PHOENIX — No. 22 San Diego State is a familiar foe for Saint Mary's men's basketball. These two teams have met each of the last two seasons on neutral floors, including last year inside Footprint Center. On Saturday, the two teams got together once again for the 2022 Jerry Colangelo classic, and played up to the hype as two of the best mid-major programs in the country. The Gaels prevailed late, after clinging onto a nine-point lead and winning by a final of 68-61 to improve to 8-3 while dropping the Aztecs to 7-3.
 
COOKIN' WITH FISH GREASE
The first half of the game belonged to Alex Ducas, who was easily the hottest shooter on the floor for either team. That was a difference from when these teams played each of the last two seasons, where the Gaels offense has lacked a scorer early in the game. Ducas raced out 10 of the first 15 points for SMC, and ended the half with 14 points on 5-8 from the floor. He was the only player to reach double-digits in the first half, and helped the Gaels lead by as many as eight points in the first half.
 
ALL ABOUT THE…OFFENSE?
A staple of play for Saint Mary's and San Diego State is their stout defense, but it was the offenses on display Saturday afternoon. In a rarity, both teams shot above 50% from the floor in the first half, with the Gaels besting the Aztecs narrowly after shooting 54.2%. That offense kept up for the duration of the game, at least for Saint Mary's. Both teams came out and started a combined 7-9 in the second half, but then things turned for the Aztecs. They slumped into making just one of their next 11 shots, while the Gaels offense kept clicking. SMC finished the game shooting 49.0%, their best mark in the last three years against SDSU. The Aztecs were just 33.0% in the second half.
 
DUEL IN THE DESERT
After letting games slip away late against the Aztecs in the past, this time the Gaels were able to hang on. A Ducas three-pointer with under six minutes to go pushed the SMC lead to nine points for the first time all afternoon, and then it was all about survival. The Aztecs pulled within three points with less than three minutes to play, coinciding with a four-minute scoring drought for the Gaels. Mitchell Saxen ended that with a tough layup with less than two-minutes remaining to put the Gaels up 61-56. At that point, the Gaels capped off the game with seven-made free throws to put away the Aztecs, after getting enough stops late in the game.
 
AMONG OTHER NUMBERS
The first half ended in a 35-35 tie after the Aztecs closed out the half on a 7-0 run, including a half-court make from Micah Parrish at the buzzer…second chance points were a story in the first half, with the Aztecs recording nine while holding the Gaels without any…Aidan Mahaney wound up being the team's leading scorer with 20 points (6-9 FG) while Ducas was the MVP of the game, as chosen by the media, after scoring 17…Logan Johnson also got into double-digits with 15 points…the Gaels were out-rebounded, had fewer assists, had fewer points in the paint, and had fewer points in the paint but still won…this is the Gaels first ranked win this season, and their first win over SDSU since November 16, 2009.
 
UP NEXT
Saint Mary's returns home for both games next week, a break from three straight weeks with games away from home. First up is a date against New Mexico State on Wednesday, December 14 at 7:00 pm, as the Aggies finish up a three-game swing on the West Coast. Then the Gaels host Colorado State on Sunday evening at 5:00 pm. These are the final two home games before WCC play begins on December 29 against San Diego.