SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State men’s basketball program announced its entire 2025-26 slate of games on Monday: 20 Mountain West Conference games, 10 in the non-conference and a pair of exhibition games.
The schedule includes at least 13 games against opponents who competed in the 2025 NCAA Tournament: including UCLA, Arizona, Michigan, Oregon, among others and six of those games will be played at Steve Fisher Court.
After a one-year with a balanced league schedule, the Mountain West Conference returns to an unbalanced schedule (home-and-home with nine teams and single games against two teams), for the 2025-26 campaign, San Diego State’s final season competing in the Mountain West. The season will mark the last league games for SDSU against longtime rivals Air Force, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, UNLV and Wyoming as well as the only MW meetings between the Aztecs and Grand Canyon.
However, until Mountain West’s television partners select the games they will broadcast, the dates listed for league contests are subject to change. In addition, the television partners will determine the tip times and the majority of those will be announced along with associated date changes in the next 30-45 days.
San Diego State’s league slate is scheduled to commence against Air Force on Wednesday, December 17 at Viejas Arena. A facility in which the Falcons have lost 17 straight games. The Scarlet and Black’s last home loss to Air Force was on February 28, 2005, and it will be just shy of 7,600 days since that game when the teams meet in mid-December. San Diego State holds a 21-3 record at Steve Fisher Court and 35-6 all-time against Air Force in San Diego.
Just under two weeks later, the first league road contest for San Diego State is slated for northern California on Tuesday, December 30 at San Jose State. The Aztecs are 8-4 in SJSU’s Events Center, including an 8-1 mark in the Mountain West era, and have won those games by an average of 13.0 points, with six of them by 10 points or more. The Aztecs have limited the Spartans to an average of 60.4 points on SJSU’s home floor.
On Saturday, January 3, SDSU is back at Steve Fisher Court to play Boise State in its first game of the new year. The Aztecs and Broncos played three times last season, with San Diego State sweeping the regular-season meetings, including a 64-45 thumping at Viejas Arena, the second worst beating Boise State has suffered at Steve Fisher Court. Overall, the Aztecs are 10-4 at home against the Broncos. In their wins, SDSU has held Boise State to an average of 59.9 points and have had an average winning margin of 9.3 points in those contests.
Three days after hosting Boise State, on Tuesday, January 6, the Aztecs will make their final MW appearance in Reno, Nev., when they play the Nevada Wolf Pack at Lawlor Arena. Overall, the Aztecs have taken 11 of the last 13 against the Wolf Pack, are 23-5 in the Mountain West era and 28-8 all-time versus UNR, regardless of location. However, in games in Lawlor Event Center, the Scarlet and Black are just 6-6, which includes last season’s 19-point win (69-50) for the Scarlet and Black.
The Aztecs return to Steve Fisher Court to play Fresno State on Saturday, January 10. Since joining the Mountain West prior to the 2012-13 school year, Fresno State has won three of its 11 games in Viejas. Although seven of those 11 games have been decided by 10 points or less, two seasons ago the Aztecs 27-point win (74-47) was its largest at home against the Bulldogs since at least 1980 and is one of four games SDSU has won over Fresno State by at least 23 points in the Mountain West era, including last year’s 23-point victory (83-60).
It will be a short stay in America’s Finest City as San Diego State will next play at Wyoming on Tuesday, January 13. Overall San Diego State is just 14-27 in Laramie, but in the Mountain West era has a 12-10 mark in the Arena-Auditorium. The Aztecs have won each of their last four games there by an average of 8.8 points, including escaping with a 72-69 win last year.
SDSU returns to Viejas Arena on Saturday, January 17 for its final San Diego league meeting with New Mexico. The Aztecs have a 17-7 mark against the Lobos at Steve Fisher Court in the Mountain West era, winning those games by an average of 11.6 points per contest, and in its last five home wins at Viejas Arena against UNM, the margin of victory has been by an average of 17.4 points.
San Diego State next heads out of town for a pair of road contests: Tuesday, January 20 at Grand Canyon and Saturday, January 24 at UNLV.
