By Mark Zeigler | [email protected] | The San Diego Union-Tribune
San Diego State has largely sputtered through the Mountain West schedule, winning a few in a row here, losing a tough one, regaining positive traction, then spinning their wheels again as their NCAA Tournament hopes started slipping as well with opportunities for resume-building victories dwindling.
This one, in many respects, was their final such opportunity of the regular season. This one, they needed.
And got, 73-65 on Tuesday night against first-place New Mexico before a Viejas Arena crowd eager to pull them along.
The victory doesn't put the Aztecs (19-7, 12-5) back in the title race. New Mexico (22-6, 14-3) and Utah State (14-3) will decide that over the final three games. But it did avenge their most lopsided loss of the season -- 62-48 in Albuquerque on Jan. 11 -- and solidify their tournament hopes, improving their record in Quad 1 and 2 games to 8-6, which is what an at-large resume looks like.
The remaining three games: at Wyoming on Saturday, at UNLV next Tuesday and home against Nevada on March 8.
Win two, and they're probably in.
SDSU won Tuesday night in much the same way that the Lobos did six weeks ago at The Pit. By punking them inside.
Miles Heide got the start for injured Magoon Gwath and equaled his career high with 10 points. Jared Coleman-Jones had 12, the first time in eight games that he's been in double figures. Pharaoh Compton had eight, giving them the kind of production from their bigs that has been absent for much of the season.
Nick Boyd continued his torrid form with 17 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Miles Byrd added 13 points and three steals.
The Lobos shot 35.5% in the first meeting but had 18 offensive rebounds that allowed them to attempt 19 more shots than SDSU. The Lobos won the battle of the boards again and 12 more shots, but the Aztecs compensated with 22 free throws and by being more accurate behind the 3-point arc: 9 of 21 versus 9 of 28.
Each team had a question about its starting 4-man. Musphafa Amzil returned for New Mexico after missing the last two games (and practices for most the past month) with a foot injury. And SDSU inserted center Heide into the starting lineup, sliding usual center Jared Coleman-Jones to the 4.
Coach Brian Dutcher had talked about going small with four guards and a post, but the concern was that the Lobos is the 26th tallest team in the nation and crushed the Aztecs 18-3 on the offensive boards in the first meeting (and that was with the 7-foot Gwath).
So he stuck with a bigger lineup and less scoring punch, and the Aztecs trailed only briefly in the first half. They had a chance to blow the game open with 5:49 left in the half after Kayde Dotson was assessed a Flagrant 1 foul for pushing Byrd in the back on a breakaway layup attempt, sending Byrd flying the baseline photographers.
That gave them two free throws, which Byrd made for a 28-19 lead, plus the ball. But Nick Boyd couldn't get two shots on the ensuing possession to fall, and the Aztecs closed the half with only a single basket. What probably should have been a larger margin, considering the Lobos shot just 33.3% and had nine turnovers, was just 33-29.
The Aztecs quickly grew the lead to 43-32 early in the second half, but the same script followed - going five minutes without a basket as the Lobos nipped at their heels.
They finally got some separation late, thanks to step-back 3 by Boyd and a three-point play by Coleman-Jones at the shot-block buzzer.
Darren Collison was supposed to be the analyst on the Fox Sports 1 telecast but never arrived at Viejas Arena in an apparent scheduling mix-up. Instead, Trent Rush called the game from courtside while Casey Jacobsen provided analysis remotely from a studio ... Former SDSU running backs Marshall Faulk and DJ Pumphrey were both in attendance. That's 10,994 yards combined college rushing yards ... Former SDSU defensive end Akbar Gbaja-Biamila led the "I Believe" chant. AGB played five years in the NFL, but is perhaps best known as commentator and co-host of NBC's "American Ninja Warrior." ... A sign in the student section: "Who punched Shane?" It's in reference to walk-on guard Shane Douma-Sanchez, who claims an unidentified Lobos teammate punched him on a charter flight to a November game.