After sitting for most of the lopsided affair, the Viejas Arena crowd rose to its feet with 44 seconds left in anticipation. Aztec Nation wanted 100 points.

Fifteen seconds later, there was an audible groan from the gathered throng after Desai Lopez’s layup failed to find the bottom of the net. When Demarshay Johnson tipdunked Lopez’s errant attempt to raise SDSU’s total to triple digits, the ensuing roar approximated the initial response to a buzzer-beater but without the prolonged jubilation. 

“I was kind of looking through the old scores with (Occidental), and we scored mid-90s the last three or four games against them,” head coach Brian Dutcher joked postgame. “I told them, if we got to 100, I was going to check into the game. I hadn’t played since high school. But I didn’t have enough time. We didn’t get there until like 25 seconds left.”

Occidental was a founding member of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in 1915, and SDSU joined 11 years later, in 1926. The program’s first meeting was a two-game series in Los Angeles on January 21 and 22, 1927.

Oxy won both by a total of three points. The Aztec total on Tuesday was more than the combined scores of those contests. The inaugural matchup went into overtime. The squads were knotted at 20 at the end of regulation. The Tigers eventually won 24-22. 

The following season, the programs met in San Diego. According to the 1928 Del Sudoeste yearbook, the Aztecs led at the half 10-8. Occidental went on a 12-0 second-half run after James Hildreth picked up his fourth foul and had to leave the game. Foreshadowing the modern positionless Aztecs, Hildreth was listed as a “guard and forward” who puts “his heart and soul in the game at all times.”

The Tigers won the SCIAC title that year with an 8-1 record. SDSU finished next to last with a 2-6 mark. According to the Del Sudoeste, the team’s poor performance under head coach Tom McMullen was due to a lack of returning letter winners and starting practice in December, only two weeks before the season opener against Occidental. 

“An additional handicap was the necessity to practice whenever and wherever a court could be obtained, as floor space was at a premium in San Diego all of the season,” the yearbook concluded in its introduction to the season. 

Ninety-seven years later, Wayne McKinney III’s experience as an SDSU basketball player is different than it was for Hildreth. Instead of looking for available space to practice, McKinney III has 24-hour access to the JAM Center. 

“It’s helped me a lot,” McKinney said when asked about the JAM’s impact on his game. “Getting in there every day. Being able to have a practice facility with really no restrictions and having people come rebound for me, everybody being there for me, getting work in every day, it’s been a blessing. It’s something every basketball player should ask for, and it’s beautiful.”

What the win means

In the scope of the season, the victory over Occidental means the wait is over. Monday, SDSU hosts Gonzaga. One of the most anticipated non-conference contests in program history is next on the schedule. 

Anticipation for the Zags trip to Viejas Arena has been building since the home-and-home series was announced. After the Aztecs went to The Kennel last year and took down the Bulldogs 84-74, GU undoubtedly has had revenge on its mind. 

Judging from pregame, SDSU will be without Miles Byrd on Monday. He was in a walking boot and crutches. The Aztecs hope Byrd will be available. 

The main goal is to walk away from a game like Occidental without injury. SDSU accomplished that on Tuesday since Byrd’s ankle injury happened in practice. There were other benefits.

Dutcher said the Aztecs pressed for much of the game because they are not effective at it yet. Magoon Gwath mentioned boxing out better on long rebounds as a lesson he took from the contest. 

“It’s a good game because when you’ve got all the new guys that we’re playing, it’s just another opportunity for a dress rehearsal,” Dutcher explained. “I felt comfortable we were going to win the game, and that’s no disrespect to Occidental. We have a high-level division one program, and they’re stepping up a weight class. They run good stuff. They run the Princeton Offense. They’re well-coached, and they play hard as heck. … Anything you can get with a game situation in front of a crowd is a good thing for preparing yourself to move forward.”

