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Reports: Utah, San Diego State to meet November 18 at Viejas Arena

Steve Fisher

San Diego State coach Steve Fisher gives signals to his team during the second half of a 73-58 victory over Nevada in a NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Feb. 8, 2014, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)

AP

When Utah released its schedule for the 2014-15 season one date, November 18, was noticeable due to the lack of an opponent being listed. And according to multiple reports, the opponent expected to fill that date provided there are no issues in negotiations, will make the Utes’ schedule even tougher.

The opponent: San Diego State, which won 31 games and the Mountain West regular season title last season. The first game in the proposed home-and-home series would be played at Viejas Arena in San Diego, with Utah hosting the return meeting during the 2015-16 campaign.

Many expected the 2013-14 campaign to be one of transition for Steve Fisher’s Aztecs, but that obviously didn’t prove to be the case. SDSU also reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament, falling to Arizona in the West regional semifinals. San Diego State will need to account for the loss of Mountain West Player of the Year Xavier Thames and leading rebounder Josh Davis, but they return three of their top five scorers led by rising junior Winston Shepard III.

Add to this group a highly-regarded recruiting class, and San Diego State is once again expected to be one of the preeminent teams on the west coast.

That should make for a good early season test for Utah, which won 21 games and reached the Postseason NIT in 2013-14. And just as importantly for Larry Krystkowiak’s team, playing San Diego State will help them when it comes to factors such as the RPI and non-conference strength of schedule, with the latter being a major issue for Utah in 2013-14.

Utah returns its top five scorers from last season’s team, led by Pac-12 All-Defensive Team selection Delon Wright and forward Jordan Loveridge.

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