Utah State Basketball: Breaking down the 2019 Recruiting Class

By TJ Miller | Jun 30, 2019

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 16: The Utah State Aggies celebrate their victory over the San Diego State Aztecs in the championship game of the Mountain West Conference basketball tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center on March 16, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Utah State won 64-57. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images) /

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COLUMBUS, OHIO – MARCH 22: The bench celebrates as Sam Merrill #5 of the Utah State Aggies looks on as they play against the Washington Huskies during the second half of the game in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 22, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

Utah State Basketball defied expectations to have a phenomenal 2018-19 season. Solid newcomers give the Aggies a chance for more success.

A middle of the pack finish in the Mountain West would have been a decent way for Utah State Basketball head coach Craig Smith to kick off his tenure. A first place MWC title on strength of a 28-7 (15-3) and NCAA Tournament appearance is what ended up happening. Now, after deservedly capturing the conference coach of the year award, Smith is hoping to take the tremendous momentum he built during year one into the 2019-20 season.

Certainly there will be some pressure present this time around, but Smith gets to relish in having a combination of a solid returning core with the Mountain West’s number one ranked recruiting class for 2019. The Aggies return both Sam Merrill and Neemias Queta who won the offensive and defensive player of the year awards. In addition they will return Diogo Brito and Brock Miller who were the 3rd and 4th leading scorers for Utah State behind Merrill and Queta. Abel Porter and Justin Bean also will be back as significant contributors this next season.

The new 2019 class will have the challenge and motivation to keep up with such a strong core. As of today Smith has five incoming players signed and eligible for the 2019-20 season. It’s a diverse group with one Canadian player, one from Australia, two coming from JUCO / Community College, and one out of high school. Although its unlikely we’ll see all five of these newcomers gain regular minutes this season, it’s realistic at least two or three can find their way into solid playing time and each one has the potential for nice careers at Utah State.

Here, I’ll break down the top 3 ranked players of this group as each one could be counted on this coming season. Let’s get going.