Fans will get their first taste of the San Diego State Aztecs when they open up the doors to Viejas Arena to play the Cougars of California State University, San Marcos.

The game will not be televised. Pirated video from attendees streaming the game from their cell phones has been the only way those without tickets have seen exhibitions in the past few years.  

The game will also not count toward any standings or the NCAA Tournament picture. It is simply an opportunity to see how the players respond to what they’ve been working on in practices all summer and fall. 

Last week, the Aztecs played a closed-door scrimmage against UCLA and won 72-67. They accomplished that task despite missing Nick Boyd, Reese Waters, and Wayne McKinney. B.J. Davis led the way with 28 points on 8-9 shooting.

The game against CSUSM will be the team’s first chance to play in front of fans. Given that the record does not count in the standings, the stakes are low. The main priority is health.

Nick Boyd missed most of summer camp, Wayne McKinney also missed large parts of it, and Reese Waters will miss the first 6-8 weeks of the season with a foot injury. Leaving the game with no new injuries will be a win regardless of the final score. 

After that, it’s simply a matter of getting players reps against an opponent who isn’t a teammate. With so many new faces, SDSU will take time to learn how to play with each other. That process started over the offseason but will take a major step forward in this exhibition.

Opposing Player to Watch: no. 3 Max Tengan 

One key player to watch on the opposing team is 5-foot-11 guard Max Tengan. He started 25 games as a freshman last season. He averaged nine points and two assists per game. In high school, he averaged 21.5 points per game at Saugus High School. His claim to fame there was a game-winning half-court shot in the 2022 Damien Classic.

Outside of health, fans should appreciate the chance to see the new offense. The East Village Times wrote an article detailing how the offense might be different this season. There has been talk behind closed doors that part of the reason the Aztecs were able to beat the Bruins in the closed-door scrimmage was that the new offense surprised the opposition.

Wednesday is the final tune-up before the regular season. The Aztecs take on cross-town rival UCSD one week from today.

Tron Johnson

Native San Diegan living in Montana. Big time Aztec Basketball fan. Creator of Aztec Breakdown. Hoping to help people enjoy basketball more by increasing their understanding of it.