What Utah State head coach Jerrod Calhoun said after blowout victory over Boise State

The Utah State men’s basketball team picked up a historic 93-68 Mountain West victory at Boise State on Saturday.

The 25-point margin of defeat was the worst home loss of Broncos head coach Leon Rice’s tenure.

The Aggies (14-1, 5-0) scored the first 10 points of the game and led by as many as 32 points in the second half.

“To open up on a kill-shot 10-0 run was pretty incredible,” Utah State head coach Jerrod Calhoun said. “We really wanted to come out of the gates and establish ourselves and make sure that they play this game on our terms, which is we want to pressure the ball, we want to hold them to one shot.”

Here are the highlights from Calhoun’s postgame press conference.

On offensive game plan

“We thought they were really vulnerable with guarding off-ball screening actions. And with MJ (Collins Jr.) and Mason (Falslev) continuing to make reads, Drake (Allen) delivering the ball, (Karson Templin) delivering the ball. The unsung heroes of our team are our forwards. Those guys set great screens. … I thought the game plan offensively was perfect.

“At halftime we only had two turnovers. That was our cleanest half of basketball. I thought we did a tremendous job there, valuing possessions.”

On 26 second-chance points

“Just emphasizing it, talking about it over and over over three days. The work is done in the prep, not getting ahead of yourself, not thinking about the results, thinking about each possession. I thought our prep the last three days — being present, being hungry, trying to really digest what we wanted to do — was really good. And obviously it helps when you make shots. Just a complete effort, team effort.”

On defending Boise State after challenges last year

“I just think we’re a different team, different year. I think every time it’s going to be like that. Most of these kids aren’t going to be in the rivalry. I hope in our program it’s a little different, but there’s so much change in college basketball. We’re a totally different team. We’re a much better defensive team. We can really guard the ball and do some things.”

On Utah State students taking over ExtraMile Arena

“I think it’s tremendous. When we found out that they couldn’t get in with the (free) student tickets, the staff put some money together, donors put some money together, our athletic director, and helped fund it. But they came out in droves. It was pretty incredible, at the end of the game, all of the chants. I think it just shows the commitment that this student body has, not only for our program, but for athletics. It’s pretty incredible.”