The almighty Duke has a loss. So does Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Villanova and BYU.
But as students wake up and go to class for the first time in about a month today, the San Diego State men’s basketball team still hasn’t suffered a defeat.
SDSU is one of just three NCAA Division I basketball teams in the world that can say that.
“We feel like we can play with anybody,” SDSU sophomore forward Kawhi Leonard said.
Since the end of the first semester in mid-December, the Aztecs have gone 8-0. They’ve beaten a UNLV squad that was receiving votes, they smashed a dangerous New Mexico team in The Pit by 10 and they won all of their first four Mountain West Conference games.
And on Monday morning, when the polls were released, SDSU fans were upset that their undefeated basketball team was only ranked No. 6 in the nation.
“It says we have a very special team and our fans notice it,” senior point guard D.J. Gay said on Monday. “When they’re down that we didn’t move up, that just shows that the backing that we have from this city and it’s something special.”
It’s easy to see why Gay said it’s special. His team is 19-0 and has at least five résumé victories (Gonzaga and New Mexico on the road, St. Mary’s, Wichita State and UNLV at home). Yet when he was asked if he was surprised that his squad sat behind three one-loss teams in the polls, Gay responded calmly.
“I’m not surprised at all,” Gay said. “We’ve still got a lot of work to do.”
SDSU will try to keep its undefeated season alive tonight when it plays Air Force (10-6) at home. It’s the only game the Aztecs have on their schedule this week, and could be the victory that finally bumps SDSU into the top five.
“We’re playing a team (tonight), and this is not coach talk, that is so much better than the Air Force team we’ve seen the last two years,” head coach Steve Fisher said. “They’re a very, very good basketball team that’s confident with 10 victories, having beaten Utah, having led UNLV for the majority of the game and they will be coming in, as we, with an intent on doing whatever they have to do to win.”
AT A GLANCE
When: 7 p.m.
Where: Viejas Arena
Why to watch: SDSU, ranked No. 6 in the country, will try to keep its unbeaten streak alive tonight.
