Trailblazers to face in-state rival Wildcats at end of season-long road trip

Utah Tech's Noa Gonsalves (11) and Dancell Leter (14) battle with Utah State players for control of the basketball during the Trailblazers' 86-81 loss to the Aggies Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022 | Photo by Lorene Hale, Cache Valley Daily, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — The men’s basketball team at Utah Tech concludes a seven-game road trip Saturday night at Weber State.

According to a press release, the Trailblazers and Wildcats will meet for only the second time in their history as NCAA Division I opponents.

Weber State beat Utah Tech in St. George last year 87-70 in their first meeting.

Weber State is 2-5 entering the contest. The game tips off at 7 p.m. inside the Dee Events Center.

Voice of the Trailblazers Rod Zundel will have the live broadcast of the game at The Fan Sports Network.

This year’s Trailblazers are off to a 3-5 start after a hard-fought 86-81 defeat against Utah State Thursday night in Logan.

According to a press release, three Trailblazers (Drew Gooden, Dancell Leter, Noa Gonsalves) put up career-best scoring efforts in the tough loss to the Aggies, who are now 7-0 overall.

Statistics courtesy of Utah Tech Athletics.

Utah Tech battled undefeated Utah State to a 36-36 tie at halftime. Gooden and Gonsalves combined to score 28 of those points in the first session.

Gooden finished with 29 points and Gonsalves netted 15 points, both career highs. Leter tied his career-best effort with 17 points, 13 of those in the second half.

The Aggies countered with guard Steven Ashworth, who hit seven 3’s and scored 27 points to lead four Aggies in double figures.

The game featured 10 ties and 24 total lead changes.

It was a homecoming of sorts for Utah Tech coach Jon Judkins, who had a standout career as a player at Utah State.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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