The Aztecs travel to Moby Arena to face the Rams in a match-up of two 3-3 teams in conference. The Aztecs are coming off a close home loss to BYU which snapped a 14 game home winning streak and dropped them 2.5 games behind the Cougars. The Rams are coming off a home win against TCU running their home record to 9-1 on the season.
Although the Rams hold the all-time advantage over SDSU 35-28 including 22-7 at home, SDSU has not lost a regular season game to CSU in nearly 5 years (2/19/05). The Rams have beaten 3 of the bottom MWC teams while losing to the 3 top MWC teams so far. The Aztecs have dropped meetings with BYU and UNLV, while picking up a double-digit win over New Mexico.
The Aztecs have been notoriously bad this season on the road and the Rams are 9-1 at home so this will be another game that will be closer than it should be. SDSU struggles with turnovers and free throw shooting on the road so the Rams (like the Cowboys) will look to at least keep the game close down the stretch for a chance to win.
Kawhi Leonard posted his 9th double double of the season for the Aztecs (16 points 11 rebounds). DJ Gay connected on 12 points but freshman guard Chase Tapley is starting to get starts and a lot more time on the floor amidst criticism of Gay's play on the court. The Aztecs will need to get Malcolm Thomas more involved in the post and cut down on poor shooting decisions beyond the arc (that's you Kelvin Davis).
Andy Ogide posted a double double against the Horned Frogs with 14 points and 10 rebounds and Greg Smith led the teams with 15 points. Freshman Dorian Green, the leading scorer for the Rams, needs to have a big game to keep the Aztecs on balance. Both teams will be rooting for Utah to take down BYU and hand the Cougars back to back losses. It would move both teams within 1.5 games with a win, but would make the top of the MWC even more crowded than it already is.