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Aggies can’t overcome rough offensive play, fall to Aztecs

Jeff Dahdah, assistant sports editor

No overtime was necessary the second time around as the San Diego Aztecs dispatched the Utah State men’s basketball team 60-45 in California on Tuesday.

The loss drops the Aggies to a 5-9 conference record and postpones head coach Stew Morrill’s 600th win celebration with his career win remaining at 599.

“They are a top-10 team in the country for a reason,” Morrill said. “They pressure you, they make it hard for you to get good shots.”

Utah State shot 34 percent from the field while San Diego State shot 43 percent.

“They make it hard for you to get much going offensively, and we compounded our problems offensively,” Morrill said. “San Diego state is very good defensively.”

The Aggies also had 15 turnovers in the game and struggled all game from the full-court pressure.

Utah State was led in scoring by senior guard Spencer Butterfield and senior center Jarred Shaw who had 10 points apiece. Shaw has now has been in double digits for points in five straight games.

“We could have come in here and played well and got beat, but we didn’t. We came in here and played poor and got beat,” Morrill said.

The Aggies will be at home on Saturday against Fresno State, the only team in the Mountain West Conference that they haven’t played yet this season.

“I’m impressed with how hard they are playing,” Morrill said. “we can’t play like this and expect to win.”

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