San Diego State all but ensured the race for the Mountain West’s regular-season championship will go down to the wire with a dominant 89-72 win over former conference leader Utah State on Wednesday.
The Aztecs (19-8, 13-4 MWC) are one of five teams still alive in the title hunt. They’re tied with Utah State (23-5, 13-4) for first place in the conference, and San Diego State has a chance to knock off third-place New Mexico (21-7, 12-5) at The Pit on Saturday.
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Nevada (19-9, 11-6) and conference newcomer Grand Canyon (18-10, 11-6) are still alive in the title hunt, too. The Wolf Pack has the easiest path to the championship. They’re at UNLV on Saturday, at Wyoming on March 3, and wrap up the regular season at home against Air Force. Grand Canyon travels to Utah State on Saturday.
San Diego State was picked to win the Mountain West in the preseason, and a victory at The Pit would be a big step in the right direction. The Aztecs are at Boise State on March 3 and end the regular season at home against UNLV on March 6.
San Diego State has won at least a share of eight Mountain West regular-season titles since 2010-11. The Aztecs would love to win one more in their farewell tour. San Diego State is set to join Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Utah State, Oregon State, Washington State, Texas State, and Gonzaga in the new Pac-12 next season.
The Aztecs snapped a two-game skid and improved to 13-2 at Viejas Arena on Wednesday. Reese Dixon-Waters notched his fourth 20-point effort of the season, while fellow guard Miles Byrd (8 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists) and 7-foot sophomore Magoon Gwath (9 points, 9 rebounds) just missed double-doubles.
San Diego State shot 54 percent as a team and got 42 points from the bench.
Dixon-Waters has scored at least 10 points in 16 of the Aztecs’ past 17 games. He leads the team with 12.9 points a game. Byrd leads the team with 52 steals and 32 blocked shots. He’s No. 2 on the team with 10.7 points, 4.5 rebounds a game, and 75 assists.
New Mexico is coming off a 67-60 loss at Nevada on Tuesday. The Lobos are led this season by a trio of freshmen. Six-foot-4 guard Jake Hall paces the team with 16 points a game, while 6-foot-9 forward Tomislav Buljan averages 11.7 points and 9.8 rebounds a night. Speedy freshman Uriah Tenette is adding 10.6 points a game off the bench, and he leads the team with 40 steals.
Utah State transfer Deyton Albury has also carved out a role for himself at New Mexico. The 6-foot-3 senior from the Bahamas is averaging 11.7 points a night, and he leads the team with 86 assists.
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San Diego State at New Mexico Odds
New Mexico is a 2.5-point college basketball betting odds favorite on BetMGM as of this writing, and the Over/Under is at 149.5 points.
The Moneyline is at -145 for the Lobos and +120 for the Aztecs.
New Mexico leads the all-time series 52-47, and the Lobos are 32-13 against the Aztecs at The Pit. San Diego State has won the past two meetings, including an 83-79 victory at Viejas Arena in January.
San Diego State at New Mexico on TV
The Mountain West game featuring San Diego State and New Mexico will be televised on CBS.
Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET.
San Diego State at New Mexico Prediction
I predict San Diego State wins 84-80.
New Mexico is tough to beat at The Pit, where the Lobos average a conference-high 12,576 fans a game. They’re 13-2 at home this season, but San Diego State seems to be hitting its stride at exactly the right time, and that’s bad news for the rest of the Mountain West.
Gwath, just two games removed from a five-game layoff due to a hip injury, played one of his best games of the season against Utah State. The Aztecs also got a productive 29 minutes out of talented freshman Elzie Harrington, who has been battling a leg injury.
The Aztecs already have a solid foundation thanks to Byrd, Dixon-Waters, and fellow veteran guard BJ Davis. They’re going to keep the team in most games, but add a dominant post presence in Gwath and a long, versatile scorer in Harrington, and you have a formula for a team that is not only worthy of the Mountain West title but capable of a deep NCAA Tournament run.
