Senior guard Devin Watson recorded 15 points and eight assists as host San Diego State posted a 65-57 upset victory over No. 6 Nevada on Wednesday night in Mountain West play.
Senior guard Jeremy Hemsley also scored 15 points as the Aztecs (17-9, 9-4 MW) won their fourth straight game and their seventh in the past eight. Sophomore forward Jalen McDaniels added 10 points as San Diego State defeated Nevada for the third consecutive time.
The Wolf Pack were the highest-ranked team the Aztecs have ever beaten. They previously defeated a No. 7 team on three occasions.
Senior shooting guard Caleb Martin had 20 points and seven rebounds but couldn't prevent the Wolf Pack (24-2, 11-2) from seeing their 10-game winning streak end. Senior standout power forward Jordan Caroline tallied a season-low eight points on 3-of-12 shooting.
The point total was Nevada's lowest of the season. The previous low occurred in the Wolf Pack's only other setback -- 85-58 at New Mexico on Jan. 5.
Nevada struggled with its shooting throughout the contest and finished at 33.9 percent, including 7 of 25 from 3-point range.
The Aztecs, who improved to 13-2 at home, shot 39.7 percent from the field and 6 of 19 from behind the arc. San Diego held a 46-37 rebounding edge.
The Wolf Pack trailed by 12 with less than three minutes remaining before they used an 9-2 run to move within 60-55 with 41.4 seconds left. Hemsley drove through the defense for a layup with 29.6 seconds left and split two free throws 10 seconds later to increase the San Diego State lead to eight as the Aztecs finished off the big victory.
Nevada trailed by 11 early in the second half before cutting its deficit to 39-32 on two free throws by senior forward Cody Martin with 15:29 remaining.
The Aztecs, however, responded with nine straight points to boost their lead to 16.
Watson converted a layup, sophomore guard Jordan Schakel buried a 3-pointer and freshman forward Aguek Arop scored on a lob from Watson to make it 46-32. McDaniels swished a short jumper with 10:18 remaining to complete the burst.
The Wolf Pack crept within 55-46 on Caleb Martin's 3-pointer with 5:01 remaining. However, McDaniels converted a three-point play 50 seconds later to push the lead back to 12.
San Diego State led 30-21 at the break as Nevada posted its lowest first-half output of the season. The Wolf Pack shot just 30.4 percent in the first 20 minutes with the Aztecs just a tad better at 32.4 percent.
--Field Level Media
Nevada | San Diego St. | |
Caleb Martin 20 | Scoring | Jeremy Hemsley 15 |
Jordan Caroline 6 | Assists | Devin Watson 8 |
Caleb Martin 7 | Rebounds | Matt Mitchell 9 |
Caleb Martin 7 | Free Throws Made | Devin Watson 4 |
Cody Martin 2 | Steals | Aguek Arop 2 |
Cody Martin 2 | Blocks | Aguek Arop 1 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Nevada | 57 | 33.9 | 7-25 | 12-20 | 11 | 35 | 7 | 5 | 14 |
San Diego St. | 65 | 39.7 | 6-19 | 9-17 | 12 | 39 | 4 | 7 | 14 |