Aztecs win with awesome D, awful O

The rationalization for San Diego State’s 32-percent shooting and 53 total points on Tuesday was that it was a bizarro midweek afternoon tip-off, and it was a nervy early-season game on national television, and 25th-ranked Utah is really, really good defensively.

Or maybe not.

The Aztecs continued to chip paint off rims and wobble backboards, at least when they actually hit them, against a winless Bakersfield team that starts four guys 6-foot-4 or smaller and then had its 6-9 Egyptian center get in early foul trouble. The nation’s 16th-ranked team won 51-27 (you read that right) and improved to 3-0 on a night when five-star prospect Malik Pope made his Aztecs debut, but fluke moved perilously closer to fact:

This team might have a problem scoring.

“At what point does it become a concern? It’s a concern right now,” said coach Steve Fisher, who facetiously appointed himself shooting coach after the dismal offensive performance against Utah. “We shot 24 percent. I fired myself as shooting coach after the game. But you can’t doubt that you can shoot the ball … We can, and we will.”

They’re running out of excuses. All that was available Thursday night were the turquoise uniforms with red trim they wore in celebration of Native American Heritage Month. They’ll be auctioned off for charity, a memento from one of the worst offensive nights in 94 years of basketball on Montezuma Mesa.

And best defensive nights. The 27 points are the fewest allowed by SDSU in 45 years of Division I men’s basketball and the fewest at any level since Whittier also got 27 on Dec. 3, 1949.

If the nation’s 25th-ranked team could only get 49 on them (and just 33 in the first 38 minutes), you can imagine the difficulties the Roadrunners were going to have. And indeed, 12 minutes into the game Bakersfield had … zero points?

They were 0 for 20 and coach Rod Barnes was trying not to laugh when he told his players during a timeout: “Just shoot the ball. It has to go in. It has to.”

It finally did, when backup guard Brent Wrapp wiggled his way into the lane for a layup with 7:43 left in the first half. All that did, though, was lift the onus of being shut out from the Roadrunners and switch the attention to the home team’s offensive offense.

The Aztecs had 31 possessions in the first half. On only two – two – did they score on their first shot in a halfcourt set. Otherwise, their points came off free throws, offensive rebounds or breakaway layups from steals (and they missed a few of those, too).

The halftime score was 22-12, which meant Bakersfield – with losses to High Point, Hawaii and Arkansas-Pine Bluff – outscored the Aztecs 12-10 over the final 7½ minutes. SDSU missed 20 of 25 shots in the half, then clanked the first seven of the second half as the Roadrunners made it a, gulp, six-point game.

That seemed to wake up the Aztecs and they quickly pushed the margin into double figures again after the press began to grind down the visitors. All told, hard as it is to fathom, they shot 24.5 percent and were 3 of 24 behind the 3-point arc against Bakersfield’s 2-3 zone. And led by as many as 27.

“We’re a confident team on offense, and if we have an open shot we’re going to take it,” said Dwayne Polee II, who was 3 of 14. “And the 3 was open tonight. We’re not going to shy away from any shots we feel are good.”

Added freshman Kevin Zabo: “It’s not like we’re taking bad shots or anything like that. Most of them were wide open. Coach Fisher keeps saying to be confident and have that swagger once you step on the court.”

The problem, of course, is that you’re probably not shooting 24.5 percent and going 3 of 24 behind the arc and leading BYU by 27 in Monday’s opening game of the Maui Invitational. The Cougars are 3-0 and have scored 95, 91 and 101 points.

The Aztecs: 79, 53 and 51.

For the second straight game, they had only one player score in double figures (JJ O’Brien had 12 against Utah, Polee II had 13 against Bakersfield). And for the second straight game, no one on the other team did.

The fewest points allowed in Div. I this season was 29, and Bakersfield had 24 before Cortez Conners made a 3-pointer with 25 seconds left. The Roadrunners shot 21.4 percent (12 of 56) overall and were 1 of 20 behind the arc, meaning the teams combined to miss 40 of 44 attempts from long range.

“Our defense the last two games has been pretty good, wouldn’t you say?” Aqeel Quinn said. “That’s what I have to say about that. Our defense is ready. Our offense has to pick it up.”

The offensive inefficiency by both teams overshadowed the long-awaited dawn of the Pope era at SDSU. The 6-10 forward from Sacramento played 14 minutes with understandably mixed results, considering he missed part of his junior year in high school and all of his senior year with a broken leg.

His line: 1 of 6 shooting, four points, two rebounds, two blocks, two steals, one turnover.

“Felt good to finally be back on the floor,” Pope tweeted afterward.

Pope began participating in full practices earlier this month, but his appearance Thursday was something of a surprise. Most projected him to make his debut in mid-December, when the schedule eases following the Maui Invitational and road games at Washington and Cincinnati.

“We’ve kid-gloved our treatment of him,” Fisher said. “We thought this would be a good game to give him some game competition. We’ll see what happens in Maui. It’s not going to be instantaneous. Malik is going to dress. Whether he plays or not, we’ll see.”

Notes

The Aztecs have now won 61 straight home games when they hold the opponent under 60 points. It was also their 50th straight nonconference, regular-season win against unranked opposition and the 43rd in a row against teams from the state of California ... The previous Div. I low this season was 29 points, by both Tennessee Tech and Tennessee-Martin (where former UNLV assistant Heath Schroyer is now head coach) ... Bakersfield’s Barnes on SDSU: “There’s length all over the court. They do a great job and take pride in not fouling. They keep you off the free-throw line.” (Bakersfield shot five free throws to SDSU’s 29) ...

Polee returned to the starting lineup after being replaced by Quinn against Utah because he was late to a practice ... Freshman starter Trey Kell continues to struggle with his shot: He’s now 2 of 16 on the season, including 0 of 7 behind the arc ... Another troubling stat Thursday night: 17 offensive rebounds by an vastly undersized Bakersfield team ... The Aztecs have forced 41 turnovers in their last two games (18 against Utah, 23 against Bakersfield).