#13 San Diego State at Utah State: Game Preview, TV, Live Stream, Radio Schedule, Odds & More
The Aztecs has up-mountain battle ahead of them.
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San Diego State is a slight 2-point underdog going into the Logan, Utah for Saturday’s matchup.
The No.13 ranked Aztecs are underdogs because of how well Utah State defends home court in one of the loudest arenas in the Mountain time zone.
Both teams knew this was going to be a fight for the top of the mountain west early in the conference schedule.
KenPom had graded this game as an “A” early in the season before San Diego State had started their unpredicted undefeated run.
Coming out of December, this was the game the Aztecs knew they would need to show the reigning champs who’s boss.
The underlying storyline here is that the Utah State Aggies were supposed to roll through UNLV on New Year’s Day in preparation for San Diego State.
The Aztecs don’t want to play a team favored by 7 only to lose by 17.
Now, the Aggies have been in the mountains licking their wounds and licking their chops for the last 2 days.
The Aztecs will be out Nathan Mensah and Aguek Arop. Mensah’s down-low presence on both ends of the court has been tough to fill.
Joel Mensah played significant minutes in rotation during their matchup against Fresno State, even contributing 8 points and 2 rebounds. With the elevation, the rotation will likely resemble a rotation of Joel Mensah, Yanni Wetzell, and Nolan Narain at the 5-spot.
On offense, eyes are going to be on Malachi Flynn. Not only has Flynn been their on-court leader and presence, but he also can get Matt Mitchell going. Mitchell was the number 2 scorer in last year’s loss at Logan, UT with 15 points. However, foul trouble limited his minutes to get more going.
They know it’s an up-mountain battle their facing. But here’s one silver lining to this: The last time the Aztecs were ranked in the top 25 and faced the Aggies, Xavier Thames dropped 31 points in a 74-69 overtime victory.
WHO: San Diego State (14-0, 3-0 MWC) at Utah State (13-3, 2-1 MWC)
WHEN: Saturday, January 4, 2020 — 7 P.M. PT / 10 P.M. ET
WHERE: Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, Logan, Utah.
TV: CBS Sports Net
STREAMING: FuboTV – get a 7-day free trial
RADIO: 1360-AM, 101.5-FM
SERIES HISTORY: 11-5 SDSU, Utah State has won the previous 2 matches, which are Utah State’s only two victories against the Aztecs since joining the MWC.
PREDICTION: San Diego State 61, Utah State 60
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