Player of the Game: Magoon Gwath

The outcome of Tuesday’s game was never in doubt. The only real question was if the Aztecs would come out sluggish against an overmatched opponent. That was answered 39 seconds into the contest when Viejas PA announcer Daren Sparks yelled, “Gwath with the block” for the first time. 

Sparks would call that out two more times over the next 2:27. The Aztecs opened the game on an 18-0 run before Occidental’s first basket. Between the superlatives on the defensive end, Gwath put on a more impressive offensive display. 

He casually made the first of SDSU’s 18 three-pointers on the night. McKinney III skipped a pass to Gwath, who, at his height, is nearly always open for a catch-and-shoot three. Two possessions later, after a BJ Davis steal ignited a fast-break opportunity for Nick Boyd, Gwath stepped into another three. Seeing a point guard hunt a shot for a center on the wing is the creation of modern basketball. 

Following the Tigers’ first score, Gwath responded with a traditional low-post jump hook. During that eight-point burst, he put his offensive versatility on display. The redshirt freshman was one of three Aztecs to lead the team with 16 on the night. He said that securing more rebounds was the area he is most focused on improving.    

“Just be a better defender, sit down (in a defensive stance) longer,” Dutcher said when asked what he wants to see from Gwath. “I think we found out that if we play him in four or five-minute stretches, then we probably need to give him a rest. I don’t think right now, as a freshman in his first year of competition, that we think he can run out there for ten or twelve straight minutes. He gets tired because he’s chasing all over the floor at 7-foot.” 

Unsung Hero: Jared Coleman-Jones

SDSU has had its share of athletic big men who could move. It is hard to think of one who could top Jared Coleman-Jones’ skill (not effectiveness) as a perimeter player. Jaedon LeDee, Malcolm Thomas, and Marcus Slaughter were more than comfortable outside, but Coleman-Jones looks like a guard when he dribbles in warm-ups and moves through the layup lines. 

On Tuesday, Dutcher did not play a small lineup until the end to get the last of his walk-on time on the court. More than ever before, SDSU is asking its bigs to compete on the perimeter. The Aztecs are fortunate that Coleman-Jones transferred to the program because he has developed the necessary skills necessary to fill that role and is teaching them to his younger teammates.

“In practice, he tries to lead us, put us on the right path,” Gwath said about Coleman-Jones. “He shows by example. He goes hard every day and tries to lead the younger guys, like giving little teaching points. Stuff like that. We just try to look up to him as a leader and learn from him as a veteran.”

Dutcher played Coleman-Jones at power forward, forcing him to guard more on the wing. Against UCSD, he played at center. Coleman-Jones benefitted from the switch. He moved his feet better sitting down in a defensive stance than switching onto a point guard heading downhill off a ball screen. The move also allowed Gwath’s shot-blocking ability to be featured more. 

Fast Break:

• BJ Davis’ athleticism is terrific. He put on a dunk show in warmups with a windmill dunk and a between-the-legs flush.
• Davis has yet to bring that out in a game, but he does a very good job of using the rim to screenshot blockers on his layups. 
• Kimo Ferrari may be working his way into a role. He is an energy player and raised SDSU’s intensity each time he entered. 
• Ferrari also is a very smart player. He was instrumental in coaching the team in attacking Occidental’s zone.
• SDSU reached 84 points with 10:53 left. Amazingly, it barely got to the century mark.
• The Aztecs are 93-11 under Brian Dutcher against unranked opponents. That level of consistency is the difference between good and great programs.
• Wayne McKinney III looked more comfortable at the point guard position. Working Nick Boyd at the off-guard might be a better fit for the team. Dutcher said McKinney III is still learning the plays. 
• Offensive rebounding is what Dutcher would like to see Taj DeGourville improve on. 

Paul Garrison

My earliest sport’s memory involve tailgating at the Murph, running down the circular exit ramps, and seeing the Padres, Chargers and Aztecs play. As a second generation Aztec, I am passionate about all things SDSU. Other interests include raising my four children, being a great husband and teaching high school.