San Diego State Aztecs vs TCU Horned Frogs Basketball Recap

San Diego State 60, TCU 53


There are some nights when a team has to flex its muscles and discover every extra ounce of its competitive resources. There are other nights when teams just have to soldier on and produce a workmanlike night at the office, performing their required tasks when their reserves are tapped out.

The latter scenario clearly applied to the co-leader of the Mountain West realm.

The sixth-ranked San Diego State Aztecs defeated the Texas Christian Horned Frogs in Mountain West Conference competition from Viejas Arena in San Diego on Saturday night. The Aztecs remained tied atop the Conference with BYU, with both teams holding the fort at 8-1. The loss dropped TCU to just 1-8 in the conference; the Frogs have dropped six straight.

With the two teams at completely different positions in the conference standings, and with TCU having suspended its best player (Ronnie Moss) indefinitely, it was reasonable to think that San Diego State would struggle; few casual fans expected a tough contest. Credit TCU head coach Jim Christian for getting an inspired performance out of his outmanned ballclub. The Frogs kept the score close throughout the evening, but in all honesty, the result was never too much in doubt. Guard Hank Thomas led the Frogs with 16 points while Greg Hill added 12. 

However, while TCU deserves credit, it’s also worth putting this game in perspective for SDSU.

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The boys from the Montezuma Mesa were just coming off a difficult road trip to Fort Collins, Colorado. San Diego State went into the home lair of the Colorado State Rams and took on the MWC’s third-place team. Colorado State could have jumped onto the positive side of the NCAA Tournament bubble with a win, and Moby Arena was electric on a night when the CSU campus actually got excited about hoops, a very rare occurrence over the past 20 years. San Diego State dug out a gritty and admirable 56-54 win on a tough 18-foot jumper by guard D.J. Gay. Fending off an NCAA Tournament-minded foe on its home court in a setting conducive to an ambush took a lot out of the Aztecs. The fact that they had to play at a high altitude exhausted them even more. This was a game SDSU merely needed to win and forget about. Indeed, that’s exactly what this team can now do after playing through fatigue that was both physical and mental in nature.

The San Diego State front court was again the star of the night. Billy White has 19 points while Kawhi Leonard had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Malcolm Thomas had 11 points and 14 rebounds. The lethargic performance from the head coach Steve Fisher's Aztecs was overcome by yet another dominating performance on the boards. Head coach Steve Fisher's squad out rebounded the Frogs to the tune of 33-26.

The time clock has been punched. Now the Aztecs can move forward with their Mountain West title hopes still fully intact.

By: Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer