David J. Olender / Assistant Photo Editor

Six days ago, the San Diego State men’s basketball team was sitting atop the peak.

Undefeated in conference play, SDSU had a nice view from the top of the Mountain West Conference standings.

Two losses later and the Aztecs have slipped down the slope.

Looking to climb back up the standings, third-place SDSU takes on Colorado State at 6 p.m. today at Moby Arena in Fort Collins, Colo.

“We started conference 4-0 and now we dropped two straight to two of the better teams in the conference,” junior forward/center Ryan Amoroso said. “We did lose two close ones and both could have gone either way.”

And while the three-point losses at BYU and at home against UNLV set the team back, Amoroso knows the team can’t let the slip turn into a nosedive.

“It is at this point when you come together as a team and staff,” he said. “We just have to go and take care of business against Colorado State.”

Although the Aztecs (14-6, 4-2 in MWC play) have dropped two straight contests for the first time in 33 games, their struggles don’t even come close to those of the Rams.

CSU (6-13, 0-5) is in last place and has struggled to rebound from a tough offseason that saw the loss of four starters, including center Jason Smith. Smith was taken No. 20 in the NBA Draft by the Miami Heat.

The Rams have had trouble adapting to the change, but that doesn’t mean SDSU can take them easily.

“It will not get any easier,” head coach Steve Fisher said. “You can’t look at what their record is, you can’t look at the previous game. You just have to saddle up and be ready to play.”

After the two losses, the Aztecs certainly won’t take it easy on CSU, especially after last year’s MWC tournament. The Rams won 69-64 in the quarterfinals to spoil SDSU’s chance at making the NCAA Tournament for a second consecutive season.

To avoid another upset, the Aztecs will look to junior forward Lorrenzo Wade to return to his hot play. Wade, who is averaging 15 points a contest, scored only 8 in the loss to the Runnin’ Rebels.

Wade’s play becomes especially important in a conference that often comes down to the final few plays of each game.

“We have 10 games left and I told the team most of them could come down to the final three minutes, where either team can win,” Fisher said. “We have to find a way to make one more play.”