The San Diego State men’s basketball team advanced to the next round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday with a 70-55 win against No.10-seeded University of Oklahoma. The Aztecs hope to earn a Sweet 16 berth for the second time in three years, thanks to No.15-seeded Florida Gulf Coast University’s 10-point upset against No. 2-seeded Georgetown University.
SDSU put on another suffocating defensive display in its win against Oklahoma, limiting the Sooners to 16 points under their season average on 39.7 percent shooting.
The Aztecs began the game out of sync offensively, trailing by nine points midway through the first half, but were able to find their groove and outscore the Sooners 39-22 in the second.
There was nothing flashy about the way the Aztecs won, but they showed they could grind out a big game by picking apart a defense in a half-court set.
Senior guard Chase Tapley, who scored 10 points, gave the Aztecs the lead with a layup midway through the second half that began an 8-0 run and proved to be the difference. SDSU also went 16 of 17 from the free-throw line, many coming in the final minutes of the game.
“You just want to go to your teammates and just hug them,” Tapley said. “We just accomplished something. Let’s keep on going.”
Tapley is the first player in Aztec history to play in four NCAA tournaments.
Junior guard Jamaal Franklin led the Aztecs with 21 points and five assists to go along with eight rebounds.
“Jamaal does what every coach expects, but doesn’t always get,” SDSU head coach Steve Fisher said. “He gives you maximum effort every second he’s out there, and it’s not 100 percent what you want, but you’re not going to ever fault him for effort.”
After a 17-point performance, senior guard James Rahon received a big ovation from the SDSU fans who traveled to Philadelphia for the game.
“Well, it is definitely a bigger stage, so I think we all raised our level of play a little bit,” Rahon said. “But these guys next to me were finding me when I was making shots…Got to credit them for finding me when I was open.”
Senior forward DeShawn Stephens muscled his way to seven points down low and a career-high 11 rebounds.
Sooner senior forward Romero Osby was the only ray of hope for Oklahoma. Whenever it seemed the Aztecs were about to run away with the game, Osby was there with a clutch basket to keep them in it. Osby was the only Sooner to score in double digits.
With the Aztec victory, Fisher once again lives up to his reputation, as the Aztecs are 3-5 in the NCAA Tournament on six appearances with Fisher as coach.
