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San Diego State Basketball: 2019-20 keys vs Nevada in regular season finale

By John Vaccaro

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 11: Matt Mitchell #11 of the San Diego State Aztecs cuts a piece of the net after defeating New Mexico Lobos 82-59 in a game at Viejas Arena on February 11, 2020 in San Diego, California. San Diego State Aztecs moves to 25-0 for the season and clinched a share of the Mouintain West Championship. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 11: Matt Mitchell #11 of the San Diego State Aztecs cuts a piece of the net after defeating New Mexico Lobos 82-59 in a game at Viejas Arena on February 11, 2020 in San Diego, California. San Diego State Aztecs moves to 25-0 for the season and clinched a share of the Mouintain West Championship. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /
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SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 11: Matt Mitchell #11 of the San Diego State Aztecs reacts (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 11: Matt Mitchell #11 of the San Diego State Aztecs reacts (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

Attack the Basket

The ability to attack the basket has become much more important for SDSU over the last couple of games. As their shooters have gone cold, they’ve needed to find alternative methods to put points on the board. To do that, they’ve needed to find success attacking the basket. Against Nevada, this is going to be especially important.

The Wolf Pack aren’t only one of the country’s best 3 point offense, but also one of its best 3 point defenses. They’ve held opponents to 29.1% from behind the arc this season, which is the 15th lowest percentage in the country and 2nd lowest in the Mountain West (behind only SDSU).

On the other hand, Nevada is pretty average defending the interior. They are 144th in 2 point

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defense, allowing opponents to make 48.7% of their attempts, and they regularly play small lineups. They have a few bigger forwards who they rotate, with Johncarlos Reyes being the one who sees the most time, but it is quite common for them to have four guards on the court at once.

I think that Yanni Wetzel should match up pretty well with Reyes on the offense end and be able to give the Aztecs a consistent presence inside. More importantly, I think that Matt Mitchell is going to be a matchup nightmare for Nevada’s 4th guard whenever they play a 4 guard lineup. He’s too strong for Nevada’s guards to handle inside and he should give them a reliable scoring option throughout the game.

Another reason SDSU needs to attack the basket in this game is because the weakest part of Nevada’s defense is their proclivity for fouling. They are 300th in the country in opponent’s free throws per game. SDSU is one of the best free throw shooting teams in the country, so when they get to the line it actually is like giving them free points.

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They should take advantage of this hole in Nevada’s defense and get to the line as often as they can to keep a steady stream of points going up on the scoreboard. If they can play a strong game inside, then SDSU should see their offense get back to its normal efficiency.