Lobos outshine Aztecs at The Pit, 62-48
SDSU Athletics
SDSU loses the first battle against New Mexico on the road with an underwhelming performance
The San Diego State Aztecs are glad this game is now behind them. From the start of this game, New Mexico had control and never lost it.
The Lobos started out the contest going on a 12-4 run. Two costly turnovers from the Aztecs allowed the Lobos to extend their lead early. SDSU scored two early baskets but then went over six minutes without a point.
New Mexico also outrebounded SDSU early with a quick 8-3 advantage. Rebounding was a major key to victory for the Aztecs.
Nick Boyd scored a layup in transition for the first field goal in about six minutes for the Aztecs. New Mexico led 16-7 with 11:25 remaining in the half.
Turnovers continued to hurt this team. They shot a better field goal percentage than the Lobos at this point in the game but turned it over six times compared to the Lobos one time.
The good news for the Aztecs was that the Lobos went on a 1-9 stretch and allowed the Aztecs to remain in the game. SDSU has the third best opponent field goal percentage in the nation, and that showed as the Lobos ended the half shooting just 31% from the floor. The Aztecs do not allow easy baskets; however, sometimes, they just go in the hoop, as happened in the first half of this game. SDSU defended hard, but the Lobos still converted on some below-average shots.
The Aztecs ended the half with nine turnovers. Giving the opponent extra opportunities at home is not a recipe for success.
Somehow, the Aztecs only trailed by 10 points at the half. They had a chance to steal a win despite a very poor first half on all fronts.
Miles Byrd got the energy going in the second half. He converted an and-one finish to begin the second period and followed it up by knocking down a few triples. He kept his team in the game and was the only one who could find the back of the net consistently.
Byrd’s heroics were not enough, as New Mexico ran away with this game. The Aztecs could not find any consistency in this contest.
SDSU got outrebounded, committed too many costly turnovers, could not hit three-point shots, and ended with just one second-chance point.
The Aztecs must respond quickly as they host Colorado State on Tuesday night at Viejas Arena. That game is at 8:00 pm for a late tip-off.
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.