SDSU vs. Colorado State
When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Viejas Arena
On the air: Fox Sports 1; 760-AM
Records: SDSU is 14-5, 8-1; CSU is 12-8, 3-6
Series history: SDSU leads 53-45 and has won six of the last eight games. The teams each won at home last season, 75-60 at Viejas Arena and 68-63 at Moby Arena in Fort Collins.
Rams update: After opening with a 9-2 nonconference record under new coach Ali Farokhmanesh that included three Kenpom top-100 wins (Wichita State, South Florida and Colorado), they are 3-6 in the Mountain West. But that’s deceiving. Six of their conference games are against teams in the upper half of the standings, and they’ve already played Utah State twice. On Saturday, they had 21 turnovers and still only lost to Utah State by four. They are finally healthy again after leading scorer Kyle Jorgensen (13.4) and 6-7, 250-pound Austrian forward Rashaan Mbemba both missed extended time with injuries. Jorgensen had 24 points against Utah State on five 3s. Brandon Rechsteiner (12.2), Josh Pascarelli (12.1) and Carey Booth 10.9) average double figures as well. This is a team that spreads the floor and can get hot from deep, averaging 11.3 made 3s and shooting 48.6% behind the arc over the past three games. On the season, they’re No. 2 nationally in 3-point accuracy at 41.3% and one of just nine teams shooting at least 50% overall, 35% on 3s and 75% from the line. They rank 46th in offensive efficiency but only 217th in defense with minimal rim protection. They also play at Division I’s slowest tempo, 61.8 possessions per game.
Aztecs update: This is the ultimate trap game, coming after a convincing win at UNLV and before the showdown at second-place Utah State on Saturday on big-boy CBS. Sandwiched between them is a dangerous Colorado State team that is in eighth place in the conference standings but healthy again and playing good basketball. The Rams are the exact kind of team that has given the Aztecs trouble this season, with 3-point marksmen spread across the perimeter. SDSU’s opponents are shooting about the national average behind the arc (33.3%), but 38.9% of their points come from 3s, eighth most in the nation. A win gets the Aztecs to 9-1 and maintains sole possession of first place in the Mountain West. A loss dings their NCAA Tournament resume and dumps them into a logjam of teams breathing down their neck with two and three losses. Reese Dixon-Waters’ 13 points in Saturday’s 82-71 win at UNLV pushed him over 1,000 for his college career. He’s the 13th player to hit quadruple figures in the nine-year Brian Dutcher era. Magoon Gwath (hip) missed his second straight game and Dutcher admitted he’s “doubtful” for Colorado State. The 7:30 start continues a stretch of 10 games where the Aztecs don’t tip at the normal time of 7 p.m.
Next up: Saturday at Utah State (10 a.m. PST, CBS)
— MARK ZEIGLER
