTH IN THE NATION IN SCORING
Junior guard Jaycee Carroll currently ranks ninth in the nation in scoring at 21.9 points per game. Carroll also ranks 17th in the nation in free throw percentage (91.7), and 32nd in field goal percentage (58.8).

CARROLL 14TH ALL-TIME AT UTAH STATE IN SCORING AVERAGE
Junior guard Jaycee Carroll has played in 76 career games at Utah State and has scored 1,254 points for an average of 16.50 points per game which ranks 14th all-time in school history.

CARROLL FIRST IN SCHOOL HISTORY IN THREE-POINT FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
Junior guard Jaycee Carroll ranks first all-time at Utah State in career three-point field goal percentage at 46.0 percent. He also ranks fourth all-time in school history in three-pointer made (200), and fourth in three-pointers attempted (435).

CARROLL NAMED PRESEASON ALL-WAC, UTAH STATE PICKED FOURTH
Junior guard Jaycee Carroll was named a preseason first-team all-WAC player by both the media and coaches for the second straight year, while Utah State is picked to finish in fourth-place in the league by both the media and coaches.

CARROLL NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
For his efforts at the BP Top of the World Classic in Fairbanks, Alaska, Jaycee Carroll earned Western Athletic Conference player of the week honors it was announced on Mon., Nov. 20. Carroll, a 6-2, 175-pound, junior guard, was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament as he led Utah State to the team championship. The Aggies defeated Centenary (77-71), Drake (92-74), and Weber State (68-55). Carroll began the tournament by scoring 27 points against Centenary as he was eight-of-13 from the field and nine-of-10 from the free throw line. Carroll then recorded his second career double-double against Drake as he scored 24 points and added 10 rebounds. He then concluded the tournament by scoring 21 points against Weber State. Overall, Carroll scored 72 points in the tournament and was just two points shy of tying the all-time tournament record for most points scored with 74. Carroll finished the tournament by averaging 24.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 2.0 assists, while shooting 57.5 percent from the field (23-40), 45.5 percent from three-point range (10-22), and 88.9 percent from the free throw line (16-18). The honor is the second WAC player of the week award for Carroll, who won the award on Dec. 1, 2005 after his performances against Middle Tennessee and Weber State.

DID YOU KNOW?
Junior guard Jaycee Carroll has made at least one three-point basket in 65 of his 76 career games at Utah State.

RECAPPING THE SANTA CLARA GAME
Despite a season-high tying 22 points from Stephen DuCharme, Utah State lost a 77-75 overtime game at Santa Clara Saturday afternoon after rallying from a 12-point halftime deficit. With the loss, USU falls to 9-3 on the season, while Santa Clara improves to 9-4 on the year with the win. DuCharme, who scored 18 of his 22 points after the half, added a season-high 11 rebounds for his second double-double of the year. Jaycee Carroll also scored in double-figures for Utah State with a season-low 14 points. After trailing by 10 at 51-41 with 13:02 remaining, Utah State scored 16 of the next 20 points to take a 57-55 lead. USU increased its lead to 65-61 with 1:28 remaining on a lay-up by Carroll before the Broncos scored the final four points of regulation to force overtime. USU had a running jump shot from Mikel Watson roll out as time expired, followed by a tip-in from DuCharme just after the buzzer. In the overtime, Santa Clara scored six of the first eight points to take a four-point lead and hit four straight free throws in the final :25 seconds to hold on for a two-point win. John Bryant led Santa Clara with 20 points and 12 rebounds, while Scott Dougherty added 16 points off the bench, including 11 in the first-half. Utah State began the game by hitting five of its first six shots and lead 13-4 before Santa Clara scored 13 straight points to take a 17-13 lead. The Aggies then scored nine straight points to regain the lead at 22-17 before the Broncos finished the half on a 22-5 run to lead 39-27 at the break. In the first half, Santa Clara shot 46.7 percent from the field (14-30) and 46.7 percent from three-point range as it connected on seven-of-15 shots from behind the arc. USU shot 44.0 percent in the first half, but also committed 10 turnovers. Utah State finished the game by shooting 45.0 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from three-point range, while Santa Clara shot 45.6 percent from the field and 34.8 percent from three-point range. USU also out-rebounded the taller Broncos 37-35, but also committed 19 turnovers as compared to 17 for Santa Clara. Utah State, who had won eight straight games decided by six or fewer points, has now lost three straight overtime games dating back to last season.

