SDSU improved to 11-2 in Mountain West play with a dominant win over their longtime rivals, the Air Force Falcons

San Diego State and Air Force met at Clune Arena for what could be the final time ever. The history between these two teams dates back a long time, but because of the upcoming transition to the Pac-12, there aren’t many reasons to play this team again unless Air Force’s program takes a major leap.

The Aztecs put a stamp on the rivalry with their 69th in 93 contests and 13 in a row.

“It felt good, we’re at elevation, so it’s always tough to overcome that,” Miles Heide said on the FS1 postgame. “It was a good team win, I thought we played pretty well.”

The Falcons donned their USSF (Space Force) jerseys for this final battle.

It usually takes a few minutes for SDSU to settle down and hit shots. Kam Sanders scored the first five points for Air Force to take a quick 5-0 lead. The Aztecs then stormed back with an 11-0 run by forcing six turnovers in the first seven minutes. The Falcons went about five minutes without a score.

The Aztecs started the game hitting five of their first 10 shots, led by BJ Davis, starting 3-3 with seven points. The junior guard had one of his better games of the season against the academy team in mid December.

The first double-digit lead came with just under 12 minutes to go in the first half. Reese Dixon-Waters scored his sixth point of the night on a layup in transition.

Air Force blanked another 5-minute scoring drought as San Diego State’s defense made it very hard for the Falcons to score. The SDSU run jumped from 11-0 to 23-2 as everything was going right for the Aztecs. SDSU’s shooting percentage was 53% while the Falcons were at 25%.

Did somebody say 23-2 run?#GoAztecs pic.twitter.com/28708Cx4Hi

— San Diego State Men’s Basketball (@Aztec_MBB) February 8, 2026

Ethan Greenberg hit a corner triple to finally get his team back on the board. He and Sanders were a key part of keeping the Falcons in the contest. After the Falcons trailed by 22 points, Greenberg would hit his third triple of the game, followed by a three-pointer from Lucas Hobin to cut the deficit down to 16. That was the Falcons’ sixth three-pointer of the contest on 14 attempts.

Brian Dutcher called his first timeout of the game after those back-to-back triples. The only way Air Force would be able to remain in the contest would be from the three-ball, as SDSU was getting whatever they wanted to go on the other side of the court.

BJ Davis would put an exclamation point on the end of the first half with a long three-pointer from just inside the logo at the buzzer. When the clock is ticking down to the final seconds, the Aztecs look to no other than to Davis to put the ball in the hoop. He wants the ball in his hands in those situations. That bucket would be his 12th point of the night while not missing a shot.

From the logo 🫣 @BJDavis_10 #GoAztecs pic.twitter.com/cZ5PA18ZiD

— San Diego State Men’s Basketball (@Aztec_MBB) February 8, 2026

SDSU commanded a 45-26 lead at the break. The Scarlet & Black shot 56% from the field and 36% from deep (4-11). The highlight of the first half was the intense defense by the Aztecs. The Falcons turned the ball over 12 times, and the Aztecs scored 20 points from those possession changers. SDSU had five blocks and seven steals. Dixon-Waters, Miles Heide, and Pharaoh Compton all had six points each.

Both offenses began the second half on fire. After 4.5 minutes, SDSU was 7 for 8 from the field while the Falcons were 3 of 4. The Aztecs’ lead jumped out to 26 points as they were running away with the game.

The Aztecs’ offense kept playing very well. Sean Newman Jr. was active while Taj DeGourville, Jeremiah Oden, Tae Simmons, and Compton were all getting buckets. Compton slammed home another incredible alley-oop from the assist by Newman Jr. Those are the type of plays that Brian Dutcher and the staff wanted to see from the senior guard when they went to the transfer portal to get him.

The SDSU lead reached 34 with just over 12 minutes to go in the game. They were shooting 64% from the field and forced 19 steals to this point. This is the type of ball you wanted to see from the Aztecs.

The offense was playing so great that Miles Heide drained a wide-open triple from the top of the arc for his 13th point of the night. The Aztecs were closing in on 80 points and had a shot at scoring 100+ with nine minutes to go in the game.

HEIDE THREE#GoAztecs pic.twitter.com/JHzEVKYojb

— San Diego State Men’s Basketball (@Aztec_MBB) February 8, 2026

“It felt good, I have been working on it over the past …idk how long really,” Heide said postgame. “To be able to get one was good.”

Thokbor Majak entered the contest with around eight minutes to go in the game. This was a great moment for the big man to earn valuable experience. He contributed right away with three rebounds and a block, though he did pick up two fouls. Compton would replace him after three minutes on the court. With 3.5 minutes to go, Majak would check back in alongside Cam Lawin and Raymar Gonzales. Majak would pick up another two fouls for his 4th in four minutes.

The game would end with SDSU making only one bucket in the final five minutes, but they won big by 34 points. Cam Lawin got the final bucket of the contest.

This result was exactly what SDSU needed to accomplish tonight. They had to have a huge win ahead of a very tough stretch of games to finish February. The Aztecs are tied with the Utah State Aggies atop the MWC standings, with the Aggies having the current edge.

Up next is next Saturday against the Nevada Wolf Pack.

News & Stats

• SDSU finished with 14 steals and 7 blocks, scoring 32 points off turnovers.
• Davis ended with 16 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal
• Compton, Heide, Dixon-Waters, and Oden all scored in double figures
• Taj DeGourville finished with 8 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, & 2 steals
• Elzie Harrington and Magoon Gwath both missed this contest. The goal is to have them both available against Nevada at home in one week.
• UNLV defeated Grand Canyon on Saturday, giving SDSU and Utah State (defeated Wyoming) a 2.5-game lead in the conference.

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.