SAN DIEGO - Wrapping up three games in seven days and following a 64-75 victory versus Nevada on Tuesday evening, the No. 23-ranked San Diego State men's basketball program returns to Steve Fisher Court at Viejas Arena to host the New Mexico Lobos on Saturday evening.
OFF THE BOUNCE
San Diego State, the dominant force in the Mountain West for the majority of the league's existence, enters Saturday's game as the lone remaining undefeated team in MW play with a 4-0 record. It is just the seventh time in the now 24 years of the Mountain West's existence that SDSU has won its first four league games and in four of the previous six instances, San Diego State moved to 5-0.
The Aztecs are battle tested having played the sixth toughest schedule in the nation based on its average opponent's NET rank. Only two schools in the AP Top 25 have played a tougher schedule than the Aztecs; No. 2 Kansas with the third toughest schedule and No. 43 Alabama with the fifth most difficult schedule, while tonight's opponent, New Mexico, has played the 157th ranked schedule.
Since the beginning of the 2009-10 campaign, San Diego State's 345-112 record is the seventh best in the nation (see box on page 8).
The last time out, San Diego State defeated Nevada, 74-65, in Viejas Arena. The victory was the team's ninth straight over the Wolf Pack regardless of location and its 11th straight at Steve Fisher Court.
With the win, SDSU is 19-1 in its last 20 Mountain West home games since January 1, 2021.
SDSU is 50-1 in its last 51 games, and has won 38 straight games, in which it has shot at least 50.0 percent from the field which it did against Nevada on Tuesday.
San Diego State and New Mexico will meet for the 92nd time Saturday evening, with the Lobos owning a 48-43 series advantage. The Aztecs have won the last three games played between the teams, regardless of location and are 10-2 in the last 12 encounters in Viejas.
The Aztecs have won 15 of the 22 games against the Lobos on its home floor since the inception of the Mountain West, which included its 25-point, 72-47 dismantling on January 31, 2022, the last time the programs met.
San Diego State's calling card is defense, and it is playing it at an elite level, according to Kenpom, which has the Aztecs ranked No. 20 nationally in adjusted defense. In addition, the SDSU offense, which ended the 2021-22 campaign ranked No. 167 in adjusted offense, slots in at No. 43 so far this year and SDSU is No. 21 in adjusted efficiency margin.
San Diego State, returned to the AP poll this week at No. 23, and has now appeared in the top 25 for 94 weeks since the start of 2010-11 season. SDSU's 94 weeks in the top 25 are the 18th most nationally and are the most for any California school in that time frame (see graphic on page 9).
SDSU enters tonight's game with a 13-3 record, with its losses coming against then No. 5 Arizona and No. 9 Arkansas at the 2022 Maui Jim Maui Invitational and Saint Mary's at the Jerry Colangelo Classic. All three are Quad 1 games played on a neutral court, and all three rank among the top-15 in Kenpom rankings. In addition, the Aztecs victory over Ohio State, No. 18 in Kenpom and receiving votes in the AP Poll, is also a Quad 1 game. Those four games and the team's win at UNLV are Quad 1 games.
San Diego State, which in 2021-22 reached the Mountain West championship game for the fifth time in head coach Brian Dutcher's five seasons, looks for its unprecedented 15th Mountain West men's basketball title. Entering the 2022-23 season, San Diego State, the most successful program in conference history, has won eight regular season and six Mountain West tournament titles.
San Diego State owns an 89-19 record (82.4 percent) since the start of the 2019-20 campaign. That's the fifth best record in the nation, trailing only Gonzaga (105-10), Houston (100-19), Kansas (98-19), and Baylor (92-18).
Senior Matt Bradley led the Aztecs attack against Nevada with a game-high 17 points and with his 10 rebounds recorded his first double double of the season and second as an Aztec. Since the start of the conference play, he is averaging 21.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.8 assists while shooting 50.9 percent from the field (27-of-53) and 55.6 percent from the bonus distance (15-of-26).
Junior Lamont Butler totaled 15 points against Nevada, going 5-of-9 from the field (55.6 percent). He knocked down a pair of threes and was 3-of-4 from the line. In the last two games Butler is scoring at 19.0 point per game clip, is 7-of-16 from beyond the arc (43.8 percent) and is dishing out 3.0 assists and grabbing 2.0 rebounds.
Keshad Johnson, a senior, shot 50.0 percent against Nevada (4-of-8) and totaled 11 points and equaled his career-high with three steals. His lob dunk just 25 second into the game, gave SDSU a lead it would not relinquish the rest of the game.
Senior Jaedon LeDee was uber efficient versus Nevada, finishing 4-of-5 from the field and 1-of-1 from the line with six rebounds. In the last two games is averaging 8.5 points on 6-of-7 shooting (6-of-7) from the field, is 5-of-5 from the line and is pulling down 7.5 rebounds.
Brian Dutcher is now in his sixth season as San Diego State's head coach and his 24th season on the Aztec sidelines. In his five-plus seasons as head coach, he has led the Aztecs to four conference titles, five Mountain West championship game appearances, a 132-43 overall record, and has been named the national coach of the year and twice the Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year.
Aztecs Host New Mexico Saturday in Viejas
