Printer-friendly version
Source: goaztecs.com
Photo courtesy goaztecs.com
January 24, 2022 (San Diego) - Bolstered by Matt Bradley's season-high 27 points, San Diego State rebounded with an impressive 80-55 victory over UNLV on Monday at Viejas Arena.
The Aztecs connected on 52.9 percent of their field-goal attempts (31-59) and outscored the Runnin' Rebels 48-20 in the paint to raise their record to 11-4 on the season and 3-1 in Mountain West play.
In addition, SDSU maintained a comfortable 43-33 advantage in rebounds, including a 34-21 spread on the defensive glass, while recording a season-best 15 steals to secure the program's 300th win at Viejas Arena, which opened for the 1997-98 campaign.
Bradley tied his career high with 10 field goals, matching the highest shooting percentage (10-11, .909) by an Aztec (min. 11 FG att.) since Nov. 28, 2009, when Matt Thomas put up the same numbers in a 21-point effort vs. Northern Arizona.
Along with Bradley's heroics, the Scarlet and Black received double-digit figures from Trey Pulliam, who scored 11 points, while Lamont Butler finished with nine points of his own. The SDSU cause was also aided by Keshad Johnson's team-high seven rebounds, while Nathan Mensah (8 pts) came through with three blocks.
The Aztecs, who never trailed in the contest, raced to a 15-5 lead on a Pulliam layup with nearly six minutes elapsed in the first half. UNLV (11-9, 3-4 MW) responded with six straight points over a 2:37 span to cut the deficit to four points but could draw no closer.
SDSU shifted into overdrive at this juncture with a 27-12 surge over the final 11:33 of the period to build a comfortable 42-33 advantage by intermission. Bradley fueled the blitz with 12 points, while Butler tallied all nine of his points in that stretch.
The Aztecs headed into the locker room with their biggest halftime lead of the season, while their 42 points were more than they scored in the entire game vs. Boise State (37) two nights early. In addition, the Scarlet and Black posted its highest first-half field-goal percentage of the year (.621) after draining 18 of 29 attempts.
The Runnin' Rebels notched the first seven points of the second half, capped by Royce Hamm Jr.'s basket with 17:14 left, to pull within 42-30. However, UNLV's hopes for a comeback were soon derailed by a sizeable 24-8 Aztec run, as the host school forged its biggest lead of the night at 66-38 following a Joshua Tomaic layup with 9:22 left.
UNLV was led by Bryce Hamilton's 23 points, while David Muoka pulled down a game-high eight rebounds in the loss.
With the victory, SDSU raised its record to 12-1 in its last 13 games immediately following a loss and improved to 19-2 in is last 21outings against UNLV.
San Diego State continues its busy stretch on Wednesday, Jan. 26 when it travels to the Beehive State for a showdown with Utah State starting at 9 p.m. MT/8 p.m. PT. The Aztecs-Aggies clash will be aired on FS1.
Recent comments