SDSU and UNLV will meet at Thomas & Mack Center for a mini-preview ahead of the Mountain West Tournament

The San Diego State Aztecs are set to take on the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels on Tuesday night as the final week of the regular season is upon us.

This past Saturday night, the Scarlet & Black defeated the Wyoming Cowboys by just three points. In two games against the Pokes this season, the Aztecs have won by a combined five points. San Diego State improved to just 14-27 all-time in Laramie, showing the significance of the win.

“I’ve been coming here for 25 years,” head coach Brian Dutcher said after the win. “This looked like a Wyoming game. Anybody that hasn’t come here and sat through these games they don’t understand. They say, ‘this opponent’s lower in the standings. Don’t they care? Don’t they know what’s at stake?’ We know what’s at stake, but this is how Wyoming games look sometimes. You’re a half step too slow to get a loose ball. I put on the board: ‘Fight for 40 minutes.’ If we fight for 40, we’ll overcome some ups and downs, but we have to fight. And I thought we fought for 40 minutes. Were we perfect for 40 minutes? No, not even close. But I felt like we fought for 40, and that allowed us to get out of here with a victory.”

Playing in that environment is never easy. Dutcher expressed that fact in his next response.

“It’s the highest (altitude) college environment you can play in. It’s a challenge. They’ve got a good team, too, so it’s not just altitude. They’ve played well. They’ve played a lot of close games, and they’ve found a way to win. And we’ve played a lot of close games, and we’ve found a way to win. At the end of the day, sometimes that’s what happens.”

#MWMBB Highlights from @Aztec_MBB‘s 72-69 win over Wyoming pic.twitter.com/90RJBiU5rE

— Mountain West (@MountainWest) March 2, 2025

The Aztecs are now 20-7 on the season and 13-5 in conference play. The top five seeds in the Mountain West are separated by two games, but the New Mexico Lobos’ chances of winning the regular season outright seem very likely at this point. They battle with Nevada and UNLV to end the year and are a win away from clinching. Colorado State is one game behind the Lobos but lost to them in both occasions.

Utah State is losers of two straight after defeating the Aztecs in Logan on February 22. The Aggies now own just a half-game lead over SDSU with one game left on the season against Air Force. Because of their tiebreaker over the Aztecs, if they beat Air Force, they are guaranteed to be a higher seed. SDSU’s best hope of moving up to the three-seed in the conference relies on Colorado State losing to Boise State on the road to end the regular season. That contest in Boise will not only have Mountain West seeding implications but NCAA Tournament implications as well. Both CSU and Boise State are on the bubble.

Through all this, the Aztecs’ main focus is to defeat a pesky UNLV team. The Aztecs have lost seven games this year, but the loss to the Rebels at home is by far the worst.

First Matchup

UNLV showed up to Viejas Arena in mid-January and were the better team from the jump. Dedan Thomas Jr. led his team to their second win against SDSU in as many seasons, 76-68. This matchup will seem a little similar in terms of a personnel standpoint. Magoon Gwath only played 12 minutes against UNLV in that game and he was not a factor due to fouling out. SDSU must find a way to continue their good play without him.

The Aztecs defended Thomas Jr. well for the most part. He shot 4-13 from the field, but his ability to draw fouls proved to be too much for the Aztecs to handle. He went a perfect 10-10 from the line and sealed the game late with clutch attempts. Brooklyn Hicks scored 13 points off the bench, and Jaden Henley had 12 on 2-3 shooting from beyond the arc.

Miles Byrd finished with 21 points for the Aztecs, all in the second half. Nick Boyd scored 16 and BJ Davis ended with 10. The bench only contributed with 11 points but freshman Taj DeGourville played one of his better games of the season. In 21 minutes, he had nine points, seven rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and one steal. That performance lit a small spark in him as he then proceeded to score in double figures in three of his next four games. That spark has since been put out, as he is not scoring at a high rate, but he is making plays and assisting on a ton of buckets.

Keeping up with the Runnin’ Rebels

After the win over San Diego State, UNLV thought that they could turn their season around similar to what they did last year. They had beaten No. 22 Utah State before that, but all of a sudden, they hit a wall. Wyoming upset them in Vegas, and then New Mexico and Utah State came in and won. The Aggies got quick revenge and that wasn’t all. UNLV’s rival, Nevada, beat them, and Boise State followed with a win. The Runnin’ Rebels had lost five straight and fell down the conference standings. They did respond with three wins in a row, but by then, their fate to compete at the top of the standings was sealed.

UNLV will likely finish as the 6-seed but could fall to the 7-seed, depending on how Nevada does in their final two games. Just as they did last year, there is a path where SDSU and UNLV meet in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament. SDSU is 44-39 all-time against Las Vegas with a 22-17 record at Thomas & Mack and 12-4 record under Brian Dutcher.

The Rebels ended the month strong with wins over San Jose State and Nevada. They are 16-13 on the season and 10-8 in the MW.

It is unlikely that UNLV star Dedan Thomas Jr. will play. He has been sidelined with a shoulder injury and had missed three games this season. Jaden Henley has stepped up as the go-to scorer for the Rebels. He scored 23 on 8-14 shooting in the win over Nevada last time out. Before that, in the win over San Jose State, he scored 22 points and snatched four steals. He must be contained on Tuesday night. Jalen Hill has scored in double figures in his last three games with 43 combined points. Prior to last game, Jailen Bedford scored in double figures in six straight games.

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.