July 27, 2009

SAN DIEGO -

2009-10 San Diego State Men's Basketball Prospectus in PDF Format

San Diego State, which is coming off a school-record 26 victories and an appearance in the NIT national semifinals last season, is poised to make a run at a fifth straight season with 20 or more wins and a fifth consecutive postseason tournament berth.

The Aztecs, who are led by 11th-year head coach Steve Fisher, return three players with significant starting experience, insert a pair of Division I transfers into the lineup and welcome at top-15 recruiting class, which has also been rated by some as the best incoming group among those schools from non-automatic-qualifying BCS conferences.

Below is a glance at San Diego State basketball:

* San Diego State returns two starters and eight letterwinners off a squad which...
- Went 26-10 and earned its fourth consecutive postseason tournament berth.
- Won 20+ games for the fourth straight season, reaching the 20-win plateau for the fifth time during Steve Fisher's tenure and the seventh time in SDSU's Division I history.
- Won at least 20 games for the fourth consecutive season for the first time since the 1937-38, 1938-39, 1939-40, 1940-41 seasons.
- Advanced to postseason play (NIT national semifinals) for the fourth consecutive season for the first time in school history.
- Established a school record for wins in a single season (26).
- Set school records for most victories in a five-year period (103) and a four-year span (92).
- Won 11 Mountain West Conference games, marking the first time in Aztec Division I history that an SDSU team posted a winning league record in four straight seasons and the first time since 1935-36, 1936-37, 1937-38, 1938-39.

* San Diego State returns two-time all-Mountain West Conference selection Billy White.

* The Aztecs also return point guard D.J. Gay, who has played in all 69 games in his career, and Tim Shelton. Gay returns as the team's top assist man at 1.8 per outing and top three-point threat with 40 three-point field goals a year ago. Shelton, meanwhile, played in 34 games last year and carries a 7.9-scoring and 4.7-rebound average into 2009-10.

* San Diego State returns five players from last year's team (seven total with Tyrone Shelley and Malcolm Thomas) that have started a Division I basketball game over the course of their career. Overall, SDSU will have nine players on this season's squad with Division I experience with the addition of Shelley (Pepperdine), Thomas (Pepperdine) and Brian Carlwell (Illinois).

* The Aztecs boast a nationally recognized recruiting class that The HOOP SCOOP Online rated No. 15 in the nation and No. 1 among non-automatic BCS qualifying institutions as did Rivals.com. ESPN.com, meanwhile, slotted the Aztec class No. 4 in what they tabbed as mid-major recruiting.

San Diego State 2009-10 season tickets start at $99 for reserved chair-back seats and are available now. Season tickets can be purchased online at GoAztecs.com or by calling the Aztec Ticket Office at (619) 283-7378.