{"id":58208,"date":"2025-11-18T08:37:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-18T08:37:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/58208\/"},"modified":"2025-11-18T08:37:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T08:37:10","slug":"magoon-gwath-set-to-return-for-aztecs-after-long-wait","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/58208\/","title":{"rendered":"Magoon Gwath set to return for Aztecs after long wait"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sometime after 7 p.m. Tuesday, either with the music pumping during pregame introductions or when a 7-foot frame unfurls himself from sitting at the scorer\u2019s table, there will be a roar inside Viejas Arena unlike anything we have heard this season and possibly will.<\/p>\n

Goon is back.<\/p>\n

San Diego State sophomore forward Magoon Gwath is expected to play Tuesday against the Sun Belt\u2019s Troy Trojans for the first time since April knee surgery and a brief stint in the transfer portal that had him flirting with blueblood programs for seven-figure NIL payouts. Saying \u201cmy heart was still here,\u201d the Mountain West freshman and defensive player of the year took considerably less money<\/a> to return to Montezuma Mesa.<\/p>\n

Now the fan base gets to publicly thank him.<\/p>\n

SDSU coach Brian Dutcher said Monday he\u2019s still formulating how to use the unicorn talent in only his second game since landing awkwardly on the right knee on Feb. 22, and that was a rusty performance in a blowout loss against North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament on March 18. He had surgery to stabilize the posterior cruciate ligament a month later, and only 10 days ago received medical clearance for full contact.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt great after not playing basketball for six, seven months,\u201d Gwath said. \u201cIt feels good to finally get out here with my guys and not sit on the side or pedal (on the exercycle) or do conditioning but be more involved. I just want to go out there and see how I feel.\u201d<\/p>\n

The first thing fans will notice is his frame, which has the added bulk of 20 pounds from a vigorous offseason weightlifting regimen and, he sheepishly admits, hearty breakfasts of oatmeal with peanut butter.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdding weight will just help my game a lot,\u201d said Gwath, who has refined jump hooks with both hands. \u201cI feel like the things I struggled with last year stemmed from being a little lighter. Gaining weight will help me down low, scoring against bigger defenders, guarding bigger defenders.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, I want to get back up to how I was last year but I want to exceed beyond that. I don\u2019t want how I played last year to be my ceiling.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SDSUSDSU forward Magoon Gwath dunks during a First Four college basketball game against North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament, Tuesday, March 18, 2025, in Dayton, Ohio. (AP Photo\/Jeff Dean)<\/p>\n

After averaging 5.3 points and 2.5 rebounds through his first six games, he introduced himself to the nation with 25 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks against Fresno State. During a four-game stretch in late January and early February, he averaged 17 points and 10.3 rebounds \u2014 a double-double.<\/p>\n

Then he got hurt.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s feeling his way back,\u201d Dutcher said. \u201cHe shows glimpses of the player we all know he is, but you\u2019ve got to get in game rhythm and you have to play games to get in game rhythm. He\u2019s practicing full, he looks good in stretches, but until he gets some games under his belt, he won\u2019t be the player he was before he got hurt.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs good as he thinks he\u2019s going to be and as excited as he is to be out there, there will be a curve to try to get his timing back. He\u2019s going to have to play through some frustration in that process, and I\u2019m going to have to coach through some frustration as we get arguably our best player back on the floor.\u201d<\/p>\n

But when he does rediscover his fitness and rhythm?<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a difference maker, he\u2019s an impact player,\u201d Dutcher said. \u201cHe just looks different than everybody else. \u2026 He\u2019s a special player.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SDSU'sSDSU\u2019s Magoon Gwath warms up (but doesn\u2019t play) before a game against Idaho State at Viejas Arena on Nov. 9. (K.C. Alfred \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n

There are other shot blockers across the country (Gwath ranked seventh in Division I last season at 2.6 per game), but they can\u2019t step onto the perimeter and take smaller players off the dribble, or step back and drain a 3-pointer, or switch onto a point guard on defense. Gwath is all of that, in one player.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you asked me when Goon first came in, I would have said Goon\u2019s a pro,\u201d junior guard Miles Byrd said. \u201cIt helps any team in the country to have a pro on the court with them. Goon, as much as he brings on the offensive end, his level of shot blocking is unmatched in this country, in my opinion. Obviously, defensively, we\u2019re going to take another step with Goon out there. \u2026 It gives me a little more room to roam.\u201d<\/p>\n

Added sophomore guard Taj DeGourville: \u201cHe\u2019s, like, perfect for us. He\u2019s going to bring everything he was last year but even better, honestly.\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019ll likely be on a minutes restriction to start, although, as Dutcher points out, his roster is so deep that most guys don\u2019t get much more than 20 minutes per game anyway. And he\u2019ll wear a bulky knee brace for stability, as much mental as physical.<\/p>\n

But there are no restrictions on his work ethic. Practice ends, and Gwath gathers a gaggle of managers for a shooting workout afterward. On Monday, the managers lined up and, one after another, closed out on him as he launched corner 3s.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s a real timeline,\u201d Gwath said. \u201cI just have to go out there and try to get back up to speed, work every day. \u2026 I\u2019ve been waiting for a long time, itching to get back out there.\u201d<\/p>\n

San Diego State (2-0) vs. Troy (3-2)<\/p>\n

When:\u00a07 p.m. Tuesday<\/p>\n

Where:\u00a0Viejas Arena<\/p>\n

TV:\u00a0Ch. 9\/51<\/p>\n

Radio: 760 AM<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sometime after 7 p.m. Tuesday, either with the music pumping during pregame introductions or when a 7-foot frame…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58209,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[8747,8748,74,76,75,300,4863,35591],"class_list":{"0":"post-58208","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-diego","8":"tag-brian-dutcher","9":"tag-magoon-gwath","10":"tag-san-diego","11":"tag-san-diego-headlines","12":"tag-san-diego-news","13":"tag-san-diego-state","14":"tag-troy","15":"tag-viejas-arena"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58208","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58208"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58208\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58209"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58208"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58208"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58208"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}