San Diego State Aztecs Stats

NCAAB - MW

Arena: Viejas Arena
Coach: Brian Dutcher

TEAM LEADERS

San Diego State Aztecs

Team Summary

The San Diego State Aztecs Men’s Basketball program represents San Diego State University, located in San Diego, CA, and is in the NCAA‘s Division I. Wearing scarlet and black, and San Diego State currently competes in the Mountain West Conference. Their current head coach is Brian Dutcher, who is in his fourth season and has a 96-31 record. The team plays their home games at Viejas Arena, located on the SDSU campus.

They finished the 2020 season with a 23-5 overall record and were 14-3 in the Mountain West, finishing first in the conference. The Aztecs also won the Mountain West Conference Tournament, winning the final against Utah State 68-57.

The Aztecs entered the Mountain West Conference in the 1999 season after being a member of the Western Athletic Conference from 1978-1998. From 1969 to 1977, they were members of the Pacific Coast Athletic Association.

San Diego State Aztecs Standings

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Team History

San Diego State started to play in the 1921-1922 season. Known at the time as San Diego Normal School, they played in the Southern California Junior College Conference, even though the school was not a junior college. In 1926, the school joined the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) and was a member of the NAIA until the NCAA Division II was formed in 1956. The Aztecs became an NCAA Division I program in 1969.

The team started making appearances in the NCAA Tournament in 1975 and has played in a total of twelve tournaments to date, making it as far as the Sweet Sixteen twice. There have been sixteen coaches in the history of SDSU Men’s basketball, with the first being C.E. Peterson in the 1921 season. He led the team through 1926, finishing with a 70-30 record for his career. The only other Aztecs coach with a higher winning percentage is current coach Brian Dutcher, at .756.

Three major rivalries are with the UNLV Rebels and USD Toreros. The Rebels are the primary rival, particularly in recent years when they have had some great showdowns. The Aztecs crosstown rivals are the Toreros, who play them almost annually through non-conference play in a game known as the City Championship.

2022 Key Stats

The San Diego State Aztecs currently have a 10-3 record in 2022 and are first in the Mountain West Conference with a 2-0 mark. G Matt Brantley is their leading scorer at 18.5 points per game. Nathan Mensah leads the team in rebounding and blocked shots with 7.8 and 2.4 per game, respectively. Guards Trey Pullman and Lamont Butler are second on the team in scoring with 10 points apiece per game. Pullman also leads the team in assists with 3.9 per matchup.

The San Diego State Aztecs are averaging 65.8 points per game, ranking ninth in the Mountain West Conference, but are the number one defense, only giving up 61.2 points per game.

Championships Won by the Team

San Diego State has won a total of eight conference tournament championships. They won the Pacific Coast Athletic Association Tournament in 1976 and were Western Athletic Tournament champions in 1985. They were the Mountain West Conference Tournament Champions in 2002, 2006, 2011, 2018, and 2021.

They have also won 10 regular-season conference championships, winning the PCAA regular-season championship in 1977 and 1978 and the Mountain West Conference regular-season title in 2006, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2020, and 2021.

Important Team Events

The San Diego State Aztecs have played in twenty-four post-season tournaments in their history in the NCAA’s Division I. They have twelve NCAA Tournament appearances with a combined record of 6-13, making it as far as the Sweet Sixteen twice, in 2011 and 2014. Their last appearance was in 2021 when they lost in the first round to Syracuse, 78-62.

SDSU appeared in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) six times and has a combined record of 8-6. They went to the semifinals in 2016, losing to George Washington by a 65-46 score.

The Aztecs have also played in a total of six NAIA tournaments, winning the National Championship in 1941 and having a combined record of 15-5.

Top Players

The Aztecs have had many great players throughout the years that went on to play in the NBA and ABA. 14 players in total went on to have careers in these two professional leagues. The best known of them is probably Kawai Leonard, currently of the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers. He had an NBA title with the Toronto Raptors in 2019.

The all-time leading scorer at San Diego State was Brandon Heath, who finished his college career with 2,189 points. The career leader in rebounds for the Aztecs is Michael Cage, with 1,317. In assists, Tony Gwynn handed out 590 between 1977-1981.

Top Coaches

The coach with the highest winning percentage for the Aztecs is current coach Dutcher. From 2018-2021, he had a 140-106 record and a .757 winning percentage. He also led the team to two regular-season conference championships and two conference tournament victories in his five seasons. The Aztecs additionally had two NCAA Tournament appearances under coach Dutcher.

The coach with the most wins for San Diego State is Steve Fisher, who led the team for eighteen seasons. He won a total of 386 games, and his team won six regular-season conference championships and four conference tournament championships. Under his leadership, the team made eight NCAA Tournament appearances. He ended his career at San Diego State with a .649 winning percentage.