Aztecs get back to winning ways, top Utah Valley at Viejas Arena

San Diego State didn’t magically become the basketball team everyone expected at the start of the season, but the Aztecs did accomplish something they have struggled to do lately.

They won.

“When you lose a couple games,” coach Brian Dutcher said, “you wonder if they’re going to fight through and get a win. They fought through and got a win.”

After dropping three of four and five of seven going back to last season, the Aztecs rediscovered their hard-hat roots and blue-collared their way to a much needed 77-66 victory Wednesday night at Viejas Arena against a Utah Valley team fresh off wins by 22 and 44.

They also discovered that their other true freshman, Tae Simmons, can play, too.

Elzie Harrington started his second straight game, the earliest a true freshman has cracked the SDSU starting lineup in a decade. Simmons, an undersized power forward at 6-foot-6, was fighting for rotation minutes that figured to vanish with the return of 7-foot Magoon Gwath, until he erupted for 15 points and seven rebounds in 15 minutes off the bench Wednesday.

It came on a night when leading scorer Reese Dixon-Waters had no points through the first 33 minutes. And Miles Byrd, who sat out Tuesday’s practice with the flu, took two IV bags before tip-off and didn’t score at all. And starting center Miles Heide took a hard fall in the first half, suffered a hip contusion and didn’t return. And backup Pharaoh Compton had two dunk attempts fly off the back rim. And Gwath, also recovering from the flu and bum ankle, was on the bench during crunch time with Byrd.

“That’s where our depth paid off for us,” Dutcher said. “We had the depth to endure injuries, endure illness, and still find a way to come out with a win.”

The Aztecs (4-3) scored 77 points. Fifty-nine came from the bench, including 18 by BJ Davis, 15 by Simmons and 12 by Compton. Utah Valley’s bench managed just 16.

Or look at the plus/minus column on the stat sheet: The starters were +3, +1, -1, -9 and -11. The first five guys off bench were +21 (Sean Newman Jr.), +17, +15, +9, +8.

For Davis, it was his fifth straight game in double figures.

“BJ has obviously been one of our best players, but the spark he provides off the bench, who else is going to do that?” Dutcher said. “He’s been dynamic off the bench. He changes the rhythm of the game when he comes in. Sometimes that’s what it is. I try to tell BJ every day how much I value him. I don’t want him to be sad he’s not starting when he’s playing so well.”

Davis sparked the Aztecs to a 13-point lead in the first half. Simmons was the energizer that got them a 12-point margin in the second.

Both leads, though, quickly evaporated. Utah Valley (5-3) closed the first half with a 12-0 run to pull within a point, then briefly took the lead early in the second half. And it was a three-point game with three minutes to go before Dixon-Waters sliced through the lane for a pair of layups in traffic.

“Reese struggled at the start of the game,” Dutcher said of his senior guard who had missed seven of eight shots. “He got some looks that didn’t go in, but I thought down the stretch he really attacked strong to the basket. With the game on the line, he didn’t settle for jump shots. He got it, caught it on the dribble and went right to the rim and finished it.”

The Aztecs spent the week of practice focusing on regaining their defensive mentality and mojo, then on Utah Valley’s first possession did this:

Got confused on assignments and left Noah Taitz wide open on the right wing for a 3. Swish.

The Wolverines’ next basket came when Isaac Davis was left alone under the basket for an uncontested layup.

Not exactly what Dutcher had in mind.

But all that practice grind finally began reaping dividends, and eight minutes later the Wolverines were stuck on 10 points while shooting 3 of 15 with five turnovers.

It wasn’t a perfect defensive performance; the Wolverines still shot a respectable 42.3%, made 10 3s and had 11 offensive rebounds to offset 18 turnovers.

But it was an improvement over the last four games, when opponents scored 80 or more in each. Over the previous 100 games, they had allowed 80 or more just five times.

“The last few games, we’ve given up way too many points,” Davis said. “Being San Diego State, this is a defensive program. Coach has been harping on us all week about defense, defense, defense. … I think we did OK. That’s nowhere near where we’re going to be in due time.”

Added Dutcher: “We held a team to 66 points, how about that? … We have to get better. We know that. I thought we took a step in the right direction today.”

Notable

The Aztecs now have a week off before hosting Lamar … This was the first all-time meeting against Utah Valley … The Wolverines got 50 of their 66 points from starters, led by 17 from Jackson Holcombe (to go with 10 rebounds and five assists) and 15 from Tyler Hendricks … Dutcher won two video challenges, the first for a block call on Taj DeGourville, the second on an out-of-bounds call … Compton played a career high 22 minutes. No one played more than 25 by Dixon-Waters.