Aztec Men's Basketball Travels to Illinois State

SCENE SETTER
* San Diego State begins a challenging eight-day stretch in which the Aztecs will play three challenging non-conference games on Saturday afternoon against Illinois State in Normal, Ill.
 
* Illinois State has won 10 consecutive home games (T-14th longest active win streak nationally) and is 37-4 at home since Jan. 23, 2016. Meanwhile, San Diego State owns a 96-57 record in road and neutral game since the start of the 2010-11 campaign. That winning percentage of .627 is 11th nationally during that span.
 
* The game is part of the Mountain West-Missouri Valley Challenge series. The Aztecs enter the game with a 5-2 record in the challenge, having won three of the last four contests. Last season, SDSU defeated Bradley, 75-52.
 
* Since the start of the 2010-11 campaign, San Diego State owns the best conference record in the Mountain West (99-37, .728), while Illinois State (80-64, .556) owns the second highest-winning league percentage in the Valley among current schools.
 
* Senior Jeremy Hemsley scored 20 points and added six rebounds and five assists in SDSU's 2015 victory over Illinois State. He is the only current Aztec player who saw action in the game. No Aztec player since has produced a 20-6-5 game with the most recent occurrence prior to Hemsley coming on Dec. 27, 2013, when Winston Shepard had 21 points, eight rebounds and five assists against St. Katherine.
 
* SDSU is playing its first true road game of the season (three of the six contests to daye have been played at a neutral site). The Aztecs carry a modest two-game road winning streak into the season and are looking to win a third straight road contest for the first time since Feb. 21-Mar. 1, 2016.
 
* San Diego State is now 13-3 in its last 16 games - regardless of location - dating back to last season.
 
* Following the game against the Redbirds, San Diego State will return home to face San Diego (currently 5-2) at home on Wednesday, before traveling to Berkeley to face Pac-12 foe California next Saturday.
 
* The Aztecs are looking to improve to 5-2 on the season matching last season's record at this point in the season. That would equal the Aztecs best mark after seven in games in the last four seasons.