The Aztecs and Antelopes meeting in Phoenix, as members of the Mountain West, will be their first and last in the Valley of the Sun. The Aztecs are 0-2 in games played at GCU, including a 79-73 upset on December 5, 2023, when SDSU was the No. 25 ranked team in the nation, it’s Grand Canyon’s only win over a ranked opponent in three attempts since it began transitioning to Division I in 2013.
San Diego State is 14-3 in its last 17 games against UNLV at Thomas and Mack Center, but two of those Rebels’ wins have come in the last three games. Since the start of the Mountain West era, SDSU is 22-15 at Thomas & Mack against UNLV, and the average margin of victory in those 37 games is 0.7 points. In the last meeting at T&M, a 74-67 win for the Rebels, Miles Byrd became the first player in Mountain West history, and third player in the nation since at least the start of the 1996-97 season, with 15 points (including multiple 3-pointers), 10 rebounds, six assists, four steals, and three blocks in a game.
Back at Viejas Arena on Tuesday, January 27, for a game against Colorado State, where the Aztecs hold a 22-4 home court advantage over the Rams since the start of the Mountain West era. SDSU is riding a five-game wins streak in the series, winning those games by an average of 18.6 points, and in last season’s 75-60 win on Steve Fisher Court, Byrd became just the second player in the country in 2024-25 with at least 25 points and seven steals in a game. He is the first Aztec since at least the 1996-97 season to log a 25-point, seven-steal game, and his seven thefts match the SDSU mark for steals in a game since at least the start of the 1996-97 campaign.
The team next heads to Logan, Utah, for a game at Utah State on Saturday, January 31. USU’s Dee Glen Smith Spectrum is one of the toughest venues to compete in in the nation as proven by San Diego State’s 5-6 record in the building since the Aggies joined the Mountain West for the 2013-14 season. SDSU has only one win in its last six trips to Logan, and in last year’s loss, 79-71, eventual Mountain West Freshman of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year Magoon Gwath went down with an injury in the first two minutes, which would cost him to miss the remainder of that game and the next five.
Back in the friendly confines of Viejas Arena on Tuesday, February 3, the Aztecs welcome the Wyoming Cowboys for their final league appearance in San Diego. San Diego State is 20-5 all-time at Steve Fisher Court against Wyoming and has not lost to the Cowboys at home since January 3, 2007, a run of 17-straight victories. Those 17 consecutive wins have come by an average of 13.8 points per game and Wyoming has gotten to within single digits in a loss in Viejas just three times and have fallen by at least 25 points in eight of those 17 games.
The team will be at Air Force, in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Saturday, February 7 for its final trip to the Academy. SDSU has a 60.5-win percentage (26-17) in games played at the Falcons’ Clune Arena but is 9-2 in its last 11 in the facility, and five of its last six wins have come by double digits. However, San Diego State escaped a disastrous loss at Air Force last year with an overtime, coast-to-coast, buzzer beating layup by Wayne McKinney III in a 63-61 win.
Following its scheduled bye on Tuesday, February 10, the Aztecs make the final seven-game push for seeding in the Mountain West and NCAA Tournaments.
The seven-game stretch starts with a pair of home games for the Scarlet and Black: Saturday, February 14 against Nevada and Tuesday, February 17 versus Grand Canyon.
SDSU is 13-1 against Nevada at Steve Fisher Court and have not lost a game to the Wolf Pack at home since a 76-71 overtime defeat on November 14, 1998. Last season, the teams ended the regular season on the Aztecs home floor, a 19-point (80-61) win for the home team. It was the second worst beating the Wolf Pack have taken in the facility, trailing only a 67-43 loss (24 points) on March 7, 2015.
The Antelopes have visited Viejas Arena twice and have a .500 record in the building. The first meeting, a 52-45 GCU win, came on December 18, 2015, and the second meeting, an 86-61 drubbing by SDSU was on November 13, 2019. Nathan Mensah went 7-of-8 from the floor in 21 minutes finishing with 14 points and nine rebounds to pace the Aztecs 25-point win in that 2019 game.
SDSU goes back on the road for a Saturday, February 21 matchup with Colorado State at Moby Arena in Fort Collins, Colo. SDSU has emerged victorious in 12 of its last 19 games in Moby and in three of its last six wins the margin of victory has been by 10 or more points. In last year’s game in Fort Collins, Magoon Gwath recorded a 15-point, 10-rebounds double double on 70.0 percent (7-of-10) shooting from the field.
