Author: Kyle Saunders

End of an Era: Legendary Men’s Hoops coach Steve Fisher set to announce retirement

Kyle Saunders

It’s the end of an era on the Mesa, as longtime San Diego State men’s basketball head coach Steve Fisher plans to announce his retirement.

An 18-year coach with the Aztecs, Fisher informed his players, fellow coaches and SDSU’s president Elliot Hirshman of his decision to retire on Monday, per Mark Ziegler of The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Stepping into Fisher’s sizeable shoes, longtime assistant coach Brian Dutcher is expected to take the reigns from Fisher entering the 2018 season. Dutcher has worked beneath Fisher’s tutelage since 1989, as their partnership dates back to their ’89 title with the University of Michigan.

The Aztecs’ current players are comfortable with Dutcher stepping into the limelight and believe he is the best option to take over such a successful program, per source.

Prior to stepping onto the Mesa, Fisher signed arguably the best freshman class to ever touch the college hardwood with Michigan, the infamous Fab Five. He also reigned in three regional championships during his nine-year stint in Ann Arbor.

Fisher then took his talents to SDSU, a decision that would fundamentally change the Aztecs’ men’s basketball program for the better.

SDSU’s men’s basketball team had orchestrated 13 losing seasons in their last 14 seasons before Fisher took hold of the program in 1999. He then turned what was considered a losing program into a dominant one, notching four Mountain West Tournament championships (2006, 2010, 2011) and six MW regular season championships (2006, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016).

Looking forward, Dutcher will not have the smoothest road to success in San Diego, as there are many pressing areas of concern that must be addressed before the Aztecs get back to the winning tradition Fisher cemented in San Diego. The Aztecs are coming off a measly 19-14 season where they finished 9-9 in conference play and lost to Colorado State in the MW tournament.

While it is true that Dutcher and the Aztecs have a lot to work on this offseason, this day will be spent honoring the best head coach SDSU has ever seen. Fisher leaves SDSU with an all-time record of 386-209 (.649), two Sweet 16 appearances, eight overall NCAA tournament appearances and four MW Coach of the Year honors. He was recognized as the Naismith college coach of the year in 2011 and earned the Wooden Legends of Coaching Award in 2015.

A press conference is set for this Tuesday to formally announce his retirement and introduce Dutcher as the new head coach. After that, Fisher will ride off into the sunset of retirement.

Aztec takes advantage of class lectures at local beer festival

Kyle Saunders

San Diego State’s Bryan Coburn, a student within SDSU’s Business of Craft Beer program, took what he has learned in the classroom into the field at the 5th Annual Bankers Hill Art & Craft Beer Festival at The Abbey on Fifth Avenue on Friday.

Loaded with a bevy of local beers and bites, The Abbey, a 10,000 square foot venue, played host to north of 300 people in attendance to sample a diverse selection of San Diego breweries and Bankers Hill native restaurants.

The city of San Diego, known for its slew of stunning breweries and equally tantalizing restaurants, was on full display at the well-attended event, allowing Coburn to seize the moment.

“To try all of these beers and all of this food in one place is such a great experience,” Coburn said. “I hope this continues for a long time.”

Of the 15 breweries represented at the festival, Second Chance Beer Company and Karl Strauss were two of several select breweries to draw significant crowds to their tableside.

Offering three different beers, Second Chance Beer Company drew local San Diegans in with their Belgian Style Golden Ale, but they kept coming to refill their two-ounce glasses with the brewery’s Rye IPA, a darker, bitter beer with a notable bite.

Karl Strauss’ Aurora Hoppyalis IPA also made its way into a lot of glasses on Friday night, as its hoppy, smooth taste served as a positive surprise to a number of guests in attendance.

Unlike a majority of the people filling their glasses, Coburn was able to understand each select pour on a much deeper, educated level because of the work he has done at SDSU.

“I think [all of the beers] would taste the same if I didn’t know what I know about beer,” Coburn said. “I have learned so much about beer since starting the program, and I’m happy it’s helping outside the classroom.

“[The program] has found a way to make beer taste better.”

Coburn, however, didn’t limit his tongue to the range of beers present at Friday’s event, as he also took it upon himself to try a number of the samples prepared by Bankers Hill’s very own restaurants.

Cucina Urbana, located at 505 Laurel Street, offered a tasteful mascarpone polenta topped with a savory ragu, leaving those nearby no choice but to take a break from the beer to dive into its creamy decadence.

Pizzicato, a close neighbor to The Abbey on Fifth Avenue, had attendees waiting patiently for more samples of their thin-crust pepperoni pizza after they ran out of samples within the first hour of the three-hour event.

“I’m not going to lie; I had more than a couple slices of the pizza,” Coburn said.

Balancing beer with the array of awe-inspiring snacks, Coburn found it easy to enjoy himself at Friday’s event and plans to attend again next year if Bankers Hill pushes their annual total to six in 2018.

