SAN DIEGO — There was a little bit of something to like for every player in San Diego State’s 100-49 win over Occidental on Tuesday night at Viejas Arena.
The trio of guards Wayne McKinney III, BJ Davis and forward Magoon Gwath scored 16 points apiece as the Aztecs (2-0) began the game on a heater from the field that led to the first regulation 100 point game on The Mesa since November of 2018.
“It's fun to watch the ball go in the basket and I don't care who the opponent is, at some level you still have to make the shot,” said head coach Brian Dutcher. “We made a lot of shots against man early and then against zone late — and I think that builds confidence…
“So in that regard it's a real, real positive moving forward that guys that might have been struggling with their shot have now got good confidence in it.
SDSU came out firing, knocking down their first six shots from the field and nine of their first ten before missing back to back shots. As a whole, 17 of the first 23 went down with the first five triples falling.
McKinney III was the hot hand early, scoring 11 as part of the opening barrage en route to 14 points while equaling his career high of four 3-point makes through the first half.
“Every day (in the) off season and even in season right now I'm just always focusing on getting my shots up, making sure I'm prepared, ready to shoot the ball,” McKinney said. “Comes from the trust of my teammates as well, you know, them knowing that I put the work in every day and feeding me the ball, finding me when I'm open. It wouldn't happen without them, so I also appreciate them for putting me in a situation to be able to shoot shots like that.”
The defense started stingy as well, as Magoon Gwath recorded a block on the visitor’s opening possession for the third straight time at Viejas, including the exhibition game against Cal State San Marcos. Gwath also showed his range offensively, knocking down a pair of 3’s, making a baby-hook in the lane and drawing a pair of shooting fouls on rebound putback attempts.
“I'm just trying to get used to being out there, trying to build my confidence early and just do whatever I can to help the team win,” Gwath said.
“Coaches told me going into the game, ‘just use this game as a confidence booster.’ And, you know, it definitely did boost my confidence… My first two shots went in and it felt good.”
Davis used five steals to kick start his scoring, as he drove the paint to notch three of his first four buckets and finished six of nine from the field.
Guards Taj DeGourville (14 points with six rebounds and five assists) and Nick Boyd (10 points on four of six shooting, making two of four from 3) also scored in double-figures. Four Aztecs had five or more rebounds, led by forward Miles Heide’s eight (six on the offensive glass) in 17 minutes off the bench while forwards Jared-Coleman Jones and Pharaoh Compton each snatched five.
With 11 3-balls falling in the opening half, it was a fitting encore to the last time SDSU welcomed Occidental in 2022 when they made 13 from the land of beyond in the first half of their record-setting 19 3’s in the game. The Aztecs finished with 18 triples on Tuesday as six players knocked down multiple.
“We had multiple guys making threes and that's a great equalizer in basketball, if you start making threes, you can beat anybody,” Dutcher said. “So I'm sure that will get people's attention the way we shot the ball today and maybe get them a little closer to us where we can drive around them.”
McKinney and DeGourvile each had four 3’s, while guard Kimo Ferrari knocked down three of five long balls and Gwath, Boyd and Davis each added a pair.
SDSU forced misses on the first nine Occidental shots, en route to 22.2% in the first half after holding UC San Diego to 18.2% shooting six days prior. The Tigers did not make back to back shots until nearly five minutes into the second half.
About the only cause for concern was guard Miles Byrd not suiting up for the game, wearing a boot and walking with crutches after an injury sustained late in practice on Monday.
“The hope is he'll be back by Monday,” Dutcher said. “Whether he is or not, that depends on how quick a healer he is.
“We won't throw him out there Injured, obviously it's a November game and we have a big season to play for, but if he's healthy and ready to go, that will be a huge plus for us because obviously Miles is a dynamic player and this is going to be an important game.”
The level of difficulty shoots up significantly for SDSU, as their next three opponents are all in the current AP Poll.
SDSU welcomes No. 4 Gonzaga to Viejas Arena at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 18, then will head off to Las Vegas to take part in the Players Era Festival. The Scarlet and Black are guaranteed to face No. 14 Creighton at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Nov. 26, before facing an votes-receiving Oregon team on Nov. 27.
“We have to get back in the gym and get back to work,” McKinney said.
“We have a big stretch coming up and as long as we prepare maturely and prepare being health-wise as well, just making sure we're taking care of our bodies and this, that and the other and we're going to be okay.”
