SDSU at Utah State
When: 5 p.m. Saturday
Where: Dee Glen Smith Spectrum
On the air: CBS Sports Network; 760-AM
Records: SDSU is 18-6 (11-4), Utah State is 23-4 (13-3)
Series history: SDSU leads 20-11 but has lost two of the last three, including 67-66 at Viejas Arena on Dec. 28. Utah State is 4-1 in the last five games in Logan, including 68-63 last season.
Aztecs update: They have won three straight and seven of eight, moving off the last-teams-in line on most projected NCAA Tournament brackets. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has them as a No. 10 seed, five spots above the cut line for at-large berths. The key in Logan will be solving Utah State’s matchup zone, which the Aztecs did in the first half of the Dec. 28 game and didn’t do in the second half. The one weapon they have this time is a more confident Magoon Gwath, who has been lethal in recent games at the high post against the zone, either shooting or attacking the rim. “We have to find a way to get him touches in the zone in areas where he can be effective,” coach Brian Dutcher said, “and hopefully he’ll make plays.” Wayne McKinney III and Nick Boyd each ed 1,000 career points in the last two home games. The Aztecs improved to 9-0 this season (and 109-7 in the Dutcher era) when holding the opposition to 60 or fewer points. They are one game behind the second-place Aggies in the loss column but one spot ahead of them in the Kenpom metric (41 to 42). The game matches the conference’s best offense (Utah State) against its best defense (SDSU). Utah State ranks seventh in the Mountain West in defense, and SDSU is seventh in offense.
Aggies update: They are 0-2 against first-place New Mexico, and 13-1 against everyone else in the Mountain West. The only other loss was 65-62 at UNLV on Jan. 15. Their most recent outing was a 105-57 home win against San Jose State on Wednesday night, the largest margin of victory in a conference game in school history. They rank 14th nationally in Kenpom offensive efficiency, which is what happens when you shoot 50% (second nationally) and average 82.6 points per game. Ian Martinez (17.3 points per game) and Mason Falslev (15.2 ppg) are the main offensive threats, followed by six players scoring between 6.0 and 8.5 per game. In the first game, Tucker Anderson had 14 points off the bench and went 4 of 7 behind the arc after opening the season at 20.5%. “The numbers are astonishing,” first-year coach Jerrod Calhoun said of SDSU’s D. “They are going to be in every game because of their defense. They are physical on the ball, the best shot-blocking team in the country, have positional size and toughness and depth. They hound you in full-court situations. There is a lot to love about their defense, no doubt about it.” Kenpom, which rates the Spectrum as having statistically the nation’s eighth best home court advantage, projects a 74-70 Aggies win.
Next up: Tuesday vs. New Mexico (8 p.m., Fox Sports 1)
–MARK ZEIGLER
