The team who wants to be the true blue blood of the Beehive State will need to play smart in the Vivint Smart Home Arena tonight at 7 PM in Salt Lake City.
The Aggies come fresh off a disappointing loss in Mexico to a Texas Tech team that was without its star player. The Cougars lost in a shootout to their neighboring Utah Valley Wolverines of the Western Athletic Conference.
With both teams already having two games in the loss column, this could be a defining game for the season for each party.
Who will win this game? Here is a breakdown on why each team could win or lose:
Why Utah State will win: The Aggies are a new team this year with the second best recruit in the 2016 Beehive State graduating class in Koby McEwen. Jalen Moore is still a big force, fro and all. They also have a mischievous mascot in Big Blue, who was caught photo bombing Cosmo the Cougar at the football game in Provo last Saturday. Look for more antics from Big Blue to rile up the rambunctious crowd from Logan.
Why Utah State will lose: The Cougars might be ticked off from losing to an inferior Utah Valley team on Saturday and will look to take it to the Aggies in an arena where they do pretty well. The BYU crowd will be just as distracting as they are foaming at the mouth for another opportunity to use their very clever “Just Like Football” chant.
Why BYU will win: Their offense. They might use some inspiration from the bearded Mamba James Harden who lost to the Utah Jazz last night in this same arena. Look for Nick Emery to shoot from Steph Curry range, Mika to play bully ball in the paint, and Kyle Davis to show up against his former team, who will likely shower him with boos.
Why BYU will lose: They also play defense like James Harden, which is no defense whatsoever. Allowing triple digit scoring from the Wolverines is inexcusable. The Utah County based newspaper, the Daily Herald, also featured a headline that says the Cougars are looking to learn from a disappointing loss to USU.
Nobody is sure if this is a typo in the local Provo newspaper or a prophecy. One thing that is certain is that everyone will find out tonight.
May the best team win.