Junior guard Kevin Bell continued his superhuman effort of carrying the Bulldogs for a second straight game with Fresno State̢۪s Saturday win over Utah State.
Bell, who had a career-high 25 points helped the Bulldogs to a third place finish in the Western Athletic Conference with the 71-66 win in Logan.
The win puts Fresno State on a six-game winning streak and demolished Utah State̢۪s 15-game winning streak at home. It was the second streak Fresno State has brought down, as it ended New Mexico State̢۪s home-winning streak at 19 on Feb. 24.
On Saturday, the ‘Dogs were able to keep Utah State’s leading scorer and First Team All-conference selection Jaycee Carroll to 2 of 12 from the field. Carroll had six points on the night with both of his baskets coming from behind the arc.
To go with his career night, Fresno State’s Bell had seven assists. Forward Dominic McGuire was the ‘Dogs second highest scorer with 18.
McGuire made it a double-double with 11 rebounds and finished out the night by adding to his season total of blocks, bringing his total to 107. Fresno State̢۪s previous record stood at 92.
Fresno State was hot from 3-point range, particularly in the second half as it shot 5-of-8 for 62.5 percent. Fresno State was 10 for 27 in 3-point attempts for the game.
Utah State got desperate as the clock wound down, with both Bell and McGuire ending the night with free throw attempts in the double digits.
Their efforts at the line would prove to be the difference in the Bulldogs̢۪ five-point victory.
In the WAC tournament, Fresno State will face No. 6 seed Boise State on March 8. Fresno State is 10-6 in conference play while Boise State is 8-8.