San Diego State puts up a fight in national title game vs UConn

The final margin was large, but the #Aztecs were within 6 of UConn late in the game, closer than other teams. The #Pac12 noticed.

College basketball season is officially over after the UConn Huskies defeated the San Diego State Aztecs on Monday night, 76-59. UConn finished an incredible NCAA Tournament run, one in which they won every game by double digits.

The 17-point margin of victory makes this game look like a blowout, and the Aztecs 12-point halftime deficit also made it feel like a blowout early on. However, the Aztecs put up a fight, even bringing the score to within five points (60-55) with 5:19 remaining after a pair of Keshad Johnson free throws.

Then, Jordan Hawkins hit a 3-pointer, and things unraveled down the stretch as UConn began to hit big shots.

The Miami Hurricanes never got within five points in the second half of their Final Four game against UConn, and the Huskies beat Gonzaga by 28 points in the Elite Eight in an easy victory.

The Huskies also topped Arkansas by 23 and St. Mary’s by 15, so their dominant run ended with another strong victory.

However, the Aztecs kept fighting, and there was a point in the second half when the San Diego State defense gave UConn fits before Dan Hurley’s team got back on track and found a way to make big shots down the stretch.

With all of the Pac-12 discussions swirling around the San Diego State Aztecs, the past few weeks show how much the conference should want them to come on board once USC and UCLA leave for the Big Ten.

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Can San Diego State Be A No. 1 Seed?

What happens if the Aztecs keep on winning?

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San Diego State is a 1 seed. Can they stay there?


Contact/Follow  @aztecbreakdown & @MWCwire

Recently, Jerry Palm of CBS Sports released a new bracket projection and in it, San Diego State was the No. 1 seed in the South region. Aztec fans are not shy about telling you how good their team is, and the national media is starting to jump on the band wagon.

The first question that must be asked is, has SDSU earned a No. 1 seed at this point. I’d say they have.

They are 15-0, which isn’t easy regardless of who you play. They are ranked No. 1 in the NET, the system the committee uses to help seed teams. On top of that, SDSU is 6-0 in Quad 1 and Quad 2 games. The other No. 1 seeds are Duke, Butler, and Gonzaga, at 5-1, 8-1, and 3-1 in quad 1 and 2 games, respectively. The Aztec’s schedule isn’t the strongest at 103, but it is way ahead of Gonzaga’s at 213, so if you don’t complain about Gonzaga not beating anyone than you can’t complain about SDSU not beating anyone.

Could an argument be made for two other teams to jump up and take the spots of San Diego State and Gonzaga? Sure. However, that is not the same thing as saying San Diego State isn’t deserving.

Having established that San Diego State has earned a 1 seed to thins point, what do they need to do to stay there? It can be a little bit tricky. If they enter the tournament undefeated they will likely be a 1 seed.

Their record in quad 1 and quad 2 games at that point would likely be around 12-0 to 14-0 (counting the conference tournament) depending on how the rest of the conference does. That being said, KenPom has the odds of the Aztecs finishing undefeated at 6.4%. With travel and altitude being such big factors in the Mountain West, it’s tough to win on the road. In addition, this San Diego State team almost lost at home to San Jose State a few weeks ago. Anything can happen.

What if they only lose one game?

Matt Norlander said in the Eye on College Basketball podcast that he thinks if SDSU loses only one game, including the conference tournament, they will be a No. 1 seed, regardless of who the loss is to. I’m no bracketology expert, but I could see that happening. I think it would also somewhat depend on how the other teams that are high in the bracket perform. Teams like Kansas and Ohio State have more opportunities for wins against Quality opponents, so if they go on a tear and the Aztecs drop one to a Wyoming or Air Force team, I could see them falling out of that top spot.

What if they lose two games?

This is where things get interesting. Will the committee, who likely doesn’t watch much Aztec basketball due to late tip off times, put SDSU as a No. 1 seed if they’ve lost two games? Some of it would depend on who they lose to. If one of those losses is to Utah State in the conference tournament final, maybe the committee lets them keep the 1 seed. If they lose to Colorado State and UNLV at home in the same week (end of February), then it wouldn’t be hard for me to believe that the east coast bias would kick in and the committee would drop the Aztecs down the bracket.

As a point of discussion, I also wonder if SDSU should want the No. 1 seed. I know, but let me explain. Receiving a 1 seed would be an awesome accomplishment. That being said, making the first Elite 8 or even the first Final Four in school history would be a better accomplishment. As a one seed in the South region, which is where this bracket has them, SDSU would play the first two rounds in Sacramento, where some fans could travel but many wouldn’t, and then play the next weekend in Houston (assuming they make it that far). As a No. 2 seed in the West region (assuming Gonzaga remains the 1 seed) the first games would be played in St. Louis, and then the second-weekend games would be played in L.A. at the Staples Center.

