Hate is such a strong word. There aren’t many things in life that I can genuinely say that I hate.
Green beans? Not gonna find them on my Thanksgiving plate whether in a casserole or not. Traffic? Catch me on the right day on the 805 and I can get by with my favorite album or podcast just fine.
But losing to a third tier college team from the state of Utah? You got me. I hate that.
Saturday the then #20 Aztecs certainly relinquished their Top-25 ranking dropping down to as low as #35 in the AP poll as of Monday morning. With it they also lost control of the early Mountain West Conference standings with a 67-66 upset loss to Utah State. To make the loss even more disgusting—it was at home.
Go figure that my colleague, SDSports Fiend’s Ranking the Mountain West’s most hated teams of 2024-25 article was released at just the perfect time. But that’s just one man’s opinion. To hate is too close to envy. There ain’t nothing I envy about Utah State in the slightest.
Nevertheless, Saturday’s loss was something to be hated for sure. Here are the three game-changing moments that took the game from bad, to worse, to a big fat L.
Zoned Out
The obvious story line of this game was the huge lead the Aztecs gave up. After drumming up the Viejas Arena crowd into a frenzy with an 18 point first half advantage it appeared the Aztecs were clearly the dominant team holding pace over the Aggies.
However, five quick points to close out the first half for USU cut the lead down to 11 and was their saving grace going into halftime. It was a huge boost of confidence for a team that was in danger of letting things get way out of hand.
Coming out of the break the Aztecs’ Jared Coleman-Jones immediately missed an open lay up right under the rim and that is when things continued to change. The Aztecs inability to get going offensively and Utah State’s activity within their stifling matchup zone defense began to frustrate SDSU’s ball movement.
Gone were the good looks at the rim as the Aggies chopped away at the lead in the second half. The lid on the bucket against the Aztecs was so strong that the 23 points scored was the lowest point total of the season for Coach Dutcher’s team in a half.
No ball movement, not a lot of penetrating to the rim. Just a lot of passing around the perimeter and holding the ball til the shot clock dwindled down. In the 2nd half the Aztecs somehow managed to shoot 0-11 from 3 point range. You will be hard pressed to find a team win a basketball game if they cannot knock down at least one 3 pointer in a half.
When asked wether Utah State did anything different in the second half that caused the Aztecs to go dormant offensively, Coach Dutcher in his post game address said, “You’re like the offense is bad, well the offense is the same but the shots just weren’t falling and sometimes that happens. That’s probably a simplistic approach. But their defense is good, it’s been good all year, it’s one of the best that we’re going to play all year.”
Simplistic may be putting it mildly. These were obviously missed shots, but they were also not the right ones to be taken. More on that.
Fowl Trouble
When looking for answers for the loss many Aztecs fans were left to walk out of Viejas cursing under their breath at the refs. Utah State for most of the game held a free throw shooting attempt advantage over the home team. But it was the Aztecs who actually knocked more of them down with a 20 to 15 advantage.
It wasn’t until the games final minutes when SDSU took the lead back and were often sent back to the line in the power position trying to bleed the clock.
It wasn’t until the biggest foul called on SDSU’s Miles Byrd that suddenly the game was in trouble. Limited to just over 23 minutes of play time because of ongoing foul trouble, Byrd took only 7 shots total on the afternoon and was still tied for the team lead in points with 14 along with Nick Boyd.
Byrd’s playmaking ability has been perhaps his biggest asset to the team. His ability to make the tough passes look simple picks up his teammates and sets this offense apart from when he is not in the game. It clearly showed on this day.
With the Aggies down 7 points at the 1:29 mark desperation was beginning to creep in on the Utah State side. After a missed 3-point shot turned into an Aggie offensive rebound a pass was directed to Ian Martinez leading him straight towards the middle of the lane.
Byrd who was guarding under the rim, stepped into position at the top of the paint bracing for contact as if he were a catcher in baseball waiting upon a Randy Johnson fastball. Martinez barreled into his body and official blew the whistle.
When asked about the collision that sent him to the bench, Byrd took the high road with a diplomatic answer, “I tried to take a charge earlier in the game and that one I felt my feet weren’t set, I left the ground. So, I mean that one I see being a block and I’d just rather not comment on that second one.”
The fifth and final foul on Byrd was a big problem, but Martinez’s sustained shot going through the contact and down inside the basket was a bigger one. Just like that an And1 for the Aggies.
Not Aztecs Defense
We know the end of the story. Utah State’s Tucker Anderson absolutely nailed two 3-point shots to take the lead with just 6 seconds remaining.
The Atlantic Sun Conference 2023-24 Freshman of the Year last season at Central Arkansas had only 9 three pointers in 12 games so far this season. This night he knocked down 4.
Though Coach Dutcher and the team knew he was a shooter and the defense pushed USU to use all of the shot clock—not allowing any passes to the interior, playing off of Anderson in the games final seconds is something that should be looped in the film study of this game in terms of situational basketball.
Allowing Anderson that much free space for a three point look is much worse than trying to clog the lane for a two point shot in that given situation. Credit to Anderson for making the shot, but that kind of execution left way too much to be desired.
The big question Aztec Nation was asking each other afterwards and had for Coach Dutcher was why not take a timeout immediately following the go ahead shot. Coach Dutcher
“When he made it I looked up and tried to call a timeout. Wether it was the official seeing me or my own players, that didn’t happen. We got it in and once it’s in you know what it is.”
What it was, was an errant 3 point attempt by Wayne McKinney III after colliding with a defender guarding the line. Game over.
“Six seconds—go to the basket. Get to the rim make them call a foul. And we end up pulling up.“
So there you go. Either the ref heard Dutcher’s call for a timeout and didn’t pay coach any mind, or he didn’t hear it and we play on. Either way, you’ve got to make someone hear your timeout call.
Though Dutch is correct when he assessed how his refusal to call timeout in the Final Four two years ago would’ve been scrutinized had Lamont Butler not hit the greatest shot in SDSU history, the comparison is apples to oranges. This years’ young Aztecs team is not that Final Four squad who had proved to be able to execute that last second situation.
But don’t tell the players that—despite the all the second guessing and passionate nature of this game we all love. Miles Byrd and Nick Boyd followed after their coach with a calm, determined and positive outlook that speaks true to the character and resolve of this young team.
“I think we were very dominant … the first half shows what kind of team we are. We’re a young team and showed our lack of maturity at the end of the first half. But it’s going to be a long season and I think we are destined for greatness at the end of it. Sometimes you need these type of losses to keep you humble and keep you pushing.“
The Aztecs will keep it pushing this Saturday, January 4 at 1pm PST on the road against Boise State. The game will be televised on CBS. Stay tuned for an all new Sons of Montezuma Podcast tonight where the guys will break down this entire game and react to how much SD Sports Fiend truly hates Utah State.
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