Halimon, Lauriski, Saxon, Youngblood Added To Utah State University All-Century Team

Feb. 9, 2005

 

LOGAN, Utah - Four more names, representing four different decades, are being added to the Utah State University All-Century Basketball team. Shaler Halimon, Bob Lauriski, Marcus Saxon and Kendall Youngblood will be recognized at Utah State's home basketball game against CS Northridge on Thursday [Feb. 10].

 

Halimon was a 6-5 forward from Remulus, Mich., who played two seasons at Utah State from 1967 to 1968, earning All-America recognition as a senior. He ranks as the 15th leading scorer in Utah State history with 1,284 points, while playing in just 50 games. In 1968 he ranked eighth in the country in scoring at 26.8 points per game.

 

An all-around player, he has recorded two of the three triple-doubles in Utah State history as he had 21 points, 24 rebounds and 10 assists against Evansville in 1967 and 35 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists against Arizona State in 1968.

 

He played 170 games for four different teams in his NBA career after getting drafted by Philadelphia in the first round. "Supershay" was also drafted by Dallas of the ABA.

 

Lauriski is a local product, who earned high school All-America honors while starring at Logan High School in 1969. After graduation, he played three seasons at Utah State from 1971-73.

 

A smooth 6-7 forward, Lauriski scored 1,266 points to rank 16th on the Utah State career scoring list and stands eighth on the rebounding list with 720. He also managed to shoot 79.4 percent from the free throw line during his stellar career.

 

Lauriski led Utah State in scoring in 1972 and in rebounding in 1972 and 1973. He once recorded 22 rebounds in a game against Houston Baptist.

 

Saxon was virtually a one-man team for the 1998 Aggies as he led the team to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 10 years. The 6-2 guard from Columbia, S.C., was a two-time first-team all-Big West selection in his two years at the school and claimed the Big West Tournament MVP honor in 1998.

 

Saxon averaged 34.2 minutes per game for his career, the third-best average in school history. As a senior he scored 574 points and handed out 135 assists. The smooth-playing guard also ranks 10th on the school's three-point shooting percentage list.

 

Youngblood was a well-rounded player for Utah State from 1989-92. He ranks in the top 10 of several statistical categories on Utah State's career record lists. Among those are sixth in scoring (1,774 points), 10th in rebounding (674), fourth in assists (389), fourth in steals (164) and fifth in blocked shots (56).

 

He also is second in three-point field goal percentage (44.8 percent), second in double-figure scoring games (93) and third in games started (103). He is one of four players to ever lead Utah State in scoring in three consecutive seasons.

 

Youngblood earned Big West honors in each of his four years at Utah State, being tabbed the league's freshman of the year in 1989, earning second-team all-conference honors in 1990 and 1991 and earning first team accolades as a senior in 1992.

 

The 6-4 guard from Ogden started all but one game in his Aggie career. He came to Utah State University after turning down a football scholarship offer from Washington.