Aztecs Basketball Preview: Occidental Tigers

The SDSU Aztecs host the Occidental Tigers on Tuesday night at Steve Fisher Court in Viejas Arena

The San Diego State Aztecs opened the 2024-25 season with a narrow victory over UC San Diego (63-58).

UCSD must be commended for fighting hard against SDSU in the last two meetings. The Tritons were just a few plays away from winning both games against the Aztecs.

“We really look at it as a league game,” Miles Byrd said of UCSD after the game. “Honestly, with a cross-city rival like this, we came in today and the whiteboard in the locker room said, ‘Winning is hard.’ We know that. I sat on the bench, saw the energy that UCSD brought to their arena last year, and we knew they were going to try to come here confident to try and win this game. We prepared hard and we respected them. I think that’s why we were able to get a win.”

San Diego State will wear its blue jerseys in this game against Occidental in honor of Native American Heritage Month.

Meeting the Tigers… Oh my God?

The 35th meeting between these two schools marks just the third time SDSU and Occidental have faced each other since 1953-54. The Aztecs have won comfortably in their last two games, and that should happen again on Tuesday night. This game doesn’t count for the Tigers, so a loss won’t hurt their record.

When the Red and Black hosted St. Katherine last season, SDSU won 91-57 in the second-highest scoring game of the year. Earlier in the season, SDSU defeated Washington 100-97 in overtime.

This is a contest that one would call a “tune-up” game, as next week the Aztecs prepare to host what could be their toughest opponent of the entire season: Gonzaga. The Bulldogs enter this week as the No. 4 team in the country following their 2-0 start to the season.

The Aztecs did not play well offensively against the Tritons. That’s why this game against Occidental comes at a good time. The Aztecs need to find their groove on offense. Early season nerves can instantly fade when a spark is ignited.

Occidental is 1-0 to start the season. They impressed with a 78-66 victory over Stanton University, leading by as many as 26 points at one point.

According to a team press release, the Tigers had a lot of positives.

“Ball movement, ball control and three-point shooting were the Tigers’ be-all and end-all on Saturday. They turned the ball over just 15 times, hit over 30% of their shots from distance and assisted on 15 shots. four more than Stanton.”

Three players reached double figures in scoring, with Nasir Luna leading the way with 19. Micah Breaux was right behind Luna with 18 points and finally Ethan Hanning contributed with 10. Alex McCleery Brown was close to a double-double with eight points and nine rebounds off the bench.

Opposing Player to Watch: Nasir Luna

After one game, Luna appears to be the Tigers’ first choice on offense. He attempted more shots than anyone and also led the team with five assists against Stanton. He led the team with 31 minutes played and didn’t turn the ball over once.

Luna’s wager-free play is what makes this competition special. Luna had the ball in his hands as he ran the show and made his team look good. The freshman from Los Angeles also hit 3-4 free throws.

Luna is expected to continue trying to lead his team offensively. The Aztecs can’t let him hit three-pointers with any regularity, as he attempted seven attempts in his last game, although he only hit two of them.

Key to the game

The Aztecs need to work on controlling the ball and limiting turnovers. Error-free basketball play is always a factor in the late stages of a game. In this game too, it’s important to find the initial spark.

Highlights of @Aztec_MBB‘s 63-58 win over UCSD on Wednesday.

📹 @jstcevisuals pic.twitter.com/QHEt8v0Ryt

— East Village Times (@EVT_News) November 8, 2024

Byrd wants to continue his outstanding play. The redshirt sophomore established himself as a premier basketball player against UCSD. The bar is set high and the expectation for Byrd is that he will be a great player on both ends of the floor. Byrd told the East Village Times at SDSU Media Day that he realizes he likes to make aggressive passes, but wants to work on reducing turnovers and making sure the coaches trust him with the ball in his hands.

He finished the opening win with just one turnover.

Nick Boyd played very well late in the game against UCSD, but shot 4-11 for the game and had four turnovers. There will be turnovers, but Occidental is a team that doesn’t pose a threat. If Boyd continues to attack the rim and play turnover-free, Boyd will light up the stat sheet.

The second key to this game is a good start. The Aztecs are notorious for starting games slowly, requiring multiple possessions to make consistent shots. Byrd and Boyd can contribute a lot by advancing the ball after rebounds and setting up the scoring in transition.

“I’m really a guy that plays with momentum,” Byrd said postgame after the win against UCSD. “Personally, I try to start the game on defense. Whether it’s a deflection or a block, I feel like that impacts the offensive side for me.”

Byrd said it perfectly. If he can help his team get off to a great start defensively, then that will give the offense more opportunities to get into the rhythm.

This game will end with a bang. This means the first half is very important for the Aztecs to ensure they can achieve what they want in a shorter amount of time.

Chris is a graduate of the University of San Diego. He is the former sports editor of USDVista newspaper. Chris covered the San Diego Loyal and now covers San Diego State Men’s Basketball. He also writes regularly about the Padres. Chris is an athlete and a big fan of sports in San Diego.

Post views: 444