The team’s penultimate regular season home game is set for Tuesday, February 24 against Utah State. Last year, the Aggies slipped out of Viejas Arena with a one-point, 67-66, win, its first win at Steve Fisher Court as a member of the Mountain West and just second in the history of the facility. The Aztecs are 10-2 against the Aggies at home and have secured nine of those 10 wins by double digits while the losses have been three points (63-60 on November 24, 1998) and last year’s one-point margin.
The final two road games of the regular season are set for New Mexico on Saturday, February 28 and Boise State on Tuesday, March 3.
At The Pit in Albuquerque, N.M., the Aztecs are 4-5 in their last nine games and overall are 13-32, 10-14 in the Mountain West era. The Lobos, who went 27-8 last year and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, have a new coach, former UC San Diego top-man Eric Olen, and an entirely new roster for 2025-26, as they host SDSU for the final time as conference opponents.
Following its New Mexico trip, SDSU travels to Boise, Idaho, which has not been very kind to the Aztecs. With last season’s 78-68 win over the Broncos at ExtraMile Arena, the Aztecs have a 5-8 record in the building and snapped a three-game losing streak in the facility.
The regular season slate ends against UNLV on Saturday, March 7 at Viejas Arena. The Aztecs are 9-2 in the last 11 in Viejas against UNLV, with an average winning margin of 18.7 points in those victories. Its loss on February 22, 2020, snapped SDSU’s 26-game win streak to open the 2019-20 campaign and last season the Rebels downed the Aztecs 76-68 in America’s Finest City.
The Mountain West Tournament will be contested from March 11-14 at Thomas and Mack Arena in Las Vegas.
San Diego State’s 2025-26 non-conference schedule consists of 10 regular-season games preceded by a pair of exhibitions. Like last season, the Scarlet and Black has four neutral site games and six home matchups among its 10 regular-season non-conference contests.
As previously announced, San Diego State will host UCLA at 7 p.m. (PT) on Friday, October 17 and the University of San Diego (USD) on Wednesday, October 29, in exhibition games at Viejas Arena.
The proceeds of the UCLA game will benefit San Diego State’s men’s basketball program’s retention and recruiting fund. The Aztecs, which trail UCLA 16-7 in the series, have only met twice since the 1992-93 season. SDSU earned victories in both contests, including the last get together in an empty Viejas Arena due to COVID-19 restrictions, a 73-58 win on November 25, 2020, when the Bruins were the No. 22-ranked team in the nation.
USD will make its first appearance at Steve Fisher Court since December 5, 2018, when it defeated the Aztecs 73-61, and the series will be renewed for the first time since the Scarlet and Black won at Jenny Craig Pavilion, 66-49 on November 20, 2019. Overall, SDSU holds a 33-19 advantage in the all-time series, which includes a 22-9 mark in games played on SDSU’s home floor.
The regular season opens on Tuesday, November 4, with San Diego State hosting Long Beach State and the return of former Aztecs’ assistant coach Chris Acker, who is in his second season leading the Beach program. SDSU leads the all-time series 40-22, including a 22-10 mark on its home floor, which includes a 5-0 mark in Viejas Arena. Dating back to the 1980-81 campaign, the Aztecs have come out on the winning end in 16 of the last 17 meetings, including victories in each of the last eight matchups, capped by an 88-76 win in the last meeting, November 14, 2023, at Steve Fisher Court.
Five days later, on Sunday, November 9, Idaho State makes its first appearance on The Mesa in 45 years. The overall series record favors the Aztecs 3-2 with SDSU winning each of its three home games: in 1974, 1978, and 1980. Last season, the Bengals went 15-15, 10-8 in the Big Sky Conference and were eliminated in the opening round of their conference tournament.
The squad returns to action on Wednesday, November 18 hosting Troy University out of the Sun Belt Conference. The Aztecs and Trojans met on December 5, 2022, at Viejas Arena with SDSU earning a 60-55 victory. The all-time series is tied 1-1 with the only other game being a 93-84 win for Troy on November 30, 2003, in then Cox Arena. The Trojans won the Sun Belt Conference Tournament in 2025 and were eliminated in the first round of last year’s NCAA Tournament.
