Four days after Christmas last year, San Diego State’s basketball team gave itself the ultimate belated present: an 84-74 victory against Gonzaga in the notorious Kennel.
It was the Zags’ largest loss at the McCarthey Athletic Center in 11 years, and snapped the Zags’ 59-game home nonconference win streak, and ended another of 173 games without losing there by double digits. It also provided validation for an Aztecs team living in the shadow of its predecessor that eight months earlier reached college basketball’s national championship game.
The problem: It was the beginning of a two-year series, and the Bulldogs get a shot at redemption Monday night at sold-out Viejas Arena (7 p.m., CBS Sports Network).
“I mean, last year when we beat them it was the greatest thing in the world,” SDSU coach Brian Dutcher said. “Now, I’m not sure it’s so great with them coming in here. I think they’ll have a long memory.”
So what you’ve got is a motivated Gonzaga team … ranked No. 4 in The Associated Press poll … that returns four starters and added two marquee transfers … and beat then-No. 8 Baylor 101-63 in the opener … and is averaging, gulp, 100.7 points through three games and making 40.3% of its 3-point attempts … and has a senior forward (Wyoming transfer Graham Ike) who is 0-5 in his career against the Aztecs and desperately wants to beat them in what likely is his last chance.
“That’s one I’m definitely looking forward to,” Ike said at WCC media day last month in Las Vegas. “I have a rivalry with them personally.”
And on the other side you have an Aztecs team … picked to finish fourth in the Mountain West … that has no returning starters … and eight new players … and six freshmen or sophomores in the rotation … and struggled in the opener against a UC San Diego team that on Saturday was down 24 at home before losing to 0-3 Seattle University.
And an Aztecs team that won’t have 6-foot-6 guard Reese Waters, the best player on the floor last year with 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting. And might not have 6-7 wing Miles Byrd, who was a sparkplug off the bench in Spokane but rolled an ankle in practice last week and is a game-time decision.
If Byrd can’t go, that leaves the Aztecs with only one guy on the floor in last year’s game: sophomore forward Miles Heide, who had two points and two rebounds in seven minutes. The only other member of the roster who has faced the Zags is USD transfer Wayne McKinney III, who is 0-3 by 30, 25 and 42 points with the Toreros.
“Obviously, they’re an elite team,” Dutcher said, “with 80 percent of their scoring back, as elite of a backcourt as we’ll see all year with (Nolan) Hickman and (Ryan) Nembhard, Ike is great in the post and then (Braden) Huff coming behind him is almost equal if not better at times. They’re deep, they’re talented, they’re well-coached, and they will present the ultimate challenge.
“We’ll see if we’re ready for the next step up.”
Or put it this way: When was the last time SDSU was a double-digit underdog (Gonzaga is favored by 11.5 points) at home?
It starts a crucial stretch of their season, followed by games next week against No. 14 Creighton, Oregon and a third power conference foe in the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas. Then comes the Mountain West opener, on the road against Fresno State in a morgue of an arena where the Aztecs traditionally struggle.
“This is a real basketball opportunity for us, but it’s also very dangerous,” Dutcher said. “We’ve got to see if we’re up for that challenge or, if things don’t go right, how quickly can we bounce back from disappointment. That has a lot to do with a team, how you handle success and disappointment, and we’ll find out either one of those two trails as we head into the next four or five games.”
Ideally, you wouldn’t toss a young team into the bubbling caldron so early in the season. But the Zags, who initially wanted to play (like last year’s game) during the semester break without students, had a conflict and asked to move to mid-November. Then the Players Era Festival came together late, and the Aztecs, needing the minimum $1 million guarantee for its NIL kitty, found themselves at the mercy of the schedule.
No pain, no gain — financial or otherwise.
“We didn’t play (Gonzaga) last year until December, so we had more time to get ready and know what we were,” Dutcher said. “Now, with only two games, we’re still trying to find our identity. Having guys miss practice and the injuries have slowed that down a little bit. That’s not to say we don’t have talent. We have really good talent.
“But part of it is fitting it all together, and that’s what we’re working toward every day.”
The key against any Gonzaga team, particularly this Gonzaga team, is transition defense, evidenced by 101, 88 and 113 points in their first three games. Let the Bulldogs get on the break and get in rhythm, and you’ll find yourself in a track meet you can’t possibly win.
“That’s how they get the majority of their points,” McKinney said, “so we have to make sure we’re locked in on that aspect.”
Added Heide: “Get back. That’s the biggest thing. You’ve got to run, there’s no jogging.”
Defensively, the Aztecs have held two preseason and two regular-season opponents all under 35% shooting. The Bulldogs are shooting 53.6% and rank No. 1 nationally in offensive efficiency according to the Kenpom metric (by a relatively wide margin, too).
On offense, the Aztecs showed marked improvement from their first to second game, hitting the century mark themselves in a 100-49 win, albeit against overmatched Division III Occidental. They made their first five 3s and 10 of their first 12, finishing with 18 — one under the program record set against Occidental two years earlier.
Seven different players made at least one 3, and six made at least two. In the 34 minutes before the walk-ons subbed in, they were a blistering 17 of 32.
“I wish we could have saved some of those 3s, put them in the bank and brought them back out against Gonzaga,” Dutcher said. “But how can you not be happy with the way we were shooting the ball? I mean, everybody was shooting it.
“That’s the great equalizer in basketball. If you start making 3s, you can beat anybody.”
The other great equalizer is crazed partisan fans, and they’ll have 12,414 of them, especially with school in session.
“We’re in Viejas now,” Heide said. “We’ve got our crowd.”
No. 4 Gonzaga (3-0) at San Diego State (2-0)
When: 7 p.m. Monday
Where: Viejas Arena
TV: CBS College Sports
Radio: 760-AM