Climbing The Mountain: Aztecs Outlook For 2010

In the 89 year history of San Diego State basketball, the Aztecs have made an appearance in the NCAA tournament just five times. They have not won any of those games, including in the 2009-10 season, when they had a No. 14 Tennessee team on the ropes in the final minute. Missed free throws and a last-second three-point attempt to tie the game were missed by the Aztec’s Kawhi Leonard, which allowed Tennessee to advance to the second round and eventually the Elite Eight to play Tom Izzo’s Michigan State.

Aztec fans can only wonder what could have been. This year is expected to be one of the Aztecs best years in recent memory, thanks to starting in the preseason top 25 by Andy Katz of ESPN.

For the past 12 years, San Diego State basketball has come from base camp of the Mountain West Conference to the peak. Head coach Steve Fisher has been able to do this after leaving Michigan under scrutiny. This year’s team is returning all five starters and two important bench players from 2009-10.

Many media outlets have picked the Aztecs to win the Mountain West Conference, which marks the first time they have been picked to do so since the 2006-07 season, Brandon Heath’s senior year. In the coming season, the Aztecs hope to ascend an even greater mountain in the NCAA. Along the way, they will have to face arch rivals BYU and UNLV, as well as New Mexico, who are also expected to contend for the Mountain West crown.

UNLV returns all five starters, while BYU and New Mexico lost a couple key players from their 2009-10 campaigns. Although the Aztecs are expected to win the conference title, do not put it in stone because anything can happen in a college basketball season.

This upcoming season could be finally be the year where the Aztecs finally ascend the mountain. This could be the year where they win the Mountain West Conference, become ranked during the season and ultimately, win in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The outlook for the San Diego State Aztecs men’s basketball team appears great on Montezuma Mesa.