The San Diego State University men’s basketball team is set to explore new horizons — but not in the annual NCAA Division I March Madness tournament.
The Aztecs, runners-up in this year’s Mountain West championship tournament, were bypassed by the NCAA selection committee. Only Utah State, the 2026 MW tournament champion, received a bid to the upcoming 68-team mega event.
The modern configuration of March Madness features a First Four play-in round, with 64 teams advancing to the main bracket. The tournament expanded to 68 teams in 2011 to include more teams.
SDSU was included in the First Four bracket last season but dropped its play-in game to North Carolina.
For those teams not included in NCAA bids, the NIT tournament remains an option.
The MW did score its share of prestige points in the college basketball landscape as five teams accepted NIT bids: Colorado State, Nevada, New Mexico, UNLV and Wyoming.
SDSU declined a bid to this year’s NIT tournament and also elected not to participate in the College Basketball Crown.
The NIT includes a 32-team bracket while The Crown, first contested in 2025, includes eight teams.
The Aztecs would be unable to host a NIT game because Viejas Arena, the team’s home court, is being used for first- and second-round games by the NCAA.
It’s the first time since 2019 that the Aztecs will not be in March Madness.
It’s a big letdown for SDSU fans. The Aztecs were a near unanimous pick to win this year’s MW title. Instead, Utah State received the NCAA’s automatic entry by virtue of its 73-62 win over the Aztecs in Las Vegas on Saturday.
SDSU’s biggest lead was two points in the MW championship game while Utah State led by as many as 12.
The game was hotly contested with nine lead changes. Both teams went on seven-point runs. SDSU held the lead for 4:33 while the Utes dominated with 30:20 possession with the lead.
The Aztecs led precariously 35-34 at halftime before a three-point field goal by the Aggies midway through the second half led to a spirited run to drop the San Diegans behind by double digits.
Reece Dixon-Waters led the Aztecs with 20 points while B.J. Davis dropped in 14 points and Magoon Gwath contributed 12 points. Gwath had eight rebounds.
M.J. Collins led Utah State with 20 points while Mason Falslev chipped in with 16 points.
SDSU out-rebounded the Aggies 38-36. The Aztecs capitalized at the free-throw line with 17 of 24 while Utah State was seven of 13.
The Aztecs have participated in17 NCAA tournaments and six NIT fields, reaching the semifinals in both 2009 and 2016. They advanced to the NCAA championship game three years ago.
Instead, No. 9 Utah State gets to rub in it with a first-round West Region game against No. 8 Villanova Friday at Viejas Arena. The winner plays either No. 1 Arizona State or No. 16 LIU (Long Island University).
Utah State was the only MW team to receive a NCAA bid.
And that’s where the MW ends, at least as far as the Aztecs and four other MW teams slated to make the jump to the Pac-12. Also heading to potentially greener pastures are Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and Utah State.
They join Pac holdovers Oregon State and Washington State. Also coming on board are Texas State (football) and Gonzaga (basketball). The addition of Gonzaga in basketball gives the rebuilt conference a major boost.
The eight football members ensures the Pac FBS status and access to the College Football Playoff.
With the season now officially over, SDSU will start preparing for its first season as a new member of the Pac-whatever.
“I’m disappointed for our players and our great fans that we weren’t selected to compete in this year’s NCAA Tournament, SDSU head coach Brian Dutcher said in a statement. “There are only 68 spots available and unfortunately, we didn’t get one of them.
“Physically, our team is very banged up at this point. If we had received a bid for the NCAA Tournament, we would have competed. However, with where we are today physically I don’t feel that playing in another postseason event would benefit us.”
The Aztecs finished the 2025-26 season with a final 22-11 record, 14-6 in MW play. Utah State brings a 28-6 season record into Friday’s regional game after finishing 15-5 in the MW regular season standings.
The 22 wins are the most by a SDSU team not to make the NCAA postseason.
The Aztecs, who have won seven MW tournament titles and nine regular season championships, received the No. 2 seed for the 12-team MW tournament, March 11-14, and defeated No. 7 Colorado State, 71-62, in the quarterfinals and No. 3 New Mexico, 64-62, in the semifinals before engaging Utah State in the championship game.
SDSU wrapped up regular season play with an 89-82 win over visiting UNLV on March 6.
Season scoring leaders for SDSU included Dixon-Waters (13.1 ppg), Davis (10.8 ppg), Miles Byrd (10.4 ppg), Gwath (8.9 ppg), Elzie Harrington (8.0 ppg), Pharaoh Compton (7.5 ppg). Byrd was the rebounding leader at 4.7 per game, followed by Miles Heide (4.5 per game) and Gwath (4.3 per game).
Schools that also declined NIT bids included Belmont, Virginia Tech, Seton Hall, Indiana, Florida State and Oklahoma.
“We fought hard all year,” Dutcher added. “In a league that featured seven teams that won at least 20 games, we completed the regular season alone in second place and reached the championship game of our conference tournament. All those are accomplishments we can be proud of, but in the committee’s eyes,it just wasn’t enough to be included in the field.
“I’ve said it all year, parity has hurt our league this year. If you’re in a power conference, the parity is fantastic. You get eight, nine teams in, but in the Mountain West, parity is not a good thing. There wasn’t enough separation at the top.”
Red & Black
•This was San Diego State’s 17th and final Mountain West Tournament Championship appearance in its 27 years of the league.
•SDSU leaves the Mountain West with league records of 16 overall championships, nine regular-season titles and seven tournament championships.
•SDSU finished 46-20 in the Mountain West Tournament for a winning percentage of 69.7 percent. The 46 wins are the most by any team — current or former — in league history (second currently is tournament host UNLV with 31).
•San Diego State fell to 19-6 in its 25 Mountain West Tournament games since Dutcher became head coach in the 2017-18 season.
•SDSU’s 38 conference tournament wins since the 2008-09 season are still the most in the country over that span (Gonzaga is second at 37).
•San Diego State finished 7-2 as the No. 2 seed in the Mountain West Tournament.
•The Aztecs finished 9-3 against the No. 3 seed in the Mountain West Tournament, including a 1-1 mark as the No. 2 seed against a No. 1 seed.
•SDSU finished 7-5 all-time against the top seed in the Mountain West Tournament.
•SDSU fell to 220-79 (.736) under Dutcher, including a 19-6 record (.760) in the Mountain West Tournament.
MOUNTAIN WEST STANDINGS
Conference/Overall
Utah State 15-5, 28-6
SDSU 14-6, 22-11
New Mexico 13-7, 24-10
Grand Canyon University 13-7, 20-12
Nevada 12-8, 23-12
Boise State 12-8, 20-12
Colorado State 11-9, 21-13
UNLV 11-9, 18-16
Wyoming 9-11, 18-15
Fresno State 7-13, 13-19
San Jose State 3-17, 9-24
Air Force Academy 0-20, 3-29
SDSU Senior Night
Photos by Andy Bartotto
