2023–24 Utah State Aggies men's basketball team

2023–24 Utah State Aggies men's basketball
2023–24 Utah State Aggies men's basketball
Cayman Islands Classic champions; Mountain West regular-season champions
NCAA tournament, second round
Conference	Mountain West Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 20
AP	No. 22
Record	28–7 (14–4 MW)
Head coach	Danny Sprinkle (1st season);
Assistant coaches	Andy Hill; Chris Haslam; Eric Brown;
Home arena	Smith Spectrum
	Seasons ← 2022–23 2024–25 →

The 2023–24 Utah State Aggies men's basketball team represented Utah State University in the Mountain West Conference (MWC) during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by first-year head coach Danny Sprinkle, the Aggies played their home games on campus at the Smith Spectrum in Logan, Utah. They finished the season 28–7, 14–4 in MWC play, to win the regular-season conference championship. They defeated Fresno State in the quarterfinals of the MWC tournament before losing to San Diego State. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 9 seed in the Midwest region. They defeated TCU in the first round before losing to No. 1-seeded Purdue.

2023–24 Mountain West Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
No. 22 Utah State	14	–	4	.778	28	–	7	.800
Nevada	13	–	5	.722	26	–	8	.765
Boise State	13	–	5	.722	22	–	11	.667
UNLV	12	–	6	.667	21	–	13	.618
No. 17 San Diego State	11	–	7	.611	26	–	11	.703
New Mexico †	10	–	8	.556	26	–	10	.722
Colorado State	10	–	8	.556	25	–	11	.694
Wyoming	8	–	10	.444	15	–	17	.469
Fresno State	4	–	14	.222	12	–	21	.364
San Jose State	2	–	16	.111	9	–	23	.281
Air Force	2	–	16	.111	9	–	22	.290

† 2024 Mountain West tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

On March 25, 2024, head coach Danny Sprinkle left the school to become the head coach at Washington.^[1]

Previous season

The Aggies finished the 2022–23 season 26–9, 13–5 in MWC play, to finish in second place. They defeated New Mexico and Boise State in the MWC tournament to advance to the championship game. There they lost to San Diego State. The Aggies received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 10 seed in the South region. There they lost to Missouri.

On March 29, 2023, head coach Ryan Odom left the school to become the head coach at VCU.^[2] On April 7, the school named Montana State head coach Danny Sprinkle the team's new head coach.^[3]

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Sean Bairstow	2	G	6'8"	190	Senior	Brisbane, Australia	Graduate transferred to VCU
Steven Ashworth	3	G	6'1"	170	Junior	Alpine, UT	Transferred to Creighton
RJ Eytle-Rock	5	G	6'4"	225	RS Senior	London, England	Graduated
Cade Potter	10	F	6'8"	230	RS Freshman	Orange, CA	Transferred to High Point
Max Shulga	11	G	6'4"	197	Junior	Kyiv, Ukraine	Transferred to VCU
Szymon Zapala	12	C	6'11"	240	Junior	Zaborze, Poland	Transferred to Longwood
Conner Gillis	13	G	6'2"	150	Junior	Charlotte, NC	Walk-on; TBD
Connor Odom	14	G	5'11"	165	Junior	Annapolis, MD	Walk-on; transferred to Maryland
Rylan Jones	15	G	6'0"	178	Senior	Salt Lake City, UT	Graduate transferred to Samford
Taylor Funk	23	F	6'9"	220	GS Senior	Lancaster, PA	Graduated
Zee Hamoda	24	F	6'7"	170	Sophomore	Riffa, Bahrain	Transferred to Sacramento State
Dan Akin	30	F	6'9"	225	GS Senior	London, England	Graduated
Trevin Dorius	32	C	7'0"	240	RS Senior	Heber City, UT	Graduate transferred to Utah Valley

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous school
Great Osobor	1	F	6'8"	245	Junior	Bradford, England	Montana State
Ian Martinez	4	G	6'3"	185	Senior	Heredia, Costa Rica	Maryland
Darius Brown II	10	G	6'2"	195	RS Senior	Pasadena, CA	Montana State
Josh Uduje	14	G	6'5"	190	Junior	London, England	Coastal Carolina
Jackson Grant	21	F	6'10"	205	Junior	Olympia, WA	Washington
Javon Jackson	22	G	6'3"	190	Sophomore	Houston, TX	Walk-on; Southern Nazarene
Max Agbonkpolo	23	G/F	6'9"	196	Senior	Laguna Niguel, CA	Wyoming
Kalifa Sakho	34	C	6'11"		Junior	Rouen, France	South Plains College
Nigel Burris	35	F	6'7"	222	Sophomore	San Francisco, CA	Idaho

