San Diego State vs Fresno State game preview: Aztecs look to return to winning ways against Bulldogs

The San Diego State Aztecs (15-5, 5-2 Mountain West) will play host to the Fresno State Bulldogs (10-10, 5-2, Mountain West) on Tuesday night with hopes of avenging its 59-57 loss on January 3 in Fresno. Guards Aqeel Quinn and Matt Shrigley led a second-half surge after going into halftime down 15, but the Bulldogs outlasted the Aztecs behind 25 points from guard Marvelle Harris.

Here are some highlights from the first game via GoAztecs.com:

After a slow start in its non-conference schedule, Fresno State has been a pesky conference opponent. The Bulldogs knocked the Aztecs out of the top 25 polls with their home win earlier this year, and it took three overtime periods for the visiting Wyoming Cowboys, who were ranked 25th at the time, to put Fresno away.

The Fresno State roster features four players averaging double-digit points, led by junior Marvelle Harris at 17.9 per game. Harris exploded for 40 points on the road against the Nevada Wolf Pack, and hasn't put up anything less than 18 points since the start of conference play. He also averages 3.7 assists and 5.2 boards per game for the season.

Guard Cezar Guerrero returned to the team and has been playing well the past three games. Averaging 13 points and 3.3 assists in a little less than 29 minutes per game, Guerrero adds another scoring wrinkle in the Bulldogs' game plan.

Winston Shepard and Quinn sit atop the stat sheet for the Aztecs with 10.6 points per game averages. Quinn didn't have an easy time down the stretch in Saturday night's loss at Colorado State, and will be faced with the tough task of guarding Harris on Tuesday. Quinn prides himself on his ability to guard the perimeter and said in Monday's press conference that he's excited to face up with the league's third-best scorer.

Like Guerrero for the Bulldogs, Malik Pope has added a new dimension for the Aztecs on the offensive side of the ball. We'll see how the freshman responds after his 22-point performance off the bench on Saturday.

Things got chippy in the first meeting between these two teams, so pay attention to the "game within a game" between the guards up top.

Score Prediction: The Aztecs are amped to be back home. They'll take the win 65-60.