San Diego State Basketball

San Diego Gets Slammed By PAC-10

By Brad Best

bestbrad4@earthlink.net

December 5th

San Diego Gets Slammed by PAC-10

On Saturday, Dec. 11, San Diego State hosted the inaugural San Diego Slam that pitted two San Diego teams against two from the PAC-10. And at the end of the evening, it was 2-0 in favor of the visitors. The University of San Diego Toreros fell to USC 87-75. In the second game, San Diego State missed a running shot at the buzzer to fall just short of Cal 60-57.

Maybe San Diego Is Just Too Nice

With idyllic year-round weather, laid back lifestyle and easy-going attitudes, maybe San Diego is just too nice to produce winners. After all, you know what they say about nice guys.

Both San Diego teams had their chances. They missed open shots, had lapses on defense, and never looked like they wanted it more than their competition. Certainly USC and Cal field teams of highly athletic players, but that doesn’t tell the whole story. The Aztecs, for example, had the height to contend with Cal’s frontcourt but got out rebounded 37-30. Cal’s perimeter players shot woefully from beyond the arc (2-13, 15%) but their hustle and patience led to 15 assists for easy dunks and lay-ups inside the paint. So once again, the San Diego teams failed to rise to the challenge and knock off one of the big guns in the west.

SDSU Looking Back

Coming off of a blowout defeat at Washington last Tuesday, 98-69, the Aztecs had to be encouraged that they could hang with at least one PAC-10 team. And had they played a little better defense or knocked down a few more shots, they could have put a W on the board against a vulnerable Cal team instead of settling for another moral victory. At Washington, Marcus Slaughter led the way for the Aztecs with 21 points, followed by 18 for Brandon Heath and a career-high 14 for freshman guard Matt Thomas. Against Cal, Slaughter led all scorers with 18, while Heath added 14.

Heath was honored with his first Mountain West Conference Player of the Week award following victories against USD and UCSB. In those games, he averaged 23 points and 6 assists to extend the Aztec winning streak to four games. He shot 64 percent from the field (16-25) and 63.6 percent from three-point land (7-11).

On the Horizon

The status for Chris Walton is still up in the air. Doctors will evaluate the progress of deep tissue therapy later this month and decide whether season-ending surgery is required. Wesley Stokes will finish up the first semester off the court this week and will rejoin the team if his grades measure up.

Sophomores Slaughter and Heath are providing a youthful one-two punch. Slaughter is 2^nd in the Mountain West in scoring with a 20.1 average and 4^th in rebounds with 8.4 per game. Heath is 7^th in conference scoring with 16.6 points per game and 3^rd in assists with 4.1.

At this time, the Aztecs record is 4-3. In the coming week, they take on three California schools: St. Mary’s, Loyola Marymount, and Cal State Fullerton. To close out the month, the Aztecs face Iowa State on the road on Dec. 28 and then come home to host Providence on Dec. 31.

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