San Diego State next takes the court at the Players Era Festival at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas. The team will open against the Michigan Wolverines on Monday, November 24 at 7:30 p.m. PT and then play the Oregon Ducks on Tuesday, November 25 at 8 p.m. PT.
The Aztecs and Wolverines have met just once, on December 21, 2021, at Michigan’s Crisler Arena, in a 72-58 win for the Wolverines. San Diego State and Oregon have played seven games in their all-time series with the Ducks holding a 4-3 advantage. The teams have met on a neutral floor twice, both times SDSU has come out on the short end of the score, including a 78-68 loss at last season’s Players Era Festival. The results of the games against Michigan and Oregon will determine the Aztecs’ final opponent, date (Nov. 26 or 27), tip time, and arena.
SDSU then returns to Steve Fisher Court for its first two games of December: against Utah Valley and Lamar on consecutive Wednesdays, December 3 and 10, respectively.
The Aztecs and Utah Valley have never met. The Wolverines are members of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), won the league’s regular season title last year with a 15-1 mark, and overall went 25-9. Utah Valley was eliminated in the championship game of its conference tournament, earned a bid to the NIT, and fell in its opening game at San Francisco.
Lamar leads the all-time series against the Scarlet and Black 2-0, but those games were played in the 1990 and 1992 seasons. The only meeting in San Diego was 71-70 Cardinals win at the Sports Arena on December 22, 1990, at the Texaco Star Classic. Lamar finished 20-13 last season and reached the championship game of the 2025 Southland Conference Tournament.
The non-conference slate wraps up with a neutral site contest and a non-Division I opponent at Viejas Arena.
On Saturday, December 20, San Diego State will play the Arizona Wildcats at PHX Arena in Phoenix, Ariz., as part of the Naismith Hall of Fame Series. The Aztecs trail in the series 25-7 and have fallen in each of its last five meetings, including an 87-70 loss to the Wildcats in the semifinal game at the 2022 Maui Jim Maui Invitational. In total, SDSU is 0-4 against the Wildcats in neutral site games.
The non-conference portion of the schedule concludes at Steve Fisher Court on Tuesday, December 22 against Whittier College. The 80 games against Whittier, SDSU leads the series 49-31, are the eighth most against a single opponent in Aztec history. However, the programs will meet for the first time since January 31, 1969, which was 11 days after the 37th President of the United States, Richard Nixon, was first inaugurated.
2025-26 San Diego State Men’s Basketball Schedule
(Conference games dates subject to change)
Oct. 17 – +UCLA
Oct. 29 – +SAN DIEGO
Nov. 4 – LONG BEACH STATE
Nov. 9 – IDAHO STATE
Nov. 18 – TROY
Nov. 24 – ^vs. Michigan
Nov. 25 – ^vs. Oregon
Nov. 26/27 – ^vs. TBD
Dec. 3 – UTAH VALLEY
Dec. 10 – LAMAR
Dec. 17 – *AIR FORCE
Dec. 20 – #vs. Arizona
Dec. 22 – WHITTIER COLLEGE
Dec. 30 – *at San Jose State
Jan. 3 – *BOISE STATE
Jan. 6 – *at Nevada
Jan. 10 – *FRESNO STATE
Jan. 13 – *at Wyoming
Jan. 17 – *NEW MEXICO
Jan. 20 – *at Grand Canyon
Jan. 24 – *at UNLV
Jan. 27 – *COLORADO STATE
Jan. 31 – *at Utah State
Feb. 3 – *WYOMING
Feb. 7 – *at Air Force
Feb. 14 – *NEVADA
Feb. 17 – *GRAND CANYON
Feb. 21 – *at Colorado State
Feb. 24 – *UTAH STATE
Feb. 28 – *at New Mexico
March 3 – *at Boise State
March 7 – *UNLV
Note: home games are listed in ALL CAPS
+ - exhibition; ^ - Players Era Festival (Las Vegas, Nev.); # - Naismith Hall of Fame Series (Phoenix, Ariz.); * - Mountain West game
San Diego State’s Mountain West bye will be February 10
In the unbalanced Mountain West schedule, San Diego State single games will be against Fresno State (home) and San Jose State (away).