SDSU vs. Utah State
When: 8 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Viejas Arena
On the air: Fox Sports 1; 760-AM
Records: SDSU is 18-8, 12-4; Utah State is 23-4, 13-3
Series history: SDSU leads the all-time series 20-12 but has lost three straight games, including a 71-66 loss in Logan on Jan. 31. Utah State won 67-66 at Viejas Arena last season. The last Aztecs win was 86-70 in the 2024 conference tournament semis.
Aggies update: Things were humming along, winning eight straight after a two-game skid in mid-January before losing 80-77 at Nevada on Saturday night despite making 15 3s, having five fewer turnovers and leading by five late. Even so, their metrics stayed steady at 23 in Kenpom and 24 in the NET, the byproduct of a scheduling strategy where they played no power conference opponents and won against top mid-majors. Most bracketologists have them as a No. 7 or No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Guard Mason Falslev remains a leading candidate for Mountain West player of the year, ranking as the conference’s top player in the Kenpom metric while averaging 16.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Vanderbilt transfer MJ Collins is third in scoring at 17.9 points per game. Forward Karson Templin had a career in the first meeting: 18 points, seven rebounds, two blocks, 2 of 3 from deep. The Aggies are the only Mountain West team to rank in the top 50 nationally in both offensive (21) and defensive efficiency (35). Kenpom projects a 74-73 Utah State win.
Aztecs update: They still are mathematically alive to claim at least a share of the regular-season Mountain West title. Even if they don’t, seeding at the conference tournament will be on the line over these final four games. The Aztecs are currently tied for second with New Mexico at 12-4 in league play, but hold the tiebreaker based on their head-to-head win last month at Viejas Arena. They have a two-game cushion over Nevada and Grand tied for fourth at 10-6 (entering Tuesday’s games). They hold the tiebreaker over Nevada (based on their season sweep) but not GCU (because they got swept). The losses to GCU last Tuesday and Colorado State on Saturday represented rare back-to-back defeats. In the Bracket Matrix, which aggregates 112 projected NCAA Tournament brackets, SDSU appears on only four. ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi has New Mexico as the last team in and the Aztecs as the third team out. That could change, however, if they win their next three, all Quad 1 opportunities.
Next up: Saturday at New Mexico (11 a.m. PST, CBS)
— MARK ZEIGLER
