3 Things to Watch as San Diego State Tries to Stay on Top vs Wyoming

One half of the Mountain West schedule for the Aztecs is complete—not without some bumps, bruises, steep learning curves and a little bit of magic taking place of course. But Brian Dutcher has his team tied for 1st place. His team has run through all the Mountain West once over and now stand at 9-2 following their most recent road loss vs Utah State.

Next, San Diego State enters Tuesday night’s Mountain West tussle with the Wyoming Cowboys as the sort of favorite that makes Vegas blush: roughly a 12.5-point favorite at Viejas Arena, one of the toughest road environments the Pokes will see all year.

The Aztecs’ home court has been a fortress through seven straight victories there, and they’ll be looking to put Wyoming on a bus back to Laramie with its dignity denied in the final road trip to San Diego while the Aztecs remain in the Mountain West.

Here are a few factors to keep an eye on.

All Defense, All Night

The setback in Logan doesn’t change a thing. SDSU’s bread-and-butter remains its signature defensive identity. The Aztecs are still holding teams under 71 points and rank among the top defenses in the league. Meanwhile Wyoming’s numbers paint a somewhat generous picture of its defensive impact—league middling at best.

Often just happy to be present on that end of the court the Cowboys’ rhythm early is something San Diego State can disrupt and forcing contested shots all night is the theme. The Cowboys do put up respectable points per game and rebound well, but they’ve struggled to consistently slow teams—getting out in transition is exactly what the Aztecs will schematically lean into.

Miles Byrd is playing perhaps at a Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year level right now. Byrd is #2 in steals disrupting passing lanes out on the perimeter and preying on unsuspecting big man down on the block as he swipes their debit cards for them.

He’s also top-3 in blocks this season which is perhaps the most dazzling of his efforts right now. And don’t get it twisted, this is about effort. His ball hawk mentality has opposed players at the rim in many situations, often rejecting for sure baskets and wiping points away from the scoreboard in a real in your face way.

Miles Byrd on the defensive end is the epitome of ruthless aggression and though these next two games may pad his defensive numbers big time, it’s just how Miles Byrd plays the game.

The Pokes did however just take down Colorado State in their last game. Coach Sundance will have his guys playing their toughest to try play spoiler over the Aztecs and put together their own win streak after losing 5 of their last 7 contests.

Reese Dixon-Waters vs. Wyoming’s perimeter defense

Reese Dixon-Waters has quietly been SDSU’s most consistent offensive option lately, averaging nearly 12 points a night and knocking down threes at a solid clip. Wyoming’s defenders can be overmatched on the perimeter, so watching Dixon-Waters get downhill or punish closeouts from deep could be the early jab SDSU needs to avoid getting sucked into a sloppy game.

Last time around in Laramie, Dixon-Waters led the Aztecs with 13 points, Byrd with 12. Look for that to perhaps be another box score write up. Though Reese did suffer an ankle turn in last weekend’s game, he did return to action a few minutes later. Hopefully no setback took place and his progress this year can continue to catch a rhythm at just the right time.

#5 Leland Walker and #2 Nasir Meyer are the Cowboys’ primary scoring threats, but their efficiency—especially beyond the arc—has been shaky enough that if SDSU is sharp, Wyoming might just make the “Cowboys” moniker look more like a rodeo clown act than anything.

The Injury Bug Bites

The over/under isn’t particularly low, but Wyoming’s offense is more bubble-gum machine than a finely tuned engine. If the Aztecs can limit empty possessions and capitalize at defensive end, this one starts to look more like a teaching tape by halftime.

For those keeping track of Aztec availability on Tuesday, head coach Brian Dutcher will be managing a few health notes. Magoon Gwath has been dealing with a hip issue, Elzie Harrington was unavailable in the recent Utah State game, and Pharaoh Compton has been part of the rotation but with a face mask on last game and seemingly bothersome at times, his defensive versatility and finishing at the rim is pretty important.

“Hopefully we find a way to compete at a high level,” said head coach Brian Dutcher when addressings plans for his team’s availability. “and find a way to get back to full strength after the bye week. Try to get Elzie and Magoon back. I’m not sure that will happen but that’s what we’re hoping for after our bye week.”

At the end of the night, if the Cowboys aren’t just another statistic on the Aztecs’ defensive ledger, we might be in for one of those feel-good “Wyoming fought hard” storylines — and that’s why they should hit the film room early. Because SDSU’s not exactly known for letting teams hang around.