The San Diego State Aztecs look forward to a Mountain West teaser on Wednesday night against the Air Force Falcons

Brian Dutcher and his improving squad will take part in a tune-up game before heading to Phoenix and playing No. 1 Arizona for the Hall of Fame Series at PNX Arena. The Wildcats are on the same level as No. 2 Michigan, dominating every opponent that stands in front of them.

Arizona is 10-0, with wins against No. 3 Florida, No. 15 UCLA, No. 3 UConn, No. 20 Auburn, and No. 12 Alabama.

Before Dutcher and his team can solely aim their focus on Tommy Lloyd and the Wildcats, they must dominate Air Force three days ahead of the highly anticipated matchup. The last time the Falcons played at Viejas Arena, they scored only 38 points.

The Aztecs are 5-3, coming off an impressive win against Lamar. SDSU reached 89 points, scoring 51 in the first half. The thing that impressed the most was the resilient effort from the players throughout the contest. Lamar began the contest draining three-point shots left and right. The Cardinals hit 14 for the game and got to the line, finishing 15-20.

Despite Lamar seeing a lot of success offensively, the Aztecs controlled the game with an offense that was on a much higher level. SDSU ended with 38 points in the paint, and finished the game 23-31 from the charity stripe. Multiple players shot 50% or better from the floor as Miles Byrd turned back the clock with a complete game of 19 points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals, and two blocks.

The Aztecs would love to see another monster night offensively ahead of one of the biggest games in program history. It is not every day you get a chance to play the No. 1 team in the country.

“We’re ready to make our annual visit to the dentist,” Dutcher said to the media ahead of the matchup. “That’s called playing Air Force in basketball. We have great respect for Air Force. Obviously, last year’s game at their place, Wayne McKinney had a length-of-the-floor buzzer beater to win us the game. Every time you play them, you know they’re an academy team. They’re tough. They never give in.”

Protocol: Air Force Falcons Education

Air Force is 3-8 on the season with wins against Alabama State, SIUE, and IU Indy. Since their win over IU Indy, the Falcons have dropped four in a row to Northern Colorado, South Dakota, Pacific, and Navy.

It’s headed toward another miserable season for the Boys in Blue, and it will not get any easier on Wednesday night. San Diego State is a massive favorite at home and has a chance to beat the Falcons by 20+ points.

The Air Force is going to try and disrupt the flow of the Aztecs’ pace. They will attack the Aztecs with everything they’ve got.

“They’ll play multiple defenses, which is always a concern,” Dutcher said. “They’ll play a 1-1-3 zone. They’ll play a switching man. That’s always concerning. As a coach, I like to be comfortable knowing what I’m going to see, what l’m preparing for. The nature of their switching defenses makes me uncomfortable. Probably more so than the team, the team will just play, but I’d like to feel I can have an impact on the game. I’ve done a lot of film prep, trying to put us in the best positions to be successful at the offensive end.”

Air Force doesn’t defend very well, despite running different schemes. The team averages only 6.4 steals per game and 3.2 blocks. This is also coming against some bad teams. There is a good chance the Aztecs score north of a hundred points with the offense they have this season, averaging 81.9 points per game.

Four players score in double figures per game for the Falcons. Forwards Caleb Walker and Lucas Hobin both average 12.7 points per game, which leads the team. Kam Sanders is third at 12.3 per game, and Eli Robinson is 4th at 10.2.

Robinson leads the team in rebounding at 6.3 per game and also contributes with 2.6 assists, 1.4 steals, and shoots 55.7% from the floor. He is the team’s best three-point shooter in terms of percentage at 46.7% from beyond the arc, making seven on the season. Hobin is the one who makes a majority of the triples, but overall, the Falcons are not a good three-point shooting team. Hobin has made 26 on the season, while Sanders has 15 and Ethan Greenberg has 16.

“Defensively, preparing for an Air Force team that runs a Princeton offense that’s evolved over the years,” Dutcher said. “They’re not as much as they used to be, back cutting and that type of thing, but they’re efficient offensively, and there are concerns. We put a lot of hard work in, and we’ll see what the results will be tomorrow.”

The Rise of BJ Davis

BJ Davis has been one of the team’s best players this season. He is coming off the bench one season after starting almost every game. He understands his role and can do it all on both sides of the floor.

As soon as Davis enters the game, he makes an impact. Whether it’s on the defensive end by defending at a high level, or driving to the basket and earning two free shots at the line. Davis is always willing to sacrifice stats for the better of the team, but he’s been able to contribute in all areas. He can score buckets in the paint by dropping a floater and is deadly from beyond the arc if he gets his feet set. Davis is shooting 97.1% from the line, which is 6th in the nation.

Davis’ 12.6 points per game off the bench leads the nation at this point in the season.

Here is what Dutcher said about his importance.

“I feel that BJ is one of our top five players, but the spark he brings off the bench is immeasurably important,” Dutcher told the media. “Most teams go to the bench, and they’re surviving. Usually, your play doesn’t go up. We’re going to our bench right now with BJ, and our performance goes up. He continues to accept that we value him, he’s an integral part of what we’re going and he provides us with something that I don’t feel anybody else, if we move them to the bench, could give us. BJ started every game last year, and he was good. He’s coming off the bench, and he’s better this year.”

Davis doesn’t seem to be slowing down any time soon. He has scored in double figures in six straight games. This is leading to some high-level offense by the Aztecs.

Dutcher’s squad has a real opportunity to play its best basketball of the season at the right time.

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.