SDSU Vegas
San Diego State Aztecs guard Nick Boyd (2) in action during a game against the Houston Cougars at the Players Era Festival on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Marc Sanchez/Icon Sportswire)

After a first half that saw minimal scoring between San Diego State and Houston, the second half saw much more action, including an extra period where the Aztecs came away with a 73-70 victory.

The Aztecs, down by as many as 11 in the second half, but SDSU really picked up steam towards the final 10 minutes of regulation in the third-place game at the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas. The highlight – great shooting from Nick Boyd, who hit back-to-back threes to pull the Aztecs within two.

Houston was able to maintain a small lead but with less than a minute to play, a Jared Coleman-Jones bank-in basket and two free throws tied the game up at 65 apiece, which led to overtime.

The extra period saw the Aztecs outscore the Cougars 8-5, with an acrobatic layup from Myles Byrd to put SDSU up by three, a lead they would maintain until the final buzzer.

Houston missed a three to tie the game with just a few seconds left.

Aztecs assistant coach JayDee Luster explained following the game how important second-half adjustments were for the team.

“We told our guys those first five, six minutes was critical,” Luster told San Diego Sports 760. “You got to come out and you got to be ready to fight those first five, six minutes and you can’t relax.”

Luster mentioned the respect they have for the Houston program and their head coach Kelvin Sampson, and how they model themselves after a program like that.

“This is a great learning experience for us,” Luster said. “Whenever you’re in a fight, you’re going to get hit. You can’t go into a fight and not expect to get punched.”

The Aztecs took the punches and ran to victory, as they had four players score in double figures. Luster mentioned how even though this was a big win, they can’t focus on it for long.

“We got to enjoy this for 24 hours, then we got to move on because it’s conference play,” Luster said.

The Aztecs play their first conference game Wednesday, when they travel to face Fresno State. The game is scheduled for 7:30 PST and will be broadcast on FS1.