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Mountain West Tournament: Tough afternoons for Xavier Thames, Winston Shepard III spell doom for No. 8 San Diego State

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No. 8 San Diego State isn’t a team that will light up the scoreboard offensively. With Xavier Thames and Winston Shepard III doing their best to probe the lane against the opposition, the Aztecs have been at their best when those two are on their game when it comes to both scoring an distributing the basketball to the supporting cast.

That wasn’t the case in Saturday’s Mountain West championship game, with Thames making just six of his 16 field goal attempts and Shepard shooting 4-for-15. With New Mexico struggling against the Aztecs’ 1-2-1-1 full court press, those off nights prohibited the Aztecs from taking advantage and gaining separation. The end result: a 64-58 Lobo victory, giving the program its third consecutive Mountain West tournament title.
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If anything the pressure allowed the Aztecs to continue to stand toe-to-toe with New Mexico, as they scored 21 points off of 15 Lobo turnovers. But with Thames, who committed his fourth foul with 11:03 remaining, struggling offensively San Diego State led by no more than three points in the second half. Once New Mexico calmed down they were able to get better shots, turning the tables with Kendall Williams’ three-pointer with 26 seconds remaining being the final nail in the coffin.

It wasn’t all negative for the Aztecs, especially when it comes to the play of Dwayne Polee II. Polee scored 11 of his 14 points in the second half, and his three days in Las Vegas is a key development for the Aztecs moving forward. Polee averaged 13.7 points and 3.7 rebounds per game, giving San Diego State some needed help on both ends of the floor.

It’s no secret that Thames and Shepard will be the focal points offensively, and their struggles on Saturday contributed to the Aztecs’ falling short of their goal. But if they can continue to get solid contributions from a more confident Polee, that will bode well for the Aztecs in the NCAA tournament.

This didn’t do the Aztecs much good Saturday afternoon, with New Mexico limiting San Diego State’s two best offensive options. The supplementary pieces are important, but if San Diego State is to make a run deep into the NCAA tournament they’ll need Thames and Shepard to be at their best.

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