San Diego State made 67.2% of its shots, 39 of 58 attempts, in a 97-80 rout of Oregon Tuesday night in Las Vegas at the Players Era men’s basketball tournament.
The Aztecs (3-2) got 22 points from Reese Dixon-Waters on 9-of-13 shooting, and 21 points off the bench on 6-of-7 shooting from BJ Davis.
Oregon (4-2) won the Players Era tournament last year going 3-0, but the Ducks lost by double digits for the second night in a row in this year’s edition. Jackson Shelstad led them with 21 points and Kwame Evans Jr. added 16.
The Aztecs could hardly miss in the first half, knocking down 20 of 29 shots. A 19-4 Aztecs run turned an early three-point Oregon lead into a 27-15 advantage for San Diego State, which included a pair of 3-pointers from Davis.
Davis scored 13 first-half points in nine minutes of action. The Aztecs led by as many as 12 points and never let the Ducks get within seven points before halftime, answering every Oregon mini-surge with a pinpoint jumper or 3-pointer.
Dixon-Waters added 10 points in the first half, including a quick-release 3 with 19 seconds to go until halftime that made it 51-41 at the break. The Aztecs scored just 54 points for the whole game the previous night in a lopsided loss to Michigan.
Oregon shot the ball well, too, in the first half, making 51.7% of its shots. Shelstad made his first four 3-point attempts of the game and led all scorers in the first half with 16 points, and Nate Bittle got off to a slow start but wound up with 11 first-half points on 5-of-7 shooting.
Oregon trailed by six early in the second half before a run for the Aztecs, who went up 63-49 after a layup, steal on the inbounds pass and another layup.
Pharaoh Compton’s emphatic dunk made it 67-55, and the Aztecs went up 71-56 moments later. Davis drilled another 3 for a 74-58 lead at the 11:30 mark, and the Ducks couldn’t get much closer the rest of the way.
San Diego State built the lead to as many as 24 points late in the game.
Bittle, bothered by a sore ankle, exited the game at the 14:24 mark of the second half and did not return. The 7-foot center was named to the preseason All-Big Ten team.
–Field Level Media
