San Diego State Basketball: 3 keys to upsetting UConn in the Sweet Sixteen

San Diego State must compete with UConn on the boards

The second key to a trip to the regional finals for the Aztecs is to crash the glass at both ends of the floor. This isn't to say that they need to win the rebound battle with the Huskies, they don't. However, history has shown that when Connecticut has played close games and found themselves on the losing end, the rebounding margin is much closer than I'm sure Dan Hurley would like. On the year, UConn has been a dominant team on the boards, both offensive and defensive but limiting their advantage will be important.

Coming into this game the Huskies have a rebounding margin of 8.4 and the Aztecs are just the opposite at 4.8. The Aztecs will need a group effort to hang with UConn in the rebounding department and that may be one of the most telling stats all season when it comes to the Huskies. In the title game last year, San Diego State was outrebounded by six and eight on the defensive end. In the three games UConn has lost their rebounding margin was just 4.0 and were outrebounded on the defensive boards by 11.

The story is the same when looking at their two closest wins on the year, over Villanova and St. John’s, the margin is just three and the defensive rebounding margin in those games was -1.0. If the Aztecs want to reverse their fortunes against UConn, they’ll need everyone in the rotation to contribute on the glass and keep within striking distance of the Huskies.