A top college basketball analyst focused on five members of San Diego State’s basketball team whom he expects to make an impact in the upcoming season.
Jon Rothstein selected returning senior Matt Mitchell as a pre-season first-team Mountain West honoree. He also predicted the Aztecs’ graduate transfers, Terrell Gomez and Joshua Tomaić, would be among the top transfers in the conference.
Gomez, a native of Los Angeles, was a first-team All-Big West performer in each of the last two seasons. He also was the league’s Freshman of the Year in 2018.
Over three seasons at California State University Northridge, he averaged 17.1 points, 2.9 assists and 2.3 rebounds.
Last season, Gomez led the nation with a .948 free throw percentage (109-of-115) and was No. 5 in three-point field goals (111).
“(He) is a dynamic scorer who can shoot the ball with anyone in the country,” coach Brian Dutcher told Rothstein on his podcast. “He can stretch the defense and hopefully we will give him more opportunities to play off more ball screens and grow his game.”
Tomaić redshirted his freshman season at Maryland. In his four seasons as a Terrapin, the team reached the postseason in 2017 and 2019, posting a 1-2 record in the NCAA Tournament.
In his time as a Terrapin, Tomaić appeared in 62 games, and was successful on 62.7% of his career field goal attempts. He hit a single season best of 72.7% last season.
“Joshua, coming from a great program like Maryland, has the size and strength, and has been tested at the highest level not only in games, but in practice every day. So, he brings that maturity you want in a fifth-year senior,” Dutcher said.
Rothstein also named Che Evans and Lamont Butler as two of the top-five freshmen in the league.
ESPN rated Butler, a graduate of Riverside (Calif.) Poly High School, as a four-star recruit, while Rivals.com and 247Sports.com called him a three-star talent.
ESPN also ranked him at No. 30 on their list of top-50 point guards in the country. In his sophomore and senior seasons, he and his team reached the CIF Championship game. In addition, Butler leads all Poly players with more than 1,800 career points. Who did he pass to become the all-time leader? NBA Hall of Famer Reggie Miller.
Evans, a four-star recruit according to ESPN and Scout.com, landed at No. 45 on ESPN’s class of top-50 small forwards.
As a senior, he played for Neumann-Goretti High School in Philadelphia. The team posted a 24-4 record, winning the Philadelphia Catholic League championship. As a junior, while with Dulaney High School in Baltimore, he led the team to the Class 4A North Region championship.
– Staff reports
