After a weekend of speculation, the San Diego State men’s basketball team got their answer on the future of their season, being selected as one of the last four teams to qualify for the NCAA tournament. The Aztecs will enter as a No. 11 seed, competing in the South Region side of the bracket.
“To make it to the NCAA tournament again is a tremendous accomplishment,” said head coach Brian Dutcher shortly after being selected. “Especially with the fact that we lost 90% of our scoring from the team a year ago, our young team plays with such heart and such energy, they played their way into the NCAA tournament.”
The selection makes SDSU the fourth team from the Mountain West conference taking part in March Madness. The Mountain West champions Colorado State, New Mexico and Utah State have all locked in a round of 64 matchup.
The Boise State Broncos, who defeated the Aztecs in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West tournament, are on the outside looking in, not being selected to participate.
The match up for the Scarlet and Black is an unfamiliar one, as they will take on the North Carolina Tarheels in Dayton, Ohio. This will be the third all-time meeting between the programs, with the last matchup taking place in 1990.
“We’ll have our hands full; they score the ball at an elite level,” said Dutcher.
Transfer guard Nick Boyd, who made it to the final four of the NCAA tournament with Florida Atlantic University just years ago, commented on the team’s opportunity as he makes his third March Madness appearance.
“We did a great job in our non-conference. I was really high on our Houston win, I knew it would help us get in,” he said. “It felt good to hear our name called early. “We got a tall task, but this is what you want in March, to play the best players. It’s another opportunity to showcase on the biggest stage.”
The selection came as a sigh of relief for SDSU, as they’ll hop on the plane with standout freshman forward Magoon Gwath ready to return to action. Gwath, who took home the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year and Mountain West Freshman of the Year awards, had missed the previous six games with a knee injury.
“Magoon looked good in practice today,” said Dutcher. “He is a 100% go, which is good news for the Aztecs. He went full practice, and when he was in there, he went full speed… We’re excited to have him back.”
The resume for SDSU heading into selection Sunday was stout, with the headline being an overtime win against the Big 12 regular season and tournament champion No. 2 Houston Cougars at the PlayersERA festival in November.
“I knew we did the work to be a tournament team, it was down to the committee’s decision… Once we got home from Vegas I’ve just been on my couch on bubble watch,” said guard Miles Byrd.
North Carolina holds a high standard in the college basketball world, but fell at the hands of ACC champion Duke in the semifinals of the ACC tournament.
The resumes for both sides only mean so much, as the teams will have to lace up their shoes and play out the full 40-minute game on Tuesday at 6:10 p.m. in Dayton, Ohio
“We’re going to be playing a historical program, but on the west coast, we’re a historical program as well. It’s going to be a fun matchup and we’re excited to get to Dayton,” said Byrd