Recruiting classes

2023 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Garrison Phelps SG	Phoenix, AZ	Link Academy	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Oct 15, 2022
Garrison Phelps SG	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 0
Dallin Grant SF	Cedar City, UT	Cedar City High School	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Sep 23, 2020
Dallin Grant SF	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 0
Karson Templin PF	Fairview, TX	Lovejoy High School	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	217 lb (98 kg)	Oct 28, 2022
Karson Templin PF	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN grade: 0
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: – Rivals: – 247Sports: #65
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved 2023-09-14.

2024 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2023 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Kase Wynott SF	Winchester, ID	Lapwai High School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	N/A	Jul 1, 2023
Kase Wynott SF	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 0
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: – Rivals: – 247Sports: #65
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2024 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved 2023-09-14.

Roster

2023–24 Utah State Aggies men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	0	Landon Brenchley (W)	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	209 lb (95 kg)	RS So	Ridgeline HS	Providence, UT
G/F	1	Great Osobor	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	250 lb (113 kg)	Jr	Myerscough College Montana State	Bradford, England
G	2	Garrison Phelps	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	192 lb (87 kg)	Fr	St. Mary's Catholic	Phoenix, AZ
G	3	Jaxon Smith (W)	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	188 lb (85 kg)	Fr	Woods Cross HS	Bountiful, UT
G	4	Ian Martinez	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Sr	Junípero Serra Catholic HS Maryland	Heredia, Costa Rica
G	10	Darius II Brown	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	RS Sr	Pasadena HS Montana State	Pasadena, CA
G/F	11	Dallin Grant	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	218 lb (99 kg)	Fr	Cedar HS	Cedar City, UT
G	12	Mason Falslev	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	203 lb (92 kg)	RS Fr	Sky View HS	Benson, UT
G	14	Josh Uduje	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	189 lb (86 kg)	Jr	Arizona Compass Preparatory Coastal Carolina	London, England
C	20	Isaac Johnson	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	227 lb (103 kg)	RS So	American Fork HS Oregon	American Fork, UT
F	21	Jackson Grant	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	226 lb (103 kg)	Jr	Olympia HS Washington	Olympia, WA
G	22	Javon Jackson	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	So	C.E. King HS Southern Nazarene	Houston, TX
G/F	23	Max Agbonkpolo	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	194 lb (88 kg)	Sr	Santa Margarita HS Wyoming	Laguna Niguel, CA
F	24	Karson Templin	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	217 lb (98 kg)	Fr	Lovejoy HS	Fairview, TX
F	34	Kalifa Sakho	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Jr	South Plains College	Rouen, France
F	35	Nigel Burris	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	224 lb (102 kg)	So	Archbishop Mitty HS Idaho	San Francisco, CA

Head coach

Danny Sprinkle (Montana State)

Assistant coach(es)

Andy Hill (Eastern Washington)
Chris Haslam (Wyoming)
Eric Brown (Cal State Fullerton)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: August 7, 2024

