SDSU looks for first conference win of seasonagainst BYU and New Mexico
By Jerry LawsonAsst. Sports Editor
SanDiego State’s men’s basketball team will have to go on the defensivewhen it faces off against the fourth, fifth and sixth leading scorersin the Mountain West Conference this week.
Tonight, Brigham Young enters Cox Arena with a 14-5 overall recordand a 3-3 record in the MWC. The Cougars bring with them two of thebest scorers in the MWC this season. Forward Mekeli Wesley is fourthin scoring with 18.2 points per game and guard Terrell Lyday is sixthwith 17.3 points.
Saturday brings another ferocious foe as New Mexico and the MWC’sfifth leading scorer, guard Lamont Long. The Lobos are 11-9 and 3-2in the MWC. New Mexico has beaten SDSU five of the last six times,including both games last season. The Lobos beat the Aztecs 85-60 inSan Diego and 90-60 at home in “The Pit.”
“We have to stop their transition games and dominate down low,”said point guard Bradley Jackson, who said rebounding will also be akey factor in both games.
Last season, SDSU also lost both games to BYU, 83-76 at home and93-76 on the road. The Cougars shot better than 50 percent in both ofthose games.
Both SDSU and BYU will be looking to snap losing streaks as theAztecs are riding a seven-game losing streak, and the Cougars havecaught a two-game skid losing at Air Force and New Mexico.
“We just need to keep fighting,” Jackson said, “and we’ll get it.”
A collection of seven-straight losses could affect teamconfidence, but after a hard fought 93-87 loss at Wyoming, Jacksonsaid the confidence is back.
“It’s definitely rising,” Jackson said. “We’ve been right there.”
One player that has not been there statistically as much as he wasearlier in the season is center Marcelo Correa. Correa has struggledin recent games, but did bounce back against Wyoming with 16 pointsand eight rebounds in 26 minutes.
“I hope he has snapped out of the funk that he was in,” saidAztecs head coach Steve Fisher.
Thatfunk has also come in the form of foul trouble. Against Wyoming,Correa collected four fouls, but found a way to stay in the game.
“It’s a part of my intensity,” he said. “It’s a part of my game.”
Correa said he thinks he is pulling himself out of his slump andthat he proved it against Wyoming.
“I let one or two bad games affect me too much,” he said.
Though Correa’s numbers have not sizzled like they did at thebeginning of the season, he said he still feels confident about theteam and the season.
Fisher said that besides stopping the opposition’s transitiongame, SDSU must also take care of the ball and win the battle on theboards. He said turning the ball over 20 plus times a night andgetting outrebounded is not getting the job done.
