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LIVE BLOG: Seniors shine as SDSU clinches Mountain West regular season title outright

Scroll past the analysis to watch clips from the pregame Senior Night ceremony
SDSU wins regular season title 2022-23 season
sdsu whiteout during wyoming game
Posted at 6:27 PM, Mar 04, 2023
and last updated 2023-03-27 14:40:09-04

FINAL: San Diego State wins, 67-50

San Diego State fans, your Aztecs are officially the outright champion of the Mountain West 2022-23 regular season. This is the third time the team has clinched this achievement under Coach Brian Dutcher. In fact, they've claimed three of the last four Mountain West regular season crowns.

Before the end of the game, Dutcher of course subbed in his seniors — letting them relish their last moment as players on the court in Viejas Arena.

Up next is the Mountain West Conference Tournament in Las Vegas. As the No. 1 seed, SDSU will have a first-round bye.

See the confetti fall in Viejas Arena below:

During the postgame press conference, Dutcher said Gatorade baths never get old after an arduous journey to earn a conference regular season title. He also addressed questions about the team's mentality going into the Mountain West Conference Tournament in Las Vegas, as well as expectations for the NCAA Tournament.

Guards Matt Bradley and Micah Parrish also spoke to the media after the win. Bradley reflected on his time at SDSU, and answered questions about the possibility of him being league MVP. Parrish praised his senior teammates and the stellar play of Jaedon LeDee.

Watch extended clips from the press conference below:


SECOND HALF — UNDER 4 MEDIA TIMEOUT

With 3:05 remaining in this one, San Diego State is up, 62-47.

A sizable chunk of the Aztec faithful have seen enough, and they've started to file out of the arena.

Before the media timeout, LeDee broke the 20-point mark, continuing to be perfect from the field along the way. The pick and roll with him and Parrish has been a boon for the home team.

Wyoming's Xavier Dusell responded with a 3-pointer, leading into the media timeout. The Cowboys are shooting well from the line and deep in the second half; however, the simple shots inside the arc have been exceptionally difficult. They're 8-24 this frame, with four of those shots coming from 3.

SDSU has been sloppier with the ball this half, but their dominant defense and rekindled offense is keeping them in the driver's seat.

Expect an outright Mountain West regular season title here shortly.


SECOND HALF — UNDER 8 MEDIA TIMEOUT

With a little over 8 minutes left in the game, Matt Bradley made his first bucket of the second half. Although the team's leading scorer only has four points on the day, SDSU has a huge 20-point lead. This is evidence of the Aztecs' depth and their nature as an ensemble-type team — they love to share the wealth.

Jaedon LeDee has been absolutely dominant tonight — the big man has 19 points and is a perfect 7-7 from the floor. He's also tied with Keshad Johnson for most rebounds on the night (they both have six, at the moment).

The disparity on the glass and inside is still evident: SDSU has 24 points in the paint and 34 rebounds. Another item I'd like to highlight: Foul shots. SDSU has struggled from the line at points this season, but they're shooting 90% today, a good sign leading into conference and NCAA tourney play.


SECOND HALF — UNDER 12 MEDIA TIMEOUT

Aztec fans... y'all are REALLY going to miss Adam Seiko. The all-time winningest player in SDSU and Mountain West history heated up right before this media timeout.

In the sequence, the senior hit back-to-back 3s, bringing the crowd back to life. He's 4-5 from deep on the day, and the Aztecs have 21 points off 3s so far. Wyoming was called for a foul on the possession following the 3s, and after the inbound, Seiko drained a nice, long 2 from the baseline.

With Seiko's shots, SDSU has risen above "rock fight" status; they're 46% from the field, and 100% from both 3-point land and the free throw line (all second half numbers).

Aztecs lead, 50-31.


SECOND HALF — UNDER 16 MEDIA TIMEOUT

Two words to start the second half: Rock. Fight.

Combined, Wyoming and San Diego State are 2-13 from the field to begin this half. SDSU has looked a little sloppy, giving up two turnovers early on. The Aztecs are 2-2 from the charity stripe this half, while Wyoming went 1-2 from the line.

SCORE: 38-25, Aztecs.


FIRST HALF ANALYSIS: Aztecs lead 34-22

Although Wyoming has some length on its roster, San Diego State's dominance on the boards has kept their double-digit lead safe. The Cowboys did go on a quick, 7-0 run to close out the first half — but they're still below 40% from the field. Additionally, SDSU's depth has been a problem for the Cowboys; the Aztecs have 20 bench points in the first half, with Ledee's 11 points leading the charge (Dutcher went with an all-senior starting lineup tonight).

The Aztecs have 10 more rebounds than the Cowboys, and they've scored 18 points in the paint as well.

SDSU also has a 5:1 assist to turnover ratio at the moment, showing the cerebral seniors are playing smart basketball (Mensah, Trammell, Bradley and Seiko all have at least one assist).


FIRST HALF — UNDER 4 MEDIA TIMEOUT

With 3:42 left in the first frame, the Aztecs have caught fire from three-point land, hitting five along the way. Micah Parrish has hit two of those, with one coming off a clean move: Catch, pump fake, dribble to reset and fire away... BANG, as Mike Breen would say.

As usual, SDSU's defense has its opponent in a choke hold; Wyoming is a terrible 25% from the floor, and two of their five made shots were 3s.

Aztecs lead 27-13.


FIRST HALF — UNDER 8 MEDIA TIMEOUT

With a little over seven minutes to go in the first half, San Diego State leads by double digits, 19-8. The energy in Viejas is at its peak, based on the previous games I've been to this year.

The Aztecs have 10 second chance points, and three 3s on the day. Although they're shooting a poor 8-25 so far, they have 18 rebounds to Wyoming's 11. Six of those came off the offensive glass for the Aztecs. Arop already has five rebounds on the day — he's putting on a show for senior night.

SDSU has led the entire night; they jumped out to an early 7-0 lead to start the game.

Below, you'll find sights and sounds from the senior night ceremony.


SENIOR NIGHT HONORS

After the National Anthem, San Diego State's eight seniors had their moment at mid-court, relishing their final home game at Viejas Arena. The crowd was loving — and they definitely got the white out memo.

Take a look as Matt Bradley, Keshad Johnson, Adam Seiko, Aguek Arop and Nate Mensah got their flowers (hopefully they took a sniff along the way, too):

Matt Bradley honored at sdsu senior night
Keshad Johnson honored at SDSU senior night
Adam Seiko honored at senior night

Additionally, just before the ceremony, the Aztec student section led the "I believe that we will win" chant. Needless to say, the crowd went BONKERS.

I believe chant pregame

GAME PREVIEW

A sea of white shirts entered Viejas Arena Saturday evening for the final regular season game of San Diego State basketball's 2022-23 season. The whiteout is a nod to senior night as the Aztecs prepare to honor nearly half of their roster.

The Aztecs are facing the University of Wyoming Cowboys, the dead last team in the Mountain West Conference standings.

With a win Saturday night, SDSU will win the Mountain West regular-season title outright for the third time under Coach Brian Dutcher. The Aztecs are currently sharing first place with Boise State; if both Boise and San Diego lose Saturday, the Aztecs would claim the outright title in that scenario, too.

However, a loss against the Cowboys and a Boise State win would lead to a shared regular season title.

Dutcher emphasized that Saturday is an important night for the seniors, so expect them to bring their A game.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Below, you'll find a brief clip from pregame warmups. Follow along throughout the game as 10News Digital Producer Pat Mueller provides more sights and sounds from inside Viejas Arena.

SDSU pregame vs. Wyoming