Aztecs reclaim MWC lead
Alabama coach Oats receives new contract
SAN DIEGO — Nathan Mensah scored 17 points as No. 22 San Diego State raced past Boise State 72-52 Friday night in a showdown of the Mountain West Conference’s top two teams despite an off night by Aztecs’ leading scorers Matt Bradley and Darrion Trammell.
Keshad Johnson added 10 for SDSU (18-5, 9-2), which regained sole possession of first place. Bradley came in leading the Aztecs at 13.2 points per game but didn’t score until making a jumper with 9:16 to play, finishing with three points. Trammell came in averaging 11.1 and didn’t score until making a shot earlier in the second half, finishing with four.
Max Rice scored 16 for Boise State (18-6, 8-3), which was without its leading ballhandler, point guard Marcus Shaver Jr., who was out with a high ankle sprain. Shaver had a walking boot on his right foot.
BSU beat SDSU three times last year, including in championship game of the conference tournament.
The Aztecs raced to a 43-21 halftime lead despite getting zero points from Bradley and Trammell. Mensah led the way with 12 points and Adam Seiko had nine.
Mensah had six points during a 14-0 run that carried the Aztecs to a 29-10 lead with 5:47 left before halftime. Seiko made two 3-pointers, including a 27-footer to cap the run. An SDSU team manager was whistled for a technical for putting his thumb and pinkie up to his ear near the scorer’s table as if to say, “Dial up a 3,” and BSU’s Max Rice made both free throws.
The combination of SDSU’s defense and the absence of Shaver was too much for the Broncos. BSU shot only 33.3% in the first half and was called for a 10-second violation late in the first half. The Aztecs blocked three shots in the first 20 minutes.
The Broncos clearly missed Shaver, who besides being third on the team in scoring at 13.2 points was leading the Broncos with 6.3
rebounds and had a team-high 79 assists.
Meanwhile, it’ll be touch-and-go whether the Aztecs remain in the AP Top 25. After popping back into the poll on Monday, the Aztecs lost 75-66 at Nevada on Tuesday night.
ALABAMA: Coach Nate Oats has agreed to a new six-year, $30 million contract amid the No. 4 Crimson Tide’s (19-4, 9-0) best regular season in decades. Oats will average $5 million plus incentives over the deal running through the 2028-29 season under a deal approved Friday by the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees Compensation Committee.
It makes him the fourth-highest paid basketball coach in the Southeastern Conference and among the Top 10 nationally, athletic director Greg Byrne said.
NMSU: Coming off its first league win of the season, New Mexico State (8-14, 1-9 Western Athletic Conference) hosts Seattle University (167, 7-3) at 7 p.m. (ESPN+ streaming, 99.5 FM in Las Cruces). The Aggies’ 10-0 mark in the Pan Am all time vs. the Redhawks is at stake.
NMSU fans exhaled deeply when their team defeated Stephen F. Austin 73-61 on Wednesday, ending a nine-game losing streak that was the longest since the 2004-05 team dropped 10 straight.
Women
NMSU: The Aggies (12-10, 7-3 WAC) look to extend their threegame win streak on Saturday as they host Grand Canyon (15-6, 7-3). Tipoff is 4 p.m. (ESPN+ streaming). The Lopes won the first matchup on Jan. 19 in Phoenix, 69-62.