Alphonso Anderson scored 21 points off the bench, and Justin Bean added 18, as the No. 17 Utah State Aggies defeated the North Carolina A&T Aggies, 81-54, on Friday night in Logan, Utah.

Utah State (4-0) was pushed hard by North Carolina A&T (1-3) in the first several minutes of the second half but regrouped to pull away for a comfortable victory.

Utah State led 38-23 at halftime and seemed well on its way to a drama-free night, but North Carolina A&T briefly offered genuine resistance. The visitors outscored Utah State 13-4 in the first six minutes of the second half to cut a 15-point halftime deficit to six, at 42-36, with 14 minutes left in regulation.

Then Utah State upheld its top-25 ranking by restoring order for the remainder of the game. USU scored nine points in the next 1:46 to extend its lead back to 15 at 51-36 with 12:14 to go.

The two Aggies treaded water for the next three 1/2 minutes. Utah State led 61-45 with 8:40 left, comfortably ahead but not yet able to land a decisive knockout punch.

The next four minutes took care of that.

Utah State locked down N.C. A&T by holding the visitors to only two points in the next 4:07. A 10-2 run in that span of time gave USU a 71-47 lead with 4:33 left.

Utah State finished the night 29 of 52 from the field, nearly 56 percent. North Carolina A&T finished 21 of 60, at 35 percent. Utah State outscored N.C. A&T by 13 points at the free-throw line, 18-5.

Anderson, a forward, has been a key cog in Utah State's lineup as a reserve this season. The junior sixth man has scored 13 or more points in three games this season. His 21 points were a season high.

Ronald Jackson scored 15 points for North Carolina A&T. Fred Cleveland Jr. finished with 14.

--Field Level Media