AGGIES ON THE ROAD
Under head coach Stew Morrill, Utah State is 57-42 (.576) on the road, which includes a 14-16 (.467) record against non-league opponents. This year, USU is 2-3 on the road and 5-3 in all games away from home.

UTAH STATE AMONG THE BEST IN THE COUNTRY
Over the last eight years, Utah State has been one of the best basketball programs in the country, with a 184-53 (.776) record. Those 184 wins are the eighth-most in the country, while the 77.6 percent winning percentage is fifth-best. USU has also been among the top-13 teams in the country in points allowed in six of the last seven years, and among the top-35 teams in the country in winning percentage in each of those seasons.

UTAH STATE HAS DOMINATED CONFERENCE PLAY SINCE 2000
Utah State has had tremendous success in league play over the last seven years recording a 95-25 (.792) record, which includes an 84-20 record in the Big West Conference and an 11-5 record in the WAC. Here is a look at how the current members of the Western Athletic Conference has done in league play dating back to the 1999-2000 season. Note: Utah State and Idaho's league record includes six years in the Big West Conference (2000-2005); Boise State's record includes two years in the Big West (2000-2001); Nevada's record includes one year in the Big West (2000); Louisiana Tech's record includes two years in the Sun Belt Conference (2000-01); and New Mexico State's record includes one year in the Big West (2000) and five years in the Sun Belt (2001-05).

SCOUTING UTAH STATE'S OFFENSE
Utah State has shot over 50 percent from the field five times this year, and over 40 percent from three-point range four times... USU ranks first in the WAC in free throw shooting (.765), second in field goal percentage (.493), fourth in scoring margin (+6.5), fifth in three-point field goal percentage (.360), and sixth in scoring (72.2)... Over its last five games, Utah State is shooting 46.4 percent from the field, 34.8 percent from three-point range, and 80.8 percent from the free throw line, while averaging 68.6 points per game.

SCOUTING UTAH STATE'S DEFENSE
Utah State ranks second in the WAC in steals (7.33), is third in scoring defense (65.8), fourth in rebounding margin (+2.8), fifth in three-point field goal percentage defense (.348), seventh in blocked shots (2.42), and eighth in field goal percentage defense (.464)... Over its last five games, USU's opponents are averaging 67.4 points and shooting 48.4 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from three-point range.

OVER THE LAST EIGHT YEARS UTAH STATE IS...

• 79-6 when holding its opponents below 60 points.
• 157-17 when leading at the half.
• 165-14 when shooting better from the field than its opponent.
• 139-25 when out-rebounding its opponent.
• 129-11 when shooting better from three-point range than its opponent.
• 104-16 when blocking more shots than its opponent.
• 66-11 when scoring 70-plus points in a game.

PLAYER NOTES
• 0 Mikel Watson - Has scored in double-figures four times this year, including a season-high 12 points against Drake... Recorded a season-high six assists and five rebounds against Weber State... Ranks seventh in the WAC in assists (3.17) and eighth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.12)... Averaging 7.5 points and 2.0 rebounds, while shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from three-point range.

• 3 Nick Hammer - Recorded a career-high seven rebounds at Santa Clara, and also played a career-high 23 minutes against the Broncos... Scored a career-high 12 points in the season opener at Northwestern State, and recorded a career-high three steals against Idaho State... Averaging 2.8 points and 2.1 rebounds, while shooting 29.4 percent from the field.

• 10 Kris Clark - Scored a season-high six points at Santa Clara... Had a season-high eight assists against Idaho State... Averaging 3.08 assists, 1.3 points and 0.9 rebounds per game... Ranks sixth in the WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.54), and eighth in assists (3.08).

• 11 Arvydas Vaitiekus - Played a season-high eight minutes against Idaho State and recorded a season-high two blocks and one rebound against the Bengals... Scored two points in two minutes against Drake.

