Brian Dutcher’s Aztecs fire on all cylinders entering Mountain West conference play.

San Diego, CA  — After a 5-week break, the San Diego State Aztecs (13-2, 2-0 MW) are back in the Associated Press Top 25, advancing seven spots from #26 last week to #19 in both the Associated Press and the Coaches Poll.

Gonzaga’s home court, the McCarthey Athletic Center a.k.a. “The Kennel” is a very hard place to win. How difficult? When the Aztecs defeated the Bulldogs, a.k.a. Zags, it was their first home loss to a non-conference opponent since 2015. As well, coach Mark Few and the Zags have been in the AP Top 25 since the end of the 2015-16 season. The Aztecs managed to close with a ten-point victory, leaving Zags fans stunned.

After New Year’s Day, the Aztecs opened up conference play on Wednesday, January 3rd, against another Bulldogs squad. This time it was the Bulldogs of Fresno State. Aside from an early lead in the opening minute of the game, SDSU thumped coach Justin Hutson’s crew 74-47.

Then, on Saturday, January 6th, the Aztecs led wire to wire against a dazzling, dangerous UNLV Runnin’ Rebels team with a 72-61 win.

The Aztecs have simply become impossible to ignore.

In light of this season’s Mountain West Conference play being as formidable as it has ever been, also including #17 Colorado State and #20 Utah State, and five spots removed Nevada Wolfpack, the Aztecs will be tested intensely. They will also have potential ranked team wins in conference, for once.

The Aztecs are back in the Top 25, and this time they might stick around.

SDSU plays at San Jose State on Tuesday, January 9th (8 p.m. PST CBS Sports Network) and at New Mexico on Saturday, January 13th at 11 a.m. PST on CBS.