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
November 3, 2023* 7:00 p.m., KMYU		Montana State Billings	W 73–64	−	23 – Falslev	8 – Sakho	7 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (4,825) Logan, UT
Non-conference regular season
November 6, 2023* 7:30 p.m., KMYU		South Dakota Mines	W 101–48	1–0	19 – Uduje	9 – Osobor	7 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (10,270) Logan, UT
November 11, 2023* 6:00 p.m., KMYU		at Bradley	L 66–72 ^OT	1–1	22 – Osobor	8 – Brown II	8 – Brown II	Carver Arena (5,845) Peoria, IL
November 14, 2023* 7:00 p.m., KMYU		Southern Utah	W 93–84	2–1	31 – Osobor	10 – Osobor	8 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (7,112) Logan, UT
November 19, 2023* 3:00 p.m., FloSports		vs. Marshall Cayman Islands Classic quarterfinals	W 83–60	3–1	18 – Osobor	16 – Osobor	8 – Brown II	John Gray Gymnasium George Town, Cayman Islands
November 20, 2023* 5:30 p.m., FloSports		vs. Akron Cayman Islands Classic semifinals	W 65–62	4–1	24 – Osobor	11 – Osobor	6 – Brown II	John Gray Gymnasium (1,200) George Town, Cayman Islands
November 21, 2023* 5:30 p.m., FloSports		vs. Stephen F. Austin Cayman Islands Classic championship	W 79–49	5–1	19 – Falslev	9 – Falslev	10 – Brown II	John Gray Gymnasium (1,531) George Town, Cayman Islands
November 28, 2023* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Saint Louis	W 81–76	6–1	24 – Osobor	13 – Osobor	7 – Brown II	Chaifetz Arena (4,721) St. Louis, MO
December 2, 2023* 7:00 p.m., KMYU		UC Irvine	W 79–69	7–1	19 – Falslev	7 – Agbonkpolo	9 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (7,880) Logan, UT
December 6, 2023* 7:00 p.m., KMYU		San Diego	W 108–81	8–1	17 – Falslev	4 – tied	6 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (7,078) Logan, UT
December 9, 2023* 7:00 p.m., KMYU		Northwest Nazarene	W 84–53	9–1	17 – Osobor	10 – Osobor	11 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (4,950) Logan, UT
December 13, 2023* 8:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Santa Clara	W 84–82	10–1	28 – Martinez	10 – Osobor	7 – Brown II	Leavey Center (1,107) Santa Clara, CA
December 16, 2023* 2:00 p.m., KMYU		vs. San Francisco	W 54–53	11–1	20 – Martinez	8 – tied	4 – Brown II	Delta Center (4,352) Salt Lake City, UT
December 22, 2023* 7:00 p.m., KMYU		East Tennessee State	W 80–65	12–1	19 – Brown II	10 – tied	8 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (6,804) Logan, UT
Mountain West regular season
January 2, 2024 2:00 p.m., KMYU		at Air Force	W 88–60	13–1 (1–0)	32 – Osobor	9 – Osobor	8 – Brown II	Clune Arena (945) Colorado Springs, CO
January 6, 2024 7:00 p.m., KMYU		No. 13 Colorado State	W 77–72	14–1 (2–0)	20 – Osobor	14 – Osobor	3 – tied	Smith Spectrum (10,270) Logan, UT
January 9, 2024 7:00 p.m., KMYU	No. 20	Wyoming	W 83–59	15–1 (3–0)	20 – Osobor	8 – Osobor	11 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (8,214) Logan, UT
January 13, 2024 1:00 p.m., CBSSN	No. 20	at UNLV	W 87–86	16–1 (4–0)	24 – tied	14 – Osobor	5 – Martinez	Thomas & Mack Center (5,992) Paradise, NV
January 16, 2024 8:30 p.m., FS1	No. 16	at New Mexico	L 86–99	16–2 (4–1)	22 – Martinez	9 – Falslev	5 – Brown II	The Pit (13,106) Albuquerque, NM
January 20, 2024 7:00 p.m., KMYU	No. 16	Fresno State	W 83–62	17–2 (5–1)	20 – Osobor	12 – Osobor	6 – Martinez	Smith Spectrum (8,851) Logan, UT
January 27, 2024 2:00 p.m., MW Network	No. 18	at Boise State	W 90–84 ^OT	18–2 (6–1)	19 – Brown II	11 – Johnson	7 – Osobor	ExtraMile Arena (12,058) Boise, ID
January 30, 2024 7:00 p.m., KMYU	No. 17	San Jose State	W 82–61	19–2 (7–1)	31 – Osobor	10 – Brown II	5 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (8,599) Logan, UT
February 3, 2024 1:30 p.m., FOX	No. 17	at San Diego State	L 67–81	19–3 (7–2)	17 – Osobor	8 – Brown II	5 – tied	Viejas Arena (12,414) San Diego, CA
February 6, 2024 7:00 p.m., KMYU	No. 22	Nevada	L 63–77	19–4 (7–3)	16 – Martinez	5 – tied	4 – tied	Smith Spectrum (8,860) Logan, UT
February 10, 2024 8:00 p.m., FS1	No. 22	Boise State	W 80–61	20–4 (8–3)	25 – Falslev	10 – Osobor	5 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (10,270) Logan, UT
February 14, 2024 8:00 p.m., FS1		at Wyoming	W 84–76	21–4 (9–3)	24 – Brown II	8 – Brown II	5 – Brown II	Arena-Auditorium (3,401) Laramie, WY
February 17, 2024 5:30 p.m., CBSSN		at Colorado State	L 55–75	21–5 (9–4)	15 – Osobor	13 – Osobor	5 – Brown II	Moby Arena (8,083) Fort Collins, CO
February 20, 2024 7:00 p.m., CBSSN		No. 19 San Diego State	W 68–63	22–5 (10–4)	25 – Brown II	7 – Osobor	7 – Osobor	Smith Spectrum (9,233) Logan, UT
February 27, 2024 8:00 p.m., MW Network	No. 22	at Fresno State	W 77–73 ^OT	23–5 (11–4)	21 – Osobor	11 – tied	6 – Brown II	Save Mart Center (3,785) Fresno, CA
March 2, 2024 9:00 p.m., FS1	No. 22	Air Force	W 72–60	24–5 (12–4)	21 – Martinez	6 – tied	5 – Falslev	Smith Spectrum (9,194) Logan, UT
March 5, 2024 8:30 p.m., CBSSN	No. 22	at San Jose State	W 90–70	25–5 (13–4)	21 – Brown II	8 – Osobor	9 – Brown II	Provident Credit Union Event Center (2,851) San Jose, CA
March 9, 2024 6:30 p.m., CBSSN	No. 22	New Mexico	W 87–85	26–5 (14–4)	22 – Martinez	12 – Osobor	9 – Brown II	Smith Spectrum (10,270) Logan, UT
Mountain West tournament
March 14, 2024 1:00 p.m., CBSSN	(1) No. 18	vs. (9) Fresno State Quarterfinals	W 87–75 ^OT	27–5	29 – Osobor	17 – Osobor	11 – Brown II	Thomas & Mack Center Paradise, NV
March 15, 2024 7:30 p.m., CBSSN	(1) No. 18	vs. (5) San Diego State Semifinals	L 70–86	27–6	19 – Osobor	5 – tied	5 – Brown II	Thomas & Mack Center Paradise, NV
NCAA tournament
March 22, 2024 7:55 p.m., TBS	(8 MW) No. 20	vs. (9 MW) TCU First Round	W 88–72	28–6	21 – Martinez	7 – Osobor	10 – Brown	Gainbridge Fieldhouse (16,668) Indianapolis, IN
March 24, 2024 12:40 p.m., CBS	(8 MW) No. 20	vs. (1 MW) No. 3 Purdue Second round	L 67–106	28–7	14 – Osobor	6 – Osobor	4 – Brown II	Gainbridge Fieldhouse (16,770) Indianapolis, IN
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. MW=Midwest. All times are in Mountain.