• 20 Jaycee Carroll - Scored a season-high 29 points against IPFW... Has scored in double-figures in all 12 games this season, and in 13 straight overall... Recorded his third career double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds against South Dakota State... Also had 24 points and 10 rebounds against Drake... Has scored in double-figures 64 times in his career and has 21 career 20-point games... Ranks first in the WAC in scoring (21.9), first in free throw percentage (.917), second in field goal percentage (.588), fifth in three-point field goal percentage (.444), and 14th in rebounding (5.6).

• 21 Chris Session - Scored a career-high 12 points, recorded a career-high five steals, and played a career-high 31 minutes at BYU... Tied his season-high with seven rebounds against Idaho State, to go along with 10 points... Is averaging 6.0 points and 4.1 rebounds, while shooting 54.9 percent from the field and 76.2 percent from the free throw line... Ranks 10th in the WAC in steals (1.42)

• 23 O.J. Harrison - Played a season-high 15 minutes against Idaho State... Is averaging 7.1 minutes and 0.7 points per game off the bench.

• 24 Durrall Peterson - Scored a season-high 20 points at Utah Valley State... Tied his career-high with six assists against IPFW... Has scored in double-figures four times this year and 12 times in his career... Averaging 9.6 points and 3.4 rebounds, while shooting 41.2 percent from the field, 39.2 percent from three-point range, and 78.1 percent from the free throw line.

• 30 Chaz Spicer - Recorded a career-high six assists against Utah Valley State... Tied his season-high with 12 points against Utah... Also played a career-high 31 minutes against the Utes... Recorded a career-high 10 rebounds at South Dakota State... Has scored in double-figures 14 times in his career and five times this season... Is averaging 8.4 points and 2.5 rebounds, while shooting 47.2 percent from the field, 50.0 percent from three-point range, and 80.6 percent from the free throw line.

• 31 Michael Earl - Scored a season-high 10 points at BYU after not scoring a single point in USU's previous five games... Had a season-high eight rebounds against Centenary... Averaging 2.8 points and 2.0 rebounds per game, while shooting 43.5 percent from the field and 57.9 percent from the free-throw line.

• 40 Stephen DuCharme - Recorded his second straight double-double with a season-high tying 22 points and a season-high 11 rebounds at Santa Clara... Recorded his first career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds against IPFW... Has scored in double-figures eight times this year... Also had 22 points against Drake... Shooting 65.5 percent from the field and 72.4 percent from the free throw line... Is averaging 11.3 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, which ranks 11th in the WAC... Set a new school record by making 17 straight field goals over a two-game span, including a 10-for-10 performance against Drake.

HEAD COACH Stew Morrill
Stew Morrill (Gonzaga, 1974) is in his ninth season at the helm of the Utah State men's basketball program and has posted seven straight 20-win seasons, not to mention guiding the Aggies to seven straight postseason appearances. In his ninth year at USU, he has an incredible 199-66 record, which is the best record by any coach at Utah State during that time span. Over the past seven years, Morrill has coached 13 first-team all-league players in Shawn Daniels (twice), Troy Rolle, Bernard Rock, Tony Brown, Desmond Penigar (twice), Mark Brown, Cardell Butler, Nate Harris (three times), and Spencer Nelson. In his first eight years at USU, he has had over an 80 percent graduation rate. He has been involved in postseason action 10 times in his career, including the NCAA Tournament at Utah State in 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2006, and the National Invitation Tournament in 2002 and 2004. He has been named Coach of the Year three times, winning the award in 1991 at Montana, and in 2000 and 2002 at Utah State. He is only the fourth coach in the history of the Big West Conference to go undefeated in the league, as he led the 1999-2000 squad to a perfect 19-0 league record, joining Lou Henson, Jerry Tarkanian and Bob Thomason. Prior to coming to Utah State, Morrill had been the head coach at Colorado State University for seven seasons, recording a 121-86 record (1992-98). Prior to his stint at CSU, Morrill spent five seasons as the head coach at the University of Montana (1987-91), where he went 97-52. During his 20 years as a head coach, Morrill's teams have won at least 20 games 11 times and have won at least 17 games in 17 of his 20 seasons as a head coach. He was the second winningest coach at Colorado State behind only Boyd Grant.