The San Diego State women’s basketball team put on another dominant performance in Las Vegas last Friday with a 67-39 win against the University of New Mexico in the semifinal round of the Reese’s Mountain West Championship.

Senior point guard Chelsea Hopkins continued her spectacular play with 14 points, a career-high 14 rebounds and five assists.  Senior guard Courtney Clements led all scorers with 15 points and senior center Malia Nahinu added 10 points of her own to go along with four blocked shots.

Despite their fluid offense, the Aztecs’ defense was the leading factor in their large margin of victory.  SDSU held the Lobos to a mere 13 points in the first half.  The Lobos were held to 20 percent shooting for the game and hit 11 field goals, which is tied for fewest field goals in Mountain West tournament history.

“Coach (Beth) Burns always instills in us to come out and fight for what we want and come out strong in the first five minutes and really play defensive,” Nahinu said.  “Our program is built on defense. We want to maintain that forever.”

In the two tournament games the Aztecs played, they have allowed their opponents to score a combined 78 total points, which is the lowest two-game total in conference history.

“You get confidence from great preparation. They trust in what they’re being told and then they do it and have success with it,” Burns said.