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San Diego State basketball’s pursuit of perfection: Can Aztecs run the table?

By Nate Williamson

SAN DIEGO, CA - JANUARY 11: San Diego State University Aztecs guard Malachi Flynn (22) with a steal during the game between the Boise State Broncos and the San Diego State University Aztecs on January 11, 2020 at the Steve Fisher Court at Viejas Arena in San Diego, California. (Photo by Alan Smith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CA - JANUARY 11: San Diego State University Aztecs guard Malachi Flynn (22) with a steal during the game between the Boise State Broncos and the San Diego State University Aztecs on January 11, 2020 at the Steve Fisher Court at Viejas Arena in San Diego, California. (Photo by Alan Smith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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San Diego State basketball looks to be the first college basketball team to run the table and finish undefeated since Indiana in 1976 but can they pull it off?

For 44 years, the world has gone without an undefeated team throughout the college basketball season and postseason.  What head coach Brian Dutcher’s Aztecs have been able to do this season has been incredible and on historic levels.

In the history of the NCAA tournament, only 19 teams have entered the tournament with a perfect record. The first team to do it was Lou Rossini’s Columbia team that entered at 21-0 before bowing out in the first round to No. 5 Illinois. The most recent was the 2015 Kentucky Wildcats, led by Karl-Anthony Towns, Devin Booker and Aaron and Andrew Harrison.

San Diego State Aztecs could be the next to join this elite fraternity.

When healthy, they boast an impressive three-man forest of 6-foot-10 forwards with Yanni Wetzell, Joel Mensah and Nathan Mensah. The latter has been out since December with a blood clot in his lungs but has recently been given an outside chance to return this season.

This isn’t your ordinary mid-major squad.

This team is built like Power 5 team, especially when you consider junior guard Malachi Flynn has played like one of the nation’s best. He’s leading the team in minutes, points and assists, putting up 16.5 points and 5.1 assists in just over 32 minutes per game.

Perhaps the hinge that the rest of the run relies on though, is mismatch guy Matt Mitchell, a 6-foot-6, 240-pound forward who is third on the team in scoring and rebounds, while also being second on the team in blocks and steals. He’s their most versatile player and can play and defend both the small and power forward spots.

With 352 teams with at least one loss, the Aztecs have a great chance at being the next team to carry an undefeated record through the remainder of the season. Aztec faithful will be happy to look ahead at their upcoming schedule because it’s devoid of ranked teams who could hand them their first loss.

In the ranks of opponents who stand in the way of history only Air Force, New Mexico, Boise State, UNLV, Colorado State and Nevada remain.

Of those six opponents, there are three games that could be potential traps, beginning with the Feb. 16 game at Boise State. The Aztecs beat them handily on Jan. 11 but will have to pay attention to this game as a potential trip-up game.

The second spot that they’ll have their eyes on will come in a Feb. 25 matchup at home against Colorado State who has been on a hot streak since the start of the new year, winning nine of their last 10 games. Though the Aztecs beat the Rams earlier in the season, the game comes just four days before the Aztecs’ biggest game so they might be able to catch them looking ahead.

If San Diego State is going to run the table, the toughest test standing in their way of history is Nevada. The Wolf Pack rank among the best in the nation in 3-point shooting and opponent 3-point field goal percentage. If Nevada gets hot from downtown and can limit San Diego State beyond the arc, it could spell upset.

San Diego State has all the pieces they need to finish undefeated, and if they do, they’ll be one of the four No. 1 seeds for March Madness.

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