Preview: Aztecs carry perfect conference record into Laramie for last ride vs. Cowboys
SDSU at Wyoming
When: 5 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Arena-Auditorium, Laramie, Wyo.
On the air: CBS Sports Network; 760-AM
Records: SDSU is 11-4, 5-0; Wyoming is 11-5, 2-3
Series history: SDSU leads the all-time series 53-41 overall and is 35-17 in the Mountain West era. SDSU’s Brian Dutcher is 13-1 as head coach, including winning both meetings last season.
Aztecs update: This starts a tricky stretch of four games, three of which are on the road. The Kenpom metric projects the Aztecs to win all four, but by one point (at Wyoming), three points (vs. New Mexico), one point (at Grand Canyon) and seven points (at UNLV). One reason games have been closer than they’d like is poor “free-throw defense.” Opponents are shooting 77% from the line on the season, well above the national average of 72%. In the last four games, it’s been even more pronounced: 74 of 82 (90.2%). Opposing teams have also got 38% of their points from 3-pointers, the 13th highest figure in the nation. Saturday’s 71-52 win against Fresno State was the first time in regulation time that all three of SDSU’s preseason all-conference players scored in double figures: Magoon Gwath with 18 points, Reese Dixon-Waters with 13 and Miles Byrd with 10. They also combined for 23 rebounds and eight assists. BJ Davis, though, had his lowest scoring game of the season, with two points on 1 of 4 shooting in 15 minutes.
Wyoming update: They have been perfectly consistent: 0-5 against teams in the Kenpom top 140, 11-0 against teams outside it. The best win is 98-66 against 148 UNLV last week. One of the losses is 76-72 at No. 15-ranked Texas Tech. Coach Sundance Wicks lost most of his roster from last season, including Mountain West Newcomer of the Year Obi Agbim (17.6 points) as a transfer to Baylor, but has retooled impressively. Florida Atlantic transfer Leland Walker averages 14.5 points per game. Naz Meyer, a 6-foot-7 freshman from Los Angeles, averages 13.8 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. Quinnipiac transfer Khaden Bennett is at 9.8 points and 4.8 rebounds. The Cowboys rank ahead of SDSU in Kenpom offensive efficiency, 74th to 80th. They average a conference-best 38 rebounds per game and rank 39th nationally in offensive rebound rate, grabbing 36.4% of their misses despite starting no one taller than 6-7. Their downfall has been fouling. Opponents are averaging 27.7 free throw attempts, third most in Division I. The Cowboys are 92 in Kenpom and 88 in the NET.
Next up: Saturday vs. New Mexico (5 p.m., CBSSN)
–MARK ZEIGLER
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