CSU, San Diego State brace for battle of wills

It’s no secret what it will take for CSU’s men’s basketball team to beat San Diego State on Saturday night at Moby Arena.

It’s going to come down to sheer determination, senior guard Daniel Bejarano said. The team that wants it more will win.

“With San Diego State, you really have to out-determine this team,” Bejarano said. “Knowing what they do, what they like to do. Either we want to block out, or we don’t. Either we turn the ball over and let them score, or we don’t.”

Sure, both the Aztecs (15-4, 5-1 Mountain West) and Rams (17-2, 4-2) want to play the kind of aggressive defense that has them in the thick of the race for the conference title a third of the way through the conference schedule. Both want to pull down more rebounds than the other, and both want to shoot the ball well.

What it’s going to come down to, though, is which team imposes its will on the other.

“The tougher team will win,” Colorado State University coach Larry Eustachy said.

San Diego State is the top defensive team in the MW, and No. 3 in the nation, limiting opponents to an average of 52.6 points a game. CSU is the top offensive team, averaging 73.2 points a game. The Aztecs are tied with Wyoming (16-3, 5-1) for first place in the league standings, a half-game ahead of New Mexico (13-6, 5-2) and one ahead of the Rams and two others. San Diego State is the highest-rated team in the NCAA’s RPI, at No. 21, and CSU is second at No. 36. Both teams are receiving more votes in the top 25 polls than any other teams in the conference, and both are legitimate contenders for berths in the NCAA tournament in a year where the MW might only get one or two bids.

Both have balanced offenses that have produced five different leading scorers apiece in games this season, and deep benches, with nine players apiece averaging more than 11 minutes a game.

“It’ll be two teams that will compete like crazy,” San Diego State coach Steve Fisher said. “… You’ve got to stay out of foul trouble and get a little bit lucky.”

There’s no clear-cut winner or loser when you look at the individual matchups, and both teams appear to be at the top of their game. San Diego State has won four in a row and eight of its past nine, including a 77-45 win Tuesday night at Air Force. CSU has won three in a row, the last two by margins of 56 and 29 points.

“It’s going to be a fight for 40 minutes,” said J.J. Avila, CSU’s leading scorer (15.0 points a game) and rebounder (7.7 a game). “We’re all excited for it; we’re all ready for it.”

Follow reporter Kelly Lyell at twitter.com/KellyLyell and facebook.com/KellyLyell.news

• Next up: San Diego State at CSU, 8 p.m. Saturday, Moby Arena

• Watch: ESPNU

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MW men’s basketball standings

School Conf. Overall Wyoming 5-1 16-3 San Diego State 5-1 15-4 New Mexico 5-2 13-6 Colorado State 4-2 17-2 Utah State 4-2 11-7 Fresno State 4-2 9-10 Boise State 3-3 13-6 Nevada 2-3 6-11 UNLV 1-5 10-9 Air Force 1-6 8-10 San Jose State 0-7 2-17

Tuesday’s games

San Diego State 77, Air Force 45

Utah State 70, Nevada 54

Wednesday’s games

Boise State 86, San Jose State 36

New Mexico 71, UNLV 69

Saturday’s games

San Diego State at CSU, 8 p.m.

Boise State at Air Force, noon

New Mexico at Wyoming, 2 p.m.

Nevada at Fresno State, 5 p.m.

Utah State at UNLV, 6 p.m.