To say the least, it was a rather tumultuous day on Montezuma Mesa. The evening provided a nice respite from the craziness.
Playing at Viejas Arena, across the street from where it was announced earlier Thursday that Athletic Director Jeff Schemmel had resigned his post after he was caught using University money to help pay for weekend trysts with a mistress, the SDSU men’s basketball team pulled away from Santa Clara for an easy 86-53 victory.
San Diego State led by a comfortable 14 points early in the second half before embarking on an 18-0 run that turned the game into a blowout. Twice the Aztecs led by 40 in improving to 2-1 on the season.
On most nights, the story of this victory would be the bounce-back effort of a young, athletic Aztec team which just three nights earlier had been blown out 80-58 at St. Mary’s, which like Santa Clara plays in the West Coast Conference.
The Aztecs, no-shows Monday night in Moraga, definitely came to play. But the underlying focus of the evening was on who wasn’t there.
SDSU Coach Steve Fisher, no stranger to scandal while at the University of Michigan, addressed the Schemmel situation only briefly following the game.
“Jeff Schemmel is a good friend, he and (Schemmel’s wife) Lori are both good friends,” said Fisher. “I feel very badly. They’ve done a lot as a team for San Diego State and they will be missed immensely by all of of us, especially the Fisher’s.”
Fisher’s team, on the other hand, didn’t seem distracted. Led by junior forward Billy White’s 17 points, SDSU placed five players in double-figures and shot a smooth 53-percent from the floor.
The Aztecs threw in eight 3-pointers as well, the outside game making it nearly impossible for the undermanned Broncos to contain SDSU’s offense. Tyrone Shelley and Chase Tapley both hit a pair from long-range and each finished with 12 points. Sixth-year senior Kelvin Davis was a perfect 3-for-3 from the arc and finished with 11.
SDSU, which played little defense at St. Mary’s, raced around the court and forced 19 turnovers against Santa Clara, leading to 26 easy points at the other end. The Aztecs also were plus-eight in rebounding with California’s Mr. Basketball, freshman Kawhi Leonard — known more for his scoring — leading the way with 13 boards.
“We played bad at St. Mary’s,” said White. “We made some mistakes on Monday. We came back on Tuesday, practiced and we had a game on Thursday and we wanted to get a win.
“So we came out here and played hard and played defense like we’re supposed to. “We came out with a lot of energy and just ready to go. It should be like that all the time.”
But will it be? Nobody denies the new talent that Fisher has brought in for the 2009-10 season. Tapley and Leonard are big-time freshman recruits. Shelley and Malcolm Thomas (6 points, 3 rebounds) are highly-regarded transfers. Another transfer, Brian Carwell(6 points, 6 boards), gives SDSU a bona fide big man in the middle.
But how long will it take Fisher to pull all the new faces together? So far, so good at home. But another road test awaits, next Monday night at Fresno State.
– Ello –
