Don't know if it has been mentioned yet but Utah St without starting forward Nelson. Article from Salt Lake Tribune
Extending the best start in school history figures to be even harder than the Utah State Aggies expected, now that they will have to face Cal State Fullerton and its dominating big man on the road tonight without starting forward Spencer Nelson.
A 6-foot-8 junior, Nelson did not make the trip with his teammates, his father said Wednesday night, after taking an elbow to the face in practice on Tuesday and needing surgery to repair a nose broken in "five or six places."
"The trainer told my wife that it was the worse nose injury he'd ever seen," Jim Nelson said.
The Aggies refused to acknowledge the injury, with associate media relations director Doug Hoffman saying he could neither confirm nor deny whether Nelson was with the team in California. But Jim Nelson said his son remains in a Logan hospital and is likely to need more surgery. He said he did not know how long his son might be out.
"It is a lot more serious than just a little cartilage," he said.
Spencer Nelson is a big reason the Aggies are riding a 10-game winning streak and off to their best start ever at 13-1. He's the leading rebounder and second-leading scorer on the team -- he averages 11.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game and shoots nearly 61 percent from the field -- and is perhaps its most assertive leader.
The Aggies certainly could use him tonight against the Titans, who are 5-9 but strong inside with 6-foot-11 center Pape Sow, the leading rebounder in the Big West Conference and the second-leading scorer.
The Aggies have won four straight and 18 of the last 20 meetings, however, and probably will insert 6-8 sophomore forward Nate Harris into the starting lineup in Nelson's place. Harris has been just about as good as Nelson, averaging 10 points and 5.6 rebounds off the bench while shooting a league-high 68.2 percent from the field.
Even before Nelson was injured, coach Stew Morrill was worried about the trip to play Fullerton and then UC Riverside on Saturday. The Aggies suffered a shocking loss at Riverside last season.
"You know, it's hard to explain the challenge of going on the road," Morrill said. "I think sometimes people look at other teams' records and think that you should just automatically go on the road and win, and boy it doesn't work that way."
Extending the best start in school history figures to be even harder than the Utah State Aggies expected, now that they will have to face Cal State Fullerton and its dominating big man on the road tonight without starting forward Spencer Nelson.
A 6-foot-8 junior, Nelson did not make the trip with his teammates, his father said Wednesday night, after taking an elbow to the face in practice on Tuesday and needing surgery to repair a nose broken in "five or six places."
"The trainer told my wife that it was the worse nose injury he'd ever seen," Jim Nelson said.
The Aggies refused to acknowledge the injury, with associate media relations director Doug Hoffman saying he could neither confirm nor deny whether Nelson was with the team in California. But Jim Nelson said his son remains in a Logan hospital and is likely to need more surgery. He said he did not know how long his son might be out.
"It is a lot more serious than just a little cartilage," he said.
Spencer Nelson is a big reason the Aggies are riding a 10-game winning streak and off to their best start ever at 13-1. He's the leading rebounder and second-leading scorer on the team -- he averages 11.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game and shoots nearly 61 percent from the field -- and is perhaps its most assertive leader.
The Aggies certainly could use him tonight against the Titans, who are 5-9 but strong inside with 6-foot-11 center Pape Sow, the leading rebounder in the Big West Conference and the second-leading scorer.
The Aggies have won four straight and 18 of the last 20 meetings, however, and probably will insert 6-8 sophomore forward Nate Harris into the starting lineup in Nelson's place. Harris has been just about as good as Nelson, averaging 10 points and 5.6 rebounds off the bench while shooting a league-high 68.2 percent from the field.
Even before Nelson was injured, coach Stew Morrill was worried about the trip to play Fullerton and then UC Riverside on Saturday. The Aggies suffered a shocking loss at Riverside last season.
"You know, it's hard to explain the challenge of going on the road," Morrill said. "I think sometimes people look at other teams' records and think that you should just automatically go on the road and win, and boy it doesn't work that way."
