Over the last 15 years or so, San Diego State's basketball program has been among the best in the country at protecting leads, especially at home. So, when the 20th-ranked team in the nation took an 18-point lead on Utah State at Viejas Arena on Saturday afternoon it was easy to think they had a tally in the W column all locked up.
Instead, the Aggies came all the way back for a 67-66 win that might not reach the level of a shocker but certainly qualifies as a stunner. SDSU got off to a fantastic start where they shot the ball about as well as they have all year. The Aztecs went 6-for-13 from 3-point range on the backs of hot starts from Miles Byrd, Nick Boyd, and Taj DeGourville. With 1:55 to play in the half they had a 40-22 lead.
The second half, however, was a nightmare.
San Diego State collectively missed all 11 of their shots from 3-point land. Had they hit just one of them, they probably would have gotten the win. The cold spell allowed the Aggies to claw their way back into it and allowed Tucker Anderson to hit a 3-pointer with seven seconds left that put Utah State on top for good.
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The Aggies joined the Mountain West Conference 11 years ago. This is the first time they've won on Montezuma Mesa. SDSU falls to 8-3 overall and 1-1 in conference play. They have a week off before heading to Idaho for a game against Boise State.
