Oct. 24, 2008

SAN DIEGO -

Top 10 Games of the Fisher Era Aztec fans cast an exhausting number of  votes during the past month at GoAztecs.com to determine the top 10 games of Steve Fisher's past 10 years on Montezuma Mesa. Each week we will count down from No. 10 and reveal the results of the voting until the No. 1 choice just prior to the men's basketball season opener.  Top 10 Countdown   No. 10:  2/24/07 -  SDSU 86, Brigham Young 74   No. 9:  1/28/06 - SDSU 78, Wyoming 77   No. 8:  3/8/02 - SDSU 70, Wyoming 69   No. 7:  12/8/01 - SDSU 93, Fresno State 78   No. 6:  3/1/06 - SDSU 91, Wyoming 72   No. 5:  3/14/07 - SDSU 74, Missouri State 70   No. 4:  2/25/06 - SDSU  73, New Mexico 66   No. 3:  3/19/03 - SDSU 67, UCSB 62   No. 2:  Announced Oct. 31   No. 1:  Announced Nov. 7  2008-09 SDSU Men's Basketball  Aztec Men's Basketball Coverage   2008-09 Schedule | Print   News/Recent Releases

March 19, 2003 | Recap | Stats | Quotes | Notes

Watch Game No. 3 Video

In the postseason in consecutive years for the first time under Steve Fisher and the first time since the 1974-75 and 1975-76 seasons, San Diego State played host to a thrilling first-round NIT game against UC Santa Barbara. The Aztecs, who were on the verge of losing their sixth straight postseason game after trailing by as many as 12 in the second half, buckled down and eventually won in overtime, 67-62, to record their first postseason victory in the school's Division I history.

Why it was memorable: Having advanced to the NCAA Tournament the year before, the pressure was on the Aztecs to duplicate their success from the 2002 season. After falling in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West Conference Tournament, SDSU, which was 15-13 overall, received an at-large bid to the NIT and a home game vs. the Gauchos.

In a season of ups and downs, San Diego State was looking to break five-game losing streak in postseason tournaments and snap its own three-game slide against a school that had played the Scarlet and Black tight in their two most recent meetings.

From the opening tip, the game was close with no team leading by more than four points until a basket by UCSB's Casey Cook with 4:30 to go in the half put the Gauchos up by two, 23-21. The bucket spurred a 14-1 run for the visitors and put the Aztecs in a 10-point hole at halftime (32-22).

Mark Hull, who had eight points during the run, came out of the locker room and started the second half by making a layup to extend the UCSB lead to 12. But behind the senior leadership of Tony Bland, Mike Mackell and Deandre Moore and MWC Freshman of the Year Evan Burns, the Aztecs found a way back into the game thanks to a 12-4 spurt to pull SDSU to within two with 16:52 remaining.

San Diego State kept the pressure on UC Santa Barbara and took its first lead since the 4:30 mark of the first half when Bland got into the key and connected on a layup giving the hosts a 47-46 lead with 8:26 on the clock. The see-saw battle continued with UCSB eventually taking a two-point lead into the final seconds until Bland drove the length of the court and banked in a running jumper from the left side as time expired to force overtime.

In the extra session, it was all Gauchos early on as they jumped out to a six-point lead less than two minutes in. SDSU, however, regained its composure and went on a 12-0 explosion and closed out the game on a 13-2 run to secure its first Division I postseason victory.