San Diego State men’s basketball (2-1) travels to Las Vegas, where the Aztecs will face Michigan (3-0) and the University of Oregon (4-0) in the Players Era Tournament from Nov. 24-27. 

The second annual Players Era Tournament provides teams with the opportunity to compete against some of the top schools in college basketball, while also providing name, image and likeness (NIL) benefits to players and programs. The Aztecs finished third in last year’s tournament, defeating the eventual NCAA tournament runner-up, the University of Houston.

This year, the Aztecs are met with a great challenge early in the season against one of the top teams in the country, with No. 7 Michigan and another fierce opponent in Oregon.

“We’re grateful for the opportunity to play Michigan and Oregon and then hopefully another really good team metrically so we can make up some ground,” head coach Brian Dutcher said in a Friday press conference.

The Wolverines are averaging 89 points per game this season and are led by transfer senior Yaxel Lendeborg, who is averaging 15 points and 7.8 rebounds, while shooting 60% from the field through four games. 

“He’s just a dynamic player, he scores at every level, he can shoot it, he can attack off the bounce, he can post up, but he’s a really good playmaker,” Dutcher said. 

The Michigan roster also features some top-ranked high school recruits in Trey McKenney, who was ranked the 21st player in the 2025 recruiting class by 247 Sports, and Winters Grady, who was ranked 81st. Transfers Aday Mara from UCLA and Morez Johnson Jr. from Illinois have made this Michigan roster among the best in college basketball. 

“It looks like a really good roster that money had a lot to do with getting a good NIL, and when you get a really good NIL, you can put a really talented roster together,” Dutcher said. “Like any coach will say, we have a talented roster, but do we have a talented team?”

The Wolverines’ roster brings size, strength and physicality that will push the Aztecs on the defensive end and in transition. 

“Our biggest concern is them in transition; they really run the ball aggressively and attack the rim with athleticism and size,” Dutcher said. “For us to have a chance to win the game, we are going to have to keep them out of transition and rebound the ball at a high level.”

Physicality has been a point of emphasis for the Aztecs after their stunning 107-106 double overtime loss to Troy on Nov. 18, in which the Aztecs got into foul trouble and didn’t bring good enough rim protection throughout the ball game.

“Our physicality is something that we struggled with last game and something that we won’t struggle with in the future,” Reese Dixon-Waters said in a press conference on Friday. “We have it in us; we just have to play more physically and smarter as a team.” 

“We’re going against a bigger, stronger team, so we’re going to have to be more physical to compete in the game,” Dutcher said. 

Magoon Gwath made his season debut for the Aztecs against Troy, where the star big man played in 28 minutes and scored 20 points with seven rebounds and three blocks. Gwath seemingly picked up right where he left off last season despite rehabbing from a knee injury.

“I think he’s doing well, it’s just about getting back into game shape, the knee feels good, it’s just the fatigue,” Dutcher said. “I don’t think he’s anywhere near where he needs to be as a player or will be as the season goes on. 

The opportunity for the Aztecs on the national stage to make noise against a highly-touted Michigan opponent and a well-respected Oregon program could put the Aztecs in excellent positioning early on in the season.

“The metrics are always important, but I don’t obsess with them because the only thing I can control is the performance of my team,” Dutcher said. “We have different ways to make the tournament: it’s winning some of these games in Vegas or the opportunity against Arizona in December to put ourselves in a good position. If that doesn’t happen, trying to play a strong Mountain West regular season.”

San Diego State plays No. 7 Michigan on Nov. 24 at 7:30 p.m. and Oregon on Nov. 25 at 8 p.m.