Dec. 29, 2014
SAN DIEGO -
SDSU Game Notes | SDSU Broadcast Flip Card
NEWS AND NOTES (all notes through Dec. 28 games)
* San Diego State, which won the outright 2014 Mountain West regular-season title and has claimed at least a share of three of the last four regular-season conference championships, opens league play on Wednesday afternoon against Air Force. Game time is set for 2 p.m. PT.
* The Aztecs are opening their 16th season as a founding member of the Mountain West and have earned a league-high-tying eight MW titles. Included among that total are four regular-season championships - 2006, 2011*, 2012* and 2014. * - denotes shared title.
* SDSU carries a school-record-tying and Division-I-era-record homecourt winning streak of 22 games into Wednesday's contest. Entering the game, the Aztecs will have a streak of 412 consecutive days without a home loss dating back to Nov. 14, 2013.
* San Diego State's 22-game homecourt win streak is the sixth-longest active streak in the nation, trailing only Duke (38), Gonzaga (32), Arizona (29), North Carolina Central (26) and Wichita State (23).
* SDSU is 80-1 in its last 81 home games against teams that were not ranked in either of the major national polls at game time.
* San Diego State has won three consecutive meetings with Air Force and 11 of the last 12 encounters. The Aztecs have won the last nine games played between the teams at Viejas Arena by an average of 15.1 points. The last two games played in Viejas, however, have been decided by a total of 15 points.
* Although the Aztecs have won the last three games in the series, the margins in those three games have been seven, seven and eight points.
* Of Steve Fisher's 506 all-time coaching victories, 20 have come against the Falcons. That is tied for the second-highest total against a single opponent. Fisher owns 24 wins against Colorado State and 20 victories against both Air Force and UNLV.
* San Diego State is ranked 25th in the USA Today Coaches Poll this week, marking the 24th consecutive week the Aztecs have been ranked in at least one of the two major polls. Wednesday will mark the 44th consecutive time that SDSU has entered a game nationally ranked.
* SDSU has won 15 consecutive conference home games dating back to Jan. 16, 2013.
* San Diego State has won its last seven conference openers with the last defeat in a league lidlifter coming at Wyoming, 66-65, on Jan. 3, 2007. That is tied for the eighth-longest active streak nationally.
* Last Saturday, San Diego State ran its overall winning streak to three games with a 72-50 victory over San Diego Christian. The Aztecs never trailed in the contest, building an 18-point halftime advantage and extending the lead to 32 points before settling on a 22-point win. SDSU had 15 student-athletes see time in the game.
* The Aztecs improved to 7-0 this season when committing fewer turnovers (11 to 19) than its opponent and had an edge in free throws attempted (21 to 5) for the 10th time in 13 games this season.
* True freshman Malik Pope became the first SDSU player in the last 19 seasons with at least seven points, six rebounds, four assists, two blocked shots, one steal and no turnovers in a game. He is one of just two true freshmen in the nation this season to accomplish the feat, with Kentucky's heralded freshman Karl-Anthony Towns (vs. Texas-Arlington) being the other. Pope ended the game with seven points, a team-high six rebounds, a game-high four assists, game-high two blocked shots and one steal in 15 minutes of action.
* Junior forward Winston Shepard led all SDSU players with 12 points in 17 minutes. He has reached double figures in four of his last five games. During that five-game stretch, Shepard has 15 assists and seven steals. n Sophomore guard Matt Shirgley had his best game of the season with a season-high 11 points on the strength of a trio of three-point field goals. Shrigley, who missed the first six games of the season with a broken elbow, entered the contest with 19 points on the season.
* San Diego State has held all eight of its opponents at home to under 60 points this season and as a group, foes are averaging 47.6 points against the Aztecs. The 47.6 points allowed by SDSU is the second-lowest in the nation among teams that have played at least six home games (see list on page one). The Aztecs' opponent field-goal percentage (.343) in games played at Viejas Arena, meanwhile, is 11th nationally (minimum six home games).
* Dating back to last season, nine straight SDSU foes have been unable to crack the 60-point barrier at Viejas Arena. Additionally, San Diego State has not allowed an opponent to reach 70 points inside Viejas Arena since Feb. 23, 2013 (307 days on game day).
* Viejas Arena is one of the toughest places for opponents to escape with a win. San Diego State is 97-8 since 2008-09 in home games (see list on page one) and is a perfect 8-0 this season.
* Once again this season, San Diego State is one of the top defensive teams in the nation. The Aztecs rank seventh in scoring defense (54.3), ninth in field-goal percentage defense (40.7), 19th in blocked shots per game (5.8) and 19th in fewest fouls per game (14.9). KenPom has SDSU fifth nationally in defensive efficiency.
* Senior forward JJ O'Brien is playing his best basketball of the season. During the past three games, he has scored 34 points (11.3 ppg, highest three-game total of the season) on 14-of-22 shooting (63.6 percent) and has added 10 assists and seven steals during that stretch. For the season, O'Brien is second on the team in scoring and first in minutes played, rebounds, assists and steals.
* Senior guard Aqeel Quinn has been solid whether it is off the bench or in a starting role. Two of his three double-figure scoring performances have been off the bench and he has committed one turnover of less in seven of his 10 games played. Quinn is also SDSU's top three-point threat, having made 18 despite not playing in three games due to a left-hand injury.