The Aztecs men’s basketball team opens up the 2025-26 season at home against Long Beach State this Tuesday night at 7PM PST. This season begins with a lot of anticipation and expectation. Though not properly ranked in the polls, the Aztecs bring a caliber that demands respect and lots of that will be dished out between the two when these Southern California hoops squads tip-off.
Familiar Faces
Tuesday will mark the return of former Aztec assistant coach Chris Acker who took over the keys to the Long Beach State mens basketball program a year ago. Coach Acker went 7-15 in his first season as head coach finishing 10th in the Big West. He was an assistant coach on Brian Dutcher’s staff for 5 years.
Shay Johnson Jr. is in his senior year at Long Beach State after playing for the Aztecs for 3 seasons from 2022-2025. The 6’10 center came off the bench and saw the most playing time of his career in 2025 due to the injury to Magoon Gwath.
Long Beach assistant coach Phil Scott will also have a bit of a reunion in Viejas Arena as well. Scott has close ties to San Diego State having served as a personal trainer to several Aztecs including Lamont Butler and Keshad Johnson.
Starting From Scratch
The transfer portal can be very unkind to programs like Long Beach State whose best players get raided for bigger programs with larger NIL budgets. Coach Acker returns 1 player from the 2024-2025 season: 6’9 starting center Derrick Michael Xziavierro aka DMX. He averaged 5 pts per game. Every other player who signed with Long Beach State came through the transfer portal or is fresh out of high school.
The lack of continuity minutes for Long Beach State is going to be a big advantage for SDSU as the Beach will need to learn on the fly how to play together.
Here are some potential impact transfers & high schoolers to watch out for:
Peter Mastorovic – So. – 6’9 Forward – Syracuse – 12 minutes per game
Shaquille Bender – Sr. – 6’2 Guard – Manhattan – 12.7 ppg
Isaiah Lewis – Jr. – 6’5 Guard – Little Rock – 9.4 ppg
Cole Farrell – Jr. – 6’5 Guard – Portland State – 6.5 ppg
Rob Diaz III – Jr. – 6’2 Guard – Cal Poly Humboldt – 16 ppg
Dallas Washington – Fr. – 6’10 forward – 3 ⭐️ outside shooter who can handle the ball
Gavin Sykes – Fr. – 6’4 guard – 3 ⭐️ from Modesto Christian High School (same high school as BJ Davis)
Aztecs Should Dominate
SDSU had little trouble dispatching of University of San Diego in an exhibition game 87-54 without two of its top players in Magoon Gwath and Miles Byrd. The Aztecs controlled the game from start to finish.
SDSU should have similar results against Long Beach State. KenPom website has the Aztecs winning 80-60 and it wouldn’t be surprising if the margin of victory is larger. Byrd is expected to be available while Gwath is not yet medically cleared to play.
While Acker, Scott and Johnson will be motivated to take down SDSU, the Beach is not as battled tested as the Aztecs. SDSU has already tested themselves playing UCLA and USD in exhibition games while the Beach has only played an intrasquad scrimmage.
The Aztecs have too much fire power with a rotation that goes 11 deep with no drop-off in talent. SDSU should be able to ramp up the defensive pressure on Long Beach State while rotating waves of fresh players. The Beach doesn’t have the personnel to match the level of intensity SDSU will bring for 40 minutes. I fully expect a blowout win for Coach Dutcher to start the 2025-2026 season.
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