Utah State University’s women’s basketball team will play its final home game of the season on Tuesday, March 3, at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum against Nevada. The matchup will also serve as Senior Day, with the Aggies set to honor Marina Asensio, Jamisyn Heaton, Karyn Sanford, Sophie Sene and Rachel Wilson before tipoff.
The Aggies are preparing for the Mountain West Tournament, which begins Saturday, March 7. Utah State has three games left before the tournament and holds a 6-12 all-time record in Mountain West Tournament play. The team has never advanced past the quarterfinals and last won a first-round matchup in 2022.
This season has seen notable individual performances. Senior forward Rachel Wilson recently went 5-of-5 from the field against Boise State, becoming just the 14th player in program history to shoot 100 percent from the floor on at least five attempts. Junior guard Aaliyah Gayles ranks third in the Mountain West for games with five or more made free throws and is among league leaders in total free throw attempts.
The Aggies have recorded multiple double-doubles in two games this season—an achievement matched only once before by Utah State during the 2012-13 campaign. Senior guard/forward Jamisyn Heaton and Wilson each posted double-doubles against San Jose State; earlier this season, senior center Sophie Sene and Heaton accomplished similar feats.
Utah State has used 17 different starting lineups due to injuries—the most in the Mountain West and second-most nationally behind Tennessee. Ten different players have started at least one game.
Defensively, Utah State ranks tied for second in conference play for holding opponents to 30 percent or worse shooting from three-point range across 12 games. The team’s average of 14.8 fouls per game is second-fewest in program history.
In their previous meeting with Wyoming, Utah State committed only seven fouls—the fewest since 2012—and has logged three single-digit foul games this year.
Against Nevada historically, Utah State leads the series 22-21 and is especially strong at home with a record of 13-6 against the Wolf Pack.
The Aggies rank third in conference play for free throw percentage (76.9%) and are tied for second in having five players shoot over 70 percent from the line on at least thirty attempts: Marina Asensio, Aaliyah Gayles, Jamisyn Heaton, Karyn Sanford and Sophie Sene.
Scoring trends show that when Utah State scores at least 65 points they are 6-3; when below that mark they are winless this season. Winning records also correlate with hitting at least thirty percent of three-point shots or winning rebounding battles.
Injuries have impacted key contributors including Asensio (out for season), Sene (leading rebounder), Gayles (leading scorer), Heaton and Wilson—all missing time due to various issues.
Gayles posted a career-high twenty-four points against Grand Canyon while leading her team across four statistical categories—a first this season for an Aggie player. Three different players—Gayles, Asensio and Heaton—have scored twenty or more points in a game this year.
Five separate Aggies have recorded five assists or more in a game; Asensio’s nine assists versus San Jose State were most by an Aggie since Emmie Harris’ performance in 2022.
Turnover margin stands slightly positive (+0.2), which would be a first since the 2018-19 campaign if maintained through season’s end.
Earlier this year Utah State won five consecutive home games—their longest streak since spanning two seasons between 2016-18—and set several records during their win over Stanislaus State: forcing thirty-six turnovers (a program record) and tying their record with fourteen made threes by nine different players hitting from beyond-the-arc.
Last year’s squad broke program records for both three-pointers made (256) and attempted (889). This year’s team already ranks ninth all-time with their current total of threes made (164).
Roster additions include high-profile transfers Aaliyah Gayles (formerly USC) and Marina Asensio (Western Michigan/South Florida), along with other transfers such as Rachel Wilson (Wheeling), Karyn Sanford (Tarleton State) and Macie Brown (College of Southern Idaho). Four true freshmen join alongside returning seniors Sene and Heaton plus sophomore Elise Livingston.
Utah State features eight international players out of fourteen—four from Spain—which is currently unmatched nationally by percentage on any roster. Other countries represented include Zambia, Serbia, Norway and France; it marks USU’s first majority-international roster ever.
Six players stand six feet or taller—a marked increase compared to last year’s roster composition.
Depending on results this week, Utah State could enter next weekend’s Mountain West Tournament as either No.11 seed facing Grand Canyon or No.12 seed facing Boise State, Colorado State or UNLV.
Tickets remain available through USU’s ticket office.
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