The chance to play a sweet 16 game in front of a home crowd is very appealing. The argument could be made that a 1 seed would be more valuable than a home crowd, but it is something worth thinking about.

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Mountain West Wire’s Player of The Year Watch List: Week Six

Mountain West Wire’s Player of The Year Watch List: Week Six Take A Look At the Best Performances Around the Mountain West In Week Six. Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire Who is in the running for Player of the Year? The staff at the Mountain …

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Mountain West Wire’s Player of The Year Watch List: Week Six


Take A Look At the Best Performances Around the Mountain West In Week Six.


Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

Who is in the running for Player of the Year?

The staff at the Mountain West Wire wanted to do something a little different this year. We are going to keep track of the top performers from teams around the Mountain West throughout the year and vote on who had the best performances that week. 

How it works description now at the bottom of the article

The order for the Sixth week is as follows:

1. Carlton Bragg Jr., senior forward New Mexico (5 Points)

17 Points, 17 Rebounds and 4 Steals against New Mexico State

Carlton Bragg Jr. is really becoming the player many thought he could be out of high school. The former five-star big man has moved around a bit after starting his collegiate career out as a Jayhawk. But Bragg Jr. has found a home in Albuquerque and posted his now fifth double-double of the season last week to help the Lobos sweep in-state rivals New Mexico State for the first time in Paul Weir’s tenure.

Bragg Jr. finished the night shooting 80% from the field and going 9-10 from the free throw line. He has been a force down low, and a defensive anchor with 1 block and 4 steals in this contest. This is Bragg Jr.’s debut on our list but now seeing him get consistently better throughout the season, it most likely will not be the last.

2. Derrick Alston Jr, junior guard Boise State (4 Points):

10 Points, 7 Rebounds and 2 Assists against Tulsa

31 Points 4 Assists and 4 Rebounds against Alabama State

3. Roderick “RJ” Williams, senior forward Boise State (3 Points):

19 Points, 10 Rebounds and 1 Block against Tulsa

12 Points, 16 Rebounds and 1 Steal against Alabama State

4. Alphonso Anderson, junior forward Utah State (2 Points):

14 Points, 4 Rebounds and 1 Block against BYU

11 Points, 9 Rebounds and 3 Assists against St. Katherine

5. Nico Carvacho, senior center Colorado State (1 Point):

12 Points, 12 Rebounds and 1 Block against South Dakota State

9 Points, 10 Rebounds and 3 Blocks against Colorado

Past Weeks:

Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3| Week 4 | Week 5

Current Overall Point Totals:

JaQuan Lyle, senior guard UNM (10 Points)

Derrick Alston Jr, junior guard BSU (9 Points)

Jalen Harris, junior guard Nevada (9 Points)

Jazz Johnson, senior guard Nevada (6 Points)

Sam Merrill, senior guard USU (6 Points)

Alphonso Anderson, junior guard USU (5 Points)

Carlton Bragg Jr., senior forward New Mexico (5 Points)

Nico Carvacho, senior center CSU (5 Points)

Lindsey Drew, senior guard Nevada (5 Points)

Malachi Flynn, junior guard San Diego State (5 Points)

Justinian Jessup, senior guard Boise State (5 Points)

Justin Bean, sophomore forward USU (4 Points)

Amauri Hardy, junior guard UNLV (4 Points)

Hunter Maldonado, sophomore guard Wyoming (4 Points)

Roderick “RJ” Williams, senior forward Boise State (3 Points)

Jordan Schakel, junior guard SDSU (2 Points)

Donnie Tillman, junior forward UNLV (2 Points)

How It Works: 

Each person will award 15 points in total to five players and should award it as so:

1st place (Player of the week): 5 pts

2nd place: 4 pts

3rd place: 3 pts

4th place: 2 pts

5th place: 1 pt

The player with the most points total will be our player of the week and we will keep track of the point totals every week so that the player who has the most at the end of the year will receive the Mountain West Wire Player of the Year award. Just copy the players below and type your names above it like we do for the pick them docs we get and award your points. 

Now some guys made the list and others didn’t. A big thing to think about was consistency throughout the week. Something that hurt some guys was having a decent game one day and a bad one the other day. Guys who made the list had a great game one day and a good one on other days, or good games both days.

This column will come out on Sunday nights or Monday mornings depending on how late some games finish on Sundays. 

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