San Diego State men's basketball is heading to the Mountain West Tournament in Las Vegas with its NCAA Tournament hopes on the line. The Aztecs need three wins in three days to secure a spot in March Madness.
Head coach Brian Dutcher said an at-large bid is not entirely out of the question, but the team is focused on winning the tournament outright.
"I don't want to say 'never say never,'" Dutcher said. "If we can make it to the finals, there could still be an outside chance of an at-large bid, but we have to go with the intention of winning the event."
Senior guard Reese Dixon-Waters said the team cannot afford any lapses in focus.
"There's no time to be tired, to be having moments where we don't feel like playing," Dixon-Waters said. "We don't have those moments or time to spare. We've got to lock in and win this tournament to get to March Madness."
Senior guard Miles Byrd, who was named Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year, said the conference presents a significant challenge.
"It's not going to be easy," Byrd said. "It's a league with, I think, 8 or 9 teams that have a chance to go win the conference tournament."
Byrd credited effort and attitude for earning the defensive honor.
"Being a good defender is a choice," Byrd said. "The majority of it — 90 percent of it — in my opinion, is just motor and playing hard, diving for loose balls, not taking shortcuts defensively, and I think that's why I was able to win this award."
Dutcher, who has cut down the nets three times in Las Vegas, said the Aztecs will need to rebound better and lean on their depth to advance from Thursday's opener through Saturday's championship game.
"The greatest opponent in March is always yourself," Dutcher said. "You have to play to your potential. We have a high enough ceiling that if we play to it we'll have a chance to win."
Dutcher said he plans to keep his rotation deep throughout the tournament.
"I'm going to continue to ride the bench, and hopefully that will be a strength of ours as we have to hopefully play three games in three days," Dutcher said.
Junior guard B.J. Davis said the players are ready to rise to the moment.
"Coach says March is for players," Davis said. "Players step up when the time is right."
The Aztecs open the tournament on Thursday at 6:00 pm against the winner of Wednesday's opening round game between Colorado State and Fresno State.
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