There is the 43-game nonconference win streak against teams from the state of California, the 21-game win streak following a loss that leads the nation (Kansas is second at 19), the 20-game nonconference win streak against Cal State University schools that dates back 15 years, the 15-game win streak against the Big West Conference.
And the reason why a Tuesday night game at Long Beach State is so important for San Diego State is ? none of the above. The Aztecs just need to win, period.
?Huge game for us,? coach Steve Fisher said.
?Really big game,? junior Dakarai Allen said.
You can divide the nonconference schedule into two parts: games you?re supposed to win, and games you?re not. For teams outside the power conferences, the idea is to build an NCAA Tournament resume by avoiding losses in the former category and collecting one or two wins in the latter. ?Bad? losses hurt as much as ?good? wins help.
The problem for the Aztecs (4-3) is they already have one bad loss at home against Little Rock and Tuesday night at the sold out Walter Pyramid is, on paper, the toughest nonconference win they?re supposed to get, the hardest ?easy? game ? something the NCAA Tournament selection committee is only noticing if you lose.
?A game that if we win,? Fisher said, ?we?ll take a sigh of relief, a deep breath.?
Drop to 4-4 and, barring an historic upset against No. 4-ranked Kansas on Dec. 22, you might not have enough muscle on your nonconference body of work to warrant an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament. Drop to 4-4 and, barring a magical run through the rugged but underappreciated Mountain West, your season might be about three games in March and the conference tournament?s automatic NCAA berth.
?We took a bad loss at home,? is how Allen put it. ?We don?t want to take any more losses in games we?re expected to win.?
In Long Beach State, the Aztecs get a team that isn?t very big (starting no one over 6-foot-7), unless you?re measuring the size of chips on shoulders. Coach Dan Monson lost all five starters from last season and replaced them with his usual collection of transfers and gritty kids from the fertile Los Angeles basketball pastures that the Southern California powers overlooked.
Two of them, starting forward Roschon Prince and backup guard Noah Blackwell, showed interest in SDSU either out of high school or as a transfer but firm scholarship offers never materialized.
?A lot of their guys wanted to come here, and they?re going to come for our heads,? Allen said. ?When we play guys who want to be in our shoes, they?re going to come out extra hard. They have a little more motivation to have a good game. If you let them get going early, that could carry over for the whole game and make it tougher than it has to be.?
In Long Beach State, the Aztecs also get a team hungry from history. A year ago at Viejas Arena, the Aztecs won 60-59 after trailing by eight with seven minutes to go. In 2011, also at Viejas, the Aztecs won 77-73 after Xavier Thames bailed them out in overtime.
Said Fisher: ?We?re playing a team that is saying, ?We had them beat twice and we let them get away.? And we?re playing a good team. I mean, this is a good team.?
The 49ers (3-3) are responsible for the only losses of the season by BYU and Seton Hall. And their losses are to No. 10 Virginia and twice to 5-1 Oklahoma State, once in a tournament in South Carolina and once in a previously scheduled game in Stillwater, Okla. (and both were close).
The next question: Do they press?
The answer: Yes, but not as aggressively or relentlessly or ruthlessly as No. 20 West Virginia did in a 72-50 beat-down against SDSU last Friday in Las Vegas, forcing 21 turnovers, causing general mayhem and handing the Aztecs their most lopsided loss in 229 games. Nobody in America might.
The obvious fear is teams will see the film and play copycat against the Aztecs, and the 49ers did compel 24 turnovers from BYU. It?s a fine line, though. There?s a danger in trying to extend your defense too far when it?s not in your team?s DNA; porous presses bleed layups.
?We have a solid press break,? Allen said. ?I don?t think we?ll ever face another press again like West Virginia?s. So if teams want to press us, it?s up to us to make the right plays and get easy shots off the press, to attack it and not let them off easy.?
And the reason why a Tuesday night game at Long Beach State is so important for San Diego State is ? none of the above. The Aztecs just need to win, period.
?Huge game for us,? coach Steve Fisher said.
?Really big game,? junior Dakarai Allen said.
You can divide the nonconference schedule into two parts: games you?re supposed to win, and games you?re not. For teams outside the power conferences, the idea is to build an NCAA Tournament resume by avoiding losses in the former category and collecting one or two wins in the latter. ?Bad? losses hurt as much as ?good? wins help.
The problem for the Aztecs (4-3) is they already have one bad loss at home against Little Rock and Tuesday night at the sold out Walter Pyramid is, on paper, the toughest nonconference win they?re supposed to get, the hardest ?easy? game ? something the NCAA Tournament selection committee is only noticing if you lose.
?A game that if we win,? Fisher said, ?we?ll take a sigh of relief, a deep breath.?
Drop to 4-4 and, barring an historic upset against No. 4-ranked Kansas on Dec. 22, you might not have enough muscle on your nonconference body of work to warrant an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament. Drop to 4-4 and, barring a magical run through the rugged but underappreciated Mountain West, your season might be about three games in March and the conference tournament?s automatic NCAA berth.
?We took a bad loss at home,? is how Allen put it. ?We don?t want to take any more losses in games we?re expected to win.?
In Long Beach State, the Aztecs get a team that isn?t very big (starting no one over 6-foot-7), unless you?re measuring the size of chips on shoulders. Coach Dan Monson lost all five starters from last season and replaced them with his usual collection of transfers and gritty kids from the fertile Los Angeles basketball pastures that the Southern California powers overlooked.
Two of them, starting forward Roschon Prince and backup guard Noah Blackwell, showed interest in SDSU either out of high school or as a transfer but firm scholarship offers never materialized.
?A lot of their guys wanted to come here, and they?re going to come for our heads,? Allen said. ?When we play guys who want to be in our shoes, they?re going to come out extra hard. They have a little more motivation to have a good game. If you let them get going early, that could carry over for the whole game and make it tougher than it has to be.?
In Long Beach State, the Aztecs also get a team hungry from history. A year ago at Viejas Arena, the Aztecs won 60-59 after trailing by eight with seven minutes to go. In 2011, also at Viejas, the Aztecs won 77-73 after Xavier Thames bailed them out in overtime.
Said Fisher: ?We?re playing a team that is saying, ?We had them beat twice and we let them get away.? And we?re playing a good team. I mean, this is a good team.?
The 49ers (3-3) are responsible for the only losses of the season by BYU and Seton Hall. And their losses are to No. 10 Virginia and twice to 5-1 Oklahoma State, once in a tournament in South Carolina and once in a previously scheduled game in Stillwater, Okla. (and both were close).
The next question: Do they press?
The answer: Yes, but not as aggressively or relentlessly or ruthlessly as No. 20 West Virginia did in a 72-50 beat-down against SDSU last Friday in Las Vegas, forcing 21 turnovers, causing general mayhem and handing the Aztecs their most lopsided loss in 229 games. Nobody in America might.
The obvious fear is teams will see the film and play copycat against the Aztecs, and the 49ers did compel 24 turnovers from BYU. It?s a fine line, though. There?s a danger in trying to extend your defense too far when it?s not in your team?s DNA; porous presses bleed layups.
?We have a solid press break,? Allen said. ?I don?t think we?ll ever face another press again like West Virginia?s. So if teams want to press us, it?s up to us to make the right plays and get easy shots off the press, to attack it and not let them off easy.?
