The Aztecs return home to San Diego to host Utah Valley after an unsuccessful Players Era Tournament in Las Vegas

The San Diego State Aztecs are hoping to flush the past away quickly. Feast Week in Las Vegas did not go as planned after two losses to very good teams. SDSU lost to Michigan by 40 points (who are now ranked 3rd in the country), and after a bounce-back win against Oregon, the Scarlet & Black took on Baylor. The Bears got the best of the Aztecs in a 91-81 win. A 1-2 finish is not what the Aztecs had hoped for entering the week.

Despite the results, the Aztecs learned valuable lessons that should make them better as the season progresses. Michigan had the best week out of anyone. They rolled past every team they faced, including a 30-point win over Auburn and a 40-point win over Gonzaga in the Championship. The loss still stings, but it does not look nearly as bad knowing how well the Wolverines performed all week. Baylor won the NCAA Tournament in 2021, so they really aren’t far removed from that, and Scott Drew is one of the top coaches in the sport. There are not many teams in the nation that have had to go through what these Players Era teams went through, and this should make every team better.

San Diego State’s defense did not show up in Vegas. They underperformed the entire week and really have not excelled since the first two games. This is something that the Aztecs realized out quickly. They understand that this must change moving forward.

Here is what Brian Dutcher said after the loss to the Bears to end the tournament.

“Obviously disappointed in the loss, but it’s a hard tournament to play in, three games in three nights. The typical thing with us is our offense is better than our defense, and that’s not typically San Diego State basketball. We shot 42 percent from three, damn near 50 percent for the game, and had 20 assists on 28 baskets. So we’re a pretty good offensive team, but defensively, we keep lapsing.

So our defense has to get better, or I have to find better ways to defend, and that’s a little on them and a little on me. We have to find better schemes to what we do, and they have to execute game plans to perfection if we’re going to have a chance to be the defensive team we want to be.”

Sean Newman Jr. and Elzie Harrington also spoke about the lack of defense so far this season. “We have to be more disciplined, be more solid, and then we have to execute our game plan better because that’s not winning basketball on the defensive end,” Newman Jr. said after the loss to Baylor.

Harrington followed by saying they need to take pride in it: “I’d say in practice, we guard really well, so it’s just translating it to games, just taking pride in it.”

This game against Utah Valley won’t be an easy one for them to bounce back in. The Utah Valley Wolverines are 5-2 on the season with three consecutive wins. The offense has looked good in a couple of their games this season.

Getting To Know Utah Valley

San Diego State and Utah Valley will meet for the very first time.

The Wolverines have played seven games this season and are winners of three in a row. They began the campaign with a massive 116-35 win over West Coast Baptist. Utah Valley then traveled to Boise State and lost 101-71 in a game that the Broncos desperately needed to dominate.

Utah Valley’s only two losses have come against Mountain West opponents, as their second loss came in a 75-74 loss to Fresno State. This squad will now make its trip to San Diego for their final Mountain West road game of the season.

After the loss to the Bulldogs, Utah Valley bounced back by winning the Cancun Challenge, defeating UC Irvine, South Dakota State, and Samford rather easily. They beat the Jackrabbits by 23 points and then Samford by 44. The offense can soar when in rhythm.

Not that the NET means anything right now, but Utah Valley is currently 72nd with its biggest win coming against a Quad 3 opponent in UC Irvine.

Utah Valley is averaging 85.9 points per game, which is tied for 67th in the nation alongside Tennessee, UC San Diego, and Florida. That puts in perspective how good the offense can be.

Guard Jackson Holcombe leads the team in scoring convincingly at 15.4 points per game. He adds 6.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.0 blocks, 2.3 steals, and shoots 58.1% from the floor. There is nothing that Holcombe doesn’t contribute to, and the sophomore from South Carolina is the player to watch in this contest. He is not a threat from three-point land as he shoots only 11.1% from deep.

On the other hand, guards Tyler Hendricks and Trevan Leonhardt both shoot at least 50% from beyond the arc. Funny enough, they both average 12.7 points per contest and use the deep ball as a big part of their game. Leonhardt leads the team in minutes per game at 30.6.

Forward Isaac Davis only plays 16 minutes per game, but he averages 10.0 points and 3.0 rebounds, shooting 63.8% from the floor. Those four players are the main offensive threats when on the court for the Wolverines.

Utah Valley as a team also averages 39.9 rebounds, 20.4 assists, 6.9 blocks, 9.9 steals, and shoots 53% from the floor. All of those statistics are better than the Aztecs’ to begin the season. Of course, the Wolverines have not faced a defense that of which the Aztecs contain. Though we will soon find out if the Aztecs’ gritty defense will make a reappearance or if this is just the type of team Brian Dutcher will have this year.

Chris Spiering

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.