Source:^[4]

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	Final
AP	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	20	16	18	17	22	RV	RV	22	22	18	20	22
Coaches	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	23	17	20	17	21	RV	RV	23	22	18	19	20

References

^ Norlander, Matt (2024-03-25). "Washington hires Danny Sprinkle: Utah State coach leaving for Huskies after leading Aggies to NCAA Tournament". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
^ Norlander, Matt (2023-03-29). "VCU hires Utah State coach Ryan Odom after Mike Rhoades' departure to Penn State". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
^ Reynolds, Kevin (April 8, 2023). "Utah State hires Danny Sprinkle as next head basketball coach". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
^ "2023-24 Men's Basketball Schedule". UtahStateAggies.com. Retrieved August 7, 2024.

[1] Norlander, Matt (2024-03-25). "Washington hires Danny Sprinkle: Utah State coach leaving for Huskies after leading Aggies to NCAA Tournament". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2024-03-27.

[2] Norlander, Matt (2023-03-29). "VCU hires Utah State coach Ryan Odom after Mike Rhoades' departure to Penn State". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2024-03-27.

[3] Reynolds, Kevin (April 8, 2023). "Utah State hires Danny Sprinkle as next head basketball coach". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2024-03-27.

[4] "2023-24 Men's Basketball Schedule". UtahStateAggies.com. Retrieved August 7, 2024.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

2023–24 Utah State Aggies men's basketball

Cayman Islands Classic champions Mountain West regular-season champions
NCAA tournament, second round
Conference	Mountain West Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 20
AP	No. 22
Record	28–7 (14–4 MW)
Head coach	Danny Sprinkle (1st season)
Assistant coaches	Andy Hill Chris Haslam Eric Brown
Home arena	Smith Spectrum
Seasons ← 2022–23 2024–25 →