NCAA Basketball: Bowling Green, Sam Merrill top mid-major performers of the week
By Logan Butts
Best Individual Performance: Sam Merrill
There were players with better stat lines this week, including an absurd 37-16 from Austin Peay’s Terry Taylor in the Govs win over SE Louisiana (expect to see Taylor in this column throughout the season), but Utah State’s Sam Merrill turned in the best overall individual performance.
Merrill was the catalyst that led Utah State to a 19-point second-half comeback against LSU in the Jamaica Classic. The win kept the Aggies undefeated season alive and preserved their top-15 ranking, which will be a top-10 ranking if they finish out the non-conference unbeaten.
It took an entire team effort for the 80-78 win over the Tigers. The Aggies aren’t a one-man squad. There’s a reason they are ranked as high as they are. Utah State is a complete team. But Merrill is, and during that comeback very much was, the person who orchestrates it all.
He finished the game with 24 points (on 5-12 shooting, including 5-9 from three, and 9-10 from the free throw line), four rebounds, eight assists, and a steal, plus he hit the go-ahead bucket with just under a minute to play following the frantic comeback. More than the stats, he always seemed to make the right play at the right time.
Despite the narrow loss, I would be remiss not to mention Vermont’s Anthony Lamb becoming the only person to score 30 on Virginia so far this season. Lamb is a legit star.