This was no day at the Beach.
Five days after blitzing Long Beach State by 32 points, San Diego State hosted an Idaho State team that was comparably mediocre in the computer metrics and won 73-57 in a rare Sunday afternoon game.
The difference from Tuesday: The Aztecs had to work for it.
The Bengals trimmed a 22-point deficit to 12 midway through the second half, compelling Aztecs coach Brian Dutcher to call timeout in hopes of flipping the momentum. His team responded with a quick turnover but eventually settled down and rode another tenacious defensive effort – and three straight Pharaoh Compton dunks – to get Brian Dutcher is 200th career victory as head coach.
Compton had 14 points (but no rebounds) on 7 of 7 shooting – four of which were dunks and another a layup off a lob – in just 11 minutes on an afternoon of constant foul trouble. He had two early in the first half, then fouled out with 1:59 to go after an overzealous celebration on his third straight dunk resulted in a technical, which counts as a personal foul.
Reese Dixon-Waters played his first official game since missing all of last season with a foot injury and the Long Beach State opener with a corneal abrasion in his eye. He had five points in SDSU’s first three possessions and finished with 15 on 6 of 8 shooting to go with six rebounds, two assists and two steals in 31 minutes.
The only other Aztec in double digits was Jeremiah Oden with 13.
Miles Byrd had the day’s craziest line: four points, six assists and six steals.
Magoon Gwath suited up in his No. 0 jersey and warmed up before both halves. He also did that before both exhibitions and the season opener, but there was one difference this time: He wasn’t listed as a “scratch” on the starting lineup sheet.
He was available. He just wasn’t used, Dutcher not wanting to throw him out only three days (and two practices) after he was cleared for full contact. Now the Aztecs have nine days before their next game, Nov. 18 here against Troy.
Dutcher, though, had to be tempted midway through the first half, after bigs Miles Heide and Compton each got two fouls. Instead, he turned to 7-foot-1 redshirt freshman Thokbor Majak up 18-10.
Then Majak got two fouls, and Dutcher went small – first with the 6-8 Oden at the 5 and then 6-6 freshman Tae Simmons against a Bengals team that likes to enter the ball into the low block and deter the double team by spreading shooters across the 3-point line.
That merely ramped up the defensive intensity even higher, and the fatigued Bengals finally began to show signs of cracking. A 13-4 run to close the half included a 3 by freshman Elzie Harrington (eight points, three assists) followed by a no-look pass from Harrington to Simmons for a dunk.
The onslaught continued in the second half, when Byrd had – yes, as insane as this sounds – three steals in 38 seconds and four in 2:11.
The lead grew up 22 before Idaho State figured out a cheat code to the Aztecs’ vaunted defense, having 6-7 forward Connor Hollenbeck (17 points, four 3s) set a ball screen and then pop wide for the 3 instead of rolling to the basket. The Aztecs had been blitzing, or aggressively double teaming, the ball screens, and Hollenbeck was left open for three 3s with late defensive rotation.
Swish, swish, swish.
The Bengals, who won 71-68 at USD on Friday night, were still within 13 inside six minutes to go. But 19 turnovers and a 40-20 deficit in points in the paint ultimately proved too much to overcome, and coach Ryan Looney – who led Point Loma Nazarene to the Division II in 2019 – remains at 400 career wins.