Aztecs Basketball Preview: SDSU hosts Idaho State, Dutcher aims for 200
Brian Dutcher made sure his players were ready to play against Fresno State. (Don De Mars/EVT)
SDSU to host Idaho State on Sunday as head coach Brian Dutcher aims for 200th career win
Sunday evening could be a monumental moment for San Diego State Aztecs head coach Brian Dutcher. With 199 career wins, the future Hall of Fame coach will have his team ready to go against Idaho State for the second game of the season. This will be the first time these two squads have met since 1980, when SDSU won 96-80.
“We had a good day of practice yesterday as we prepare for Idaho State,” Dutcher said to the media on Friday. “They obviously play San Diego tonight, so they won’t have as much time to prepare. I like where the team is at. We are getting healthy, we’re working hard, and hopefully we’ll be ready to come out and put on a good performance.”
Idaho State defeated the Toreros 71-68 on Friday night to improve to 2-0 on the season. San Diego State defeated Long Beach State rather easily on Tuesday in the season opener, even though stars Magoon Gwath and Reese Dixon-Waters were inactive.
Dutcher also provided an update on Gwath after he returned to practice on Thursday.
“Magoon has been cleared to practice, and then, based on what he does in practice, he’ll be cleared to play. I think Sunday might be a bit of a reach. I know he wants to be out there, and he probably could be out there, but we have nine days then until we play Troy. I think that’s probably a more realistic timeline for him to get back and get a game under his belt before we head to Las Vegas and play Michigan.”
As Dutcher said, returning against Troy makes more sense. The Aztecs do not want to rush him back with a long season ahead.
As for Dixon-Waters, the senior returned to practice after missing the season opener against Long Beach State with a scratched cornea and a slight illness. Dutcher expects him to play on Sunday, but the decision to start him is still up in the air. Regardless of the decision, it will be a very cool yet emotional moment for the senior guard as he returns to action for the first time in over a year and a half.
“It was good to have him back in practice, fully practicing, and based on how he plays today and tomorrow leading into the game, we’ll determine whether he starts and how many minutes he gets to play. I’d say that right now, Reese would be a full go for Sunday.”
Getting To Know The Bengals
Idaho State is 2-0 on the season after a 3-point win over USD on Friday night. The Bengals defeated Park University in Gilbert, Arizona, in their season opener, 81-71. Idaho State will now get ready to play its biggest game of the season against San Diego State.
Idaho State has four players averaging double digits in scoring, led by senior forward Connor Hollenbeck. Hollenbeck is averaging 18 points per game, scoring 18 points in each of his first two games of the campaign. He adds 8.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and shoots 44.8% from the field. Senior forward Caleb Van de Griend is second on the team, averaging 14.5 points per game. His 7.0 rebounds are second on the team as well, but he is shooting an incredible 62.5% from the field. Gus Etchison and Quin Patterson both average at least 11 points per game as well.
The Bengals are averaging 76 points per game as a team, but have allowed 69 points per game. There is a real opportunity for the Aztecs to score 90+ points and even reach 100 in this game, as they did against Occidental early on last season.
Aztecs’ guard BJ Davis talks about what he has seen from the Bengals in their two games.
“They play really well together,” Davis said. “We watched clips yesterday (Thursday) of them to see how they move the ball, how they space, and how they play. It’s really their spacing and how they understand the execution.”
Keep An Eye Out For: Connor Hollenbeck
In the two wins this season for Idaho State, Hollenbeck has been their leading scorer in both. It seems already clear that he is going to be the star of the team. He is averaging 33 minutes a game, fresh off a 36-minute outing against the Toreros.
In the season opener, Hollenbeck finished with a double-double, grabbing 10 rebounds and adding two assists and one block. Against USD, he finished with seven boards, three assists, one block, and two steals. The 6-foot-7 forward has the length to be able to compete in the frontcourt at his true position, but also has the ability to be a three-level scorer. He ended 5-9 from beyond the arc against the Toreros and was 3-7 from inside.
Here is a highlight of Hollenbeck putting an opponent on a poster during a game last March.
CONNOR HOLLENBECK WITH THE POSTER🤯#SawWOOD // #RoarBengalsRoar // #SCTop10 pic.twitter.com/h84FaV6O8I
— Idaho State Men’s Basketball (@IdahoStateMBB) March 1, 2025
Key To (A Big) Victory: Keep The Transition Points Coming
The Aztecs began the season looking very impressive in their transition offense. SDSU forced 21 turnovers against Long Beach State, finishing with 24 points off of those turnovers and had 13 fastbreak points.
There won’t be many teams in the country that will be able to pressure teams as well as the Aztecs do. Against Idaho State, they need to put on a similar performance to see similar results. The pressure must continue, and they need to force the Bengals to commit 20+ turnovers with their “ruthless aggression.”
Aztecs’ sophomore forward Pharaoh Compton understands that playing this way could be the team’s calling card.
“We’re going to be a fast-playing team all year. Playing on the fast break, getting those points in transition, we have to come up with those every time. We’ve been better about putting our foot down on our opponent when we know that we’re better than them.”
What To Expect
Expect the same starting lineup by Brian Dutcher from the opener, unless he feels that Dixon-Waters is good to start. If Dixon-Waters does start, he could likely replace senior guard Sean Newman Jr. Sophomore guard Taj DeGourville has earned his starting role as of right now.
Chris is a graduate of the University of San Diego. He is the former Sports Editor for the USDVista newspaper. Chris has covered the San Diego Loyal, and now covers San Diego State Men’s Basketball. He also contributes regularly about the Padres. Chris is an athlete and is a huge fan of San Diego sports.