SAN DIEGO – San Diego State faced off against the visiting Lopes of Grand Canyon University on Steve Fisher Court in front of a packed crowd in Viejas Arena. In what was mostly a back-and-forth affair across 40 minutes, the Lopes were able to hold on to secure a 73-63 victory over the Aztecs. San Diego State moves to 12-3 in conference play and 18-7 overall.
BJ Davis got the Aztecs offense rolling with a pull up jump shot for the first points of the night. For the next 14 minutes the teams would exchange small scoring runs culminating in the Lopes maintaining a seven-point lead with roughly four and a half minutes of play in the first frame of action. Despite the deficit, a Miles Byrd jumper kickstarted a 14-3 scoring run in the closing minutes of the first half. Grand Canyon’s Nana Owusu-Anane knocked down a three-point shot with just under three minutes remaining in what would be the final points of the half for the Lopes. Taj DeGourville and Tae Simmons closed out the first 20 minutes strong with both players converting a pair of free throws before DeGourville found Simmons alone along the baseline for an emphatic alley-oop dunk. Simmons led all Aztecs with six points while Miles Byrd was dynamic with two rebounds, two blocks and five points.
The Aztecs entered the second half with a 33-29 lead. The Lopes rallied early with a 12-3 scoring run that flipped the score 41-36 in their favor. Miles Byrd was able to pull the Aztecs back within two after converting an “and-1”. The Lopes once again responded converting their own “and-1” and connecting on a pair of shots from behind the arc to push their lead up to 10. The Aztecs had one final push late with Tae Simmons and Miles Byrd knocking down a pair of free throws apiece and Magoon Gwath converting a layup at the rim after Miles Byrd found him for a quick shovel pass after an offensive rebound. Despite pulling within five with just under two minutes remaining, the Lopes were able to hold on to a 10 point victory thanks to free throw shooting down the stretch.
Miles Byrd led the Aztecs with 18 points on 55 percent shooting, including three shots from behind the arc. He was also active on defense tying a career best four blocked shots as well as swiping a steal. The duo of Taj DeGourville and Tae Simmons provided a spark off the bench as well. They combined for 17 points and eight rebounds with DeGourville tying his career best with three steals.
UP NEXT
San Diego State will hit the road later this week with a trip to Colorado State scheduled for Saturday, February 21. The Aztecs defeated the Rams inside Viejas Arena earlier this season 73-50. The duo of Reese Dixon-Waters and Pharaoh Compton combined to score 31 points while BJ Davis handed out five assists. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. PST and will be broadcast on FS1.