Aztecs aim to keep Air Force grounded on senior night

Kyle Saunders
Aztecs senior Malik Pope takes the court against Fresno State. Photo Credit: GoAztecs.com (Ernie Anderson)

The San Diego State men’s basketball team has had its ups and downs this season. After being selected to win the Mountain West conference in the preseason, the Aztecs find themselves fighting for a sixth place finish in the conference alongside Fresno State. The record does not reflect the fight and passion Aztecs head coach Steve Fisher and his squad have put in, as most of the losses were by 10 points or less.

The Scarlet and Black have an opportunity to avenge one of those losses as Air Force travels to Viejas arena for the final home game of the season on Thursday night. The last time these two teams squared off, Air Force walked away with a 60-57 nail-biting win, leaving the Aztecs with a frustrating trip home.

There’s no doubt that this game will a lot of hype around it. It’s not only a revenge game and the last home game, but it’s also senior night in San Diego. Dakarai Allen, Matt Shrigley, D’Erryl Williams, and Valentine Izundu will all be honored pre-game in the starting lineup alongside Malik Pope. Allen, Shrigley and Williams started their SDSU careers during the 2013-14 campaign.

Air Force comes into this game boasting an offense that averages nearly 75 points per game, while the Aztecs average just 69 points per game. The strong suit of this SDSU team has and always will be defense, thanks to the program and philosophy of coach Fisher.

Beneath Fisher’s tutelage, SDSU has allowed just 63 points per game, a tremendous feat in Division I basketball.

Keys to the game for SDSU will be defensive pressure, handling the ball, and keeping the foot on the gas in the second half. The Aztecs have averaged at least a 10-point lead in each of their conference losses this season, and it has been the primary concern among Scarlett and Black fans.
Tipoff is at 7 p.m. at Viejas arena Thursday night. Coverage will be provided live via Twitter from @KCRsports.

Rams batter Aztecs’ shield in the closing minutes, defeat SDSU 78-77

Kyle Saunders

San Diego State men’s basketball fell just short of the mark, as Colorado State University battled back from a 13-point deficit in the second half to beat the Aztecs, 78-77.

CSU senior guard Gian Clavell was the man responsible for the Rams’ game-winning shot, putting the game on ice with a layup with just 3.8 seconds left in the contest.

“Once I saw [SDSU junior forward Malik] Pope kind of reach in, I pulled it up and it went off the backboard,” Clavell said. “Thankfully it went in.”

The Aztecs’ student section wasn’t thankful of Clavell, as the Scarlet and Black faithful dialed their chanting efforts towards him all night. Unfortunately for The Show, their chants only seemed to fuel Clavell’s scoring frenzy.

Clavell’s layup pushed his point total to a career-high 37 points on 14-23 shooting from the floor.

The Aztecs, however, dominated the first half of Saturday’s affair with momentous dunks from both Pope and senior center Valentine Izundu. The two’s efforts helped SDSU build a 10-point lead at halftime.

The Rams, of course, bucked back.

A barrage of three-pointers fueled CSU’s comeback efforts, as the team shot an outstanding 87.5 percent (7-8) from downtown in the second half. With that, the Rams finished the day shooting 55.6 percent (10-18) from behind the arc, doubling the Aztecs’ measly 27.3 percent three-point percentage.

Pope did his best to keep SDSU’s offense afloat, as he led the team in scoring with 19 points. He also picked up a team-high seven rebounds, filling the void of injured sophomore forward Zylan Cheathum.

“Missing Zylan is a big piece, so of course I’ll have to step my game up on rebounding and all the ways that he helps this team,” Pope said. “But we all did that. All five of us. Everyone else on the court, it wasn’t just me. We just had to pick up the slack [in the things] he was really good at. [But we’re] just waiting. Just waiting, hoping he gets back soon.”

Cheathum was a late scratch from the lineup due to a “stress reaction” in his foot. His status will remain day to day.

SDSU’s second half collapse against CSU shares similarities to the team’s 60-57 loss to Air Force on Tuesday. Both games featured an Aztec team incapable of maintaining a lead in the closing minutes.

Though SDSU was able to crash the offensive boards late in the contest, they simply couldn’t push their shots through the bottom of the net in the clutch moments of the game.

Additionally, the Aztecs’ offense left a lot of points off the board because of missed free throws, as the team shot just 67.8 percent (19-28) from the line. Pope went as far as to completely miss the basket on one of the team’s final free throws, one of many SDSU miscues late in the game.

Despite the mistakes, SDSU head coach Steve Fisher believes his team did everything necessary to win the game.

“When you have five turn overs, score 77 points, get to the free throw line 28 times and they are 14, you should win the game,” Fisher said. “And we didn’t.”

The loss adds to the Aztecs’ current downward spiral, as they have now fallen to 11-9 overall and 3-5 in conference play.

Fisher will look to right the ship before the Aztecs’ next home affair against the University of Wyoming on Tuesday, Jan. 31.

Thumbnail/Featured Image: Jan. 28, 2017; San Diego, CA, USA; Colorado State Rams guard Gian Clavell (3) is defended by San Diego State Aztecs guard Jeremy Hemsley (42) as he shoots. Credit: Jake Roth, USA TODAY Sports