A big matchup brought out a big game from San Diego State Friday as the Aztecs beat New Mexico 81-70, keeping their chase for a Mountain West regular season title alive.
Jaedon LeDee, as he has all season, led the Aztecs to victory at Viejas Arena, finishing with a team-high 23 points, as SDSU also got huge plays from Elijah Saunders and Miles Byrd.
Coach Brian Dutcher called it a good, hard-fought team victory.
“I’m proud of the whole team. Proud of the win,” said Dutcher.
The stakes were high as both teams were tied for second place in the MW with only a handful of games remaining in the season. And New Mexico was the last team to beat the Aztecs at home, doing so last year.
San Diego State (20-6, 9-4 MW) was coming off a 71-55 win against Colorado State, while the Lobos (20-6, 8-5 MW) had survived a squeaker, 83-82, against Nevada.
The teams were evenly matched to start, playing to a 7-7 tie with about five minutes gone in the first period. It turned into a battle of the stars, as LeDee led the team early with 8 points while New Mexico’s senior guard, Jaelen House, paced his team with 7.
The Aztecs trailed by one when LeDee hit a three-pointer with a little over 13 minutes to go, followed by a layup by Saunders and back-to-back baskets by Reese Waters that pushed the Aztecs lead to 20-14.
A loud, boisterous crowd exploded minutes later thanks to Byrd, who followed his block with a three to push a 7-0 run and give the Aztecs their first double digit lead at 27-16.
SDSU continued pushing the ball down the court and displaying tough defense, including another block by Byrd.
House appeared frustrated, waving his arms after LeDee hit a turnaround jumper for two and the crowd roared once again as the Aztecs closed out the half with a 39-28 lead.
At halftime, the Aztecs were shooting 62% on field goals and holding New Mexico to 32%.
The Aztecs were also winning the rebound battle, 18-14.
In the second half, New Mexico quickly cut the lead to 47-41. They edged closer, to
47-43, and just when it seemed the Lobos were gaining momentum, guard Darrion Trammell hit a three to bring the lead back up to 50-43 with 13 minutes to go in the game.
A reverse layup by forward Jay Pal pushed the lead to 54-43. The Aztecs were further helped by a technical foul called on New Mexico coach Richard Pitino, which led to Waters sinking two free throws.
New Mexico, however, didn’t go away. They cut the Aztec lead to as little as three points, but a Butler steal and layup halted the Lobos’ momentum.
And then Saunders took over in a dazzling display. He hit back-to-back three-pointers and caught a lob to the basket for a slam dunk that pushed the Aztecs’ lead back to double digits, 70-59, with a little over four minutes left in the game. It also had fans jumping out of their seats.
“There was a lot of energy in Viejas,” Saunders said. “That’s one of the most electric games we had in there.”
As the clock ticked down, the Aztecs went for the kill. A Trammell drive to the basket led to two points, Waters followed with a three-pointer and then a “Jaedon Jam” by LeDee raised the score to 79-66. And elated fans stood and roared for the Aztecs when the public address announcer marked one minute left.
NOTES: The Aztecs have a big showdown ahead, going on the road to play the MW leaders, Utah State (21-4, 9-3 MW) at 6 p.m. Tuesday. First, the Aggies take on Colorado State Saturday … San Diego State split the season series with New Mexico, after falling to the Lobos 88-70 on Jan. 13 … The game was a “Blackout” night as SDSU encouraged fans to wear black. Most complied … New Aztecs football coach Sean Lewis led the “I Believe” chant before tipoff.
