March 22, 2016
SAN DIEGO -
By Mick McGrane, @GoAztecs Senior Writer
(@MickOnTheMesa)
If his team had been overwhelmed, Washington standout guard Andrew Andrews was apparently unfazed.
Asked to rank the atmosphere of Viejas Arena in relation to other venues visited by the Huskies, Andrews pegged it somewhere between fourth and fifth.
"I'd probably say Arizona first, then Colorado and Utah just because of the altitude," Andrews said.
Of course, there could be some question as to whether Andrews even heard the question. Spending two hours in a building where sound can be akin to a tsunami has its auditory hazards.
Whatever statistics of note will be chronicled from the Aztecs' 93-78 win over the Huskies in the second round of the National Invitation Tournament Monday night, none was more astounding than this:
12,414. A sellout. For an NIT game. For an NIT game with a tip time of 8:30 p.m. For an NIT game that, being an NIT game, would normally perk the interest of but a slim portion of the populace.
Instead, because the game wasn't part of the season-ticket package fans bought in July, the turnstile at Viejas Monday night spun until it could spin no more. The capacity of 12,414 was the largest of more than 50-plus NIT games played in the last two years. The largest crowd of the 2015 tournament, in a game featuring Murray State and Old Dominion, was 8,161. Only one other crowd exceeded 7,000, that coming in the NIT semifinals at New York's Madison Square Garden (7,185).
No longer is Aztecs Coach Steve Fisher pleading to gain a following. Fact is, if a program that has reached the NCAA tournament six of the past seven years isn't attractive enough, the aura of a building that has hosted 72 straight regular-season sellouts has itself become an extraordinary recruiting tool.
"We had a recruit tell us that a player on another Mountain West team told him, 'You should go play at San Diego State, their crowd is unbelievable,' " Fisher said. "This was a player from another Mountain West team. There are very few places that (have fans) better than ours. There may not be anywhere with fans better than ours."
It has been the scene of 72 straight regular-season sellouts. The 2015-16 season marked the fourth consecutive campaign in which season tickets sold out. No Division I team in California has had better home attendance the last five seasons.
The Aztecs are now 108-11 in their last 119 home games. It's become Death Valley indoors, a point of no return where the vanquished can be found under a pile of noise.
If you happened to be in attendance when SDSU rallied from a 15-point deficit against New Mexico two years ago, you know. And when the Aztecs put together a 22-9 run that began with 6:30 left in the first half Monday night, it was there again, that din that slowly swells until communicating with anyone in the immediate vicinity becomes problematic. And when Matt Shrigley buried a three-pointer with five seconds remaining before intermission to give SDSU a 45-29 lead, problematic gave way to pointless.
"When I walked out right before the game, I could feel the energy in the building," Fisher said. "I think we had a lot of fans who said, 'I haven't had a chance to get here, I haven't had a chance to get close and I want to be there.' "
What they saw was a team that after totaling 36 points in a loss to Washington one year ago, score a season-high 93 points, a Division I postseason record. What they saw was senior forward Winston Shepard score a season-high 20 points and collect 10 rebounds in posting his sixth double-double of 2015-16. What they saw was the continued dominant play of sophomore forward Malik Pope, who also posted a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
What they heard, had they never heard it before, was the cacophony of 12,414 screaming souls now scrambling to procure tickets for Wednesday's quarterfinal game against Georgia Tech. It will mark the Aztecs' final appearance of the season of at Viejas. The winner heads to New York City for next Tuesday's semifinals.
"Who wouldn't want to come see a team that put up (93) points?" said Shepard, who along with fellow senior Skylar Spencer will be making his last appearance at Viejas. "There are some special guys on this team. I'm calling out even more fans to come. Let's pack Viejas, standing room only. This is a special team; enjoy it while you can. Shame on you if you're not there to watch it."
Said Fisher: "We've got great fans. We've got fans who are loyal. We've got fans that want to see us win. We've got fans that are proud to put on that Aztec gear. And that's important to us.
"I know we'll have a big crowd Wednesday. Our fans are special. We're appreciative of it and they're appreciative of this team."
A sellout? For a second-round NIT game at 8:30 on a Monday night? Appreciative doesn't even begin to explain it.