San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
Chippy game turns on technical foul call on SDSU’S Mensah during 2nd half 76 67
As Clippers owner Steve Ballmer toured the concrete-and-steel bones of the Intuit Dome, the future home of his NBA franchise, he pointed to the section of 4,700 seats that rise like no other place in the $2 billion arena.
The jarring break in the suites that form a ring around three-quarters of the interior gives way to an area Ballmer visualizes as the larynx-straining voice of the building when it opens in 2024.
The 12th-richest person on the planet, according to real-time billionaire rankings by Forbes, could pour cash into the most hightech, cutting-edge features imaginable. There’s plenty of that, for sure, including a “halo board” that is seven times larger than the video board at AT&T Stadium, home of the NFL’S Cowboys.
The Wall, though, will be delightfully old-school in a cap tip to the court-hugging, earsplitting, rowdy venues of college basketball’s glory days. And it would not exist if Ballmer had not made his one and only visit to San Diego State’s Viejas Arena on Feb. 1, 2020.
Ballmer traveled to San Diego to attend the jersey retirement ceremony for Kawhi Leonard, a Clipper who remains one of the NBA’S biggest stars. He stood at midcourt with Leonard, the player’s family and his Clippers teammates at halftime of the No. 4 Aztecs’ game against Utah State.
Then he raised his eyes. “Just standing on the court and looking up, it was just like whoaaaa,” said Ballmer, in a moment of uncontainable joie de vivre about his experience at Viejas. “This is fun.”
Without that night, without that signature configuration and feel, without that energy, San Diego State has no connection to the Intuit Dome. Now, Viejas Arena is forever linked.
Ballmer found himself so gobsmacked by his time on Steve Fisher Court that construction plans were edited on the fly. Though it was deemed impossible to incorporate the rising, raupress
San Diego State’s basketball team was merrily going through warmups Saturday night at Viejas Arena when Aguek Arop stepped wrong, felt a twinge in his groin and didn’t play.
Bad, bad omen.
The No. 23 Aztecs felt a twinge in their season Saturday night and lost for the first time at home, 76-67 against New Mexico in a chippy game that included several technical fouls, endless taunting and trash talking, and a controversial officiating decision that changed the complexion of the game.
The loss is the first by SDSU (13-4, 4-1) in the Mountain West and almost certainly will end its oneweek return to The Associated Top 25. And also, perhaps, any designs of running away and hiding in the conference. Next up are a pair of road games in altitude, at Colorado State and Air Force — teams that both won on the road Saturday night.
The answer to your next question: Gerry Pollard.
He’s the official who called a (questionable) reach foul on Nathan Mensah with 8:20 left in a onepoint game, his fourth.
Then, when the Mountain West defensive player of the year protested, whistled a T on him as well — his fifth.
No. 23 Aztecs at Colorado State Wednesday:
7:30 p.m., Moby Arena, Fort Collins, Colo. FS1; 760-AM
On the air:
“I knew they called a foul, and that was questionable,” Matt Bradley said. “But the technical was really questionable. … Tempers are high in those moments. After every foul call, someone was either frustrated or saying something, not necessarily to the ref but out loud. For the game to be that competitive and to call a technical on the defensive player of the year, I thought was pretty bad for us, for sure.”
SDSU had just taken the lead for the first time since the game’s opening minute, but now Lobos guard Jaelen House was making both technical free throws followed by a 3-pointer off a blown defensive assignment. That started a 12-0 run, and the Aztecs were cooked.
They got within four with 2:29 left when Bradley drove, was fouled and made a short shot. But official Tommy Nuñez did not give Bradley the and-one, waving off the basket and ruling he was fouled before the shot to (another) chorus of boos.
Bradley missed the front end of the ensuing one-and-one — a common theme — and the Lobos responded with a pair of baskets to seal it.
N. Mexico
No. 23 Aztecs