So Sweet: Aztecs Shut Down Furman, Head To Sweet 16 At NCAA Tournament

By Editor, Times of San Diego

March 18, 2023

San Diego State ended Furman’s Cinderella story Saturday at the NCAA Tournament, taking command early for a 75-52 win that will send them to the Sweet 16.

The fifth-seeded Aztecs (29-6) hounded the Paladins (28-8), a 13 seed, on defense in Orlando at the Amway Center, and fully capitalized on the offensive end to book their ticket to the next round in Louisville.

No. 18 SDSU last made it to the Sweet 16 in 2014. But a huge obstacle lies ahead in the South Region – the tournament’s top seed, Alabama. The Crimson Tide (30-5) and 8th-seeded Maryland (22-12) play Saturday at 6:40 p.m., in a game that will determine the Aztecs’ next opponent.

But San Diego State and head coach Brian Dutcher – it will be his first trip to the Sweet 16 while at the helm – had a chance to pause and savor their accomplishment after the win.

“Keep playing up to our standards, play as hard as we can for as long as we can,” Dutcher told his team in the locker room, as caught by CBS cameras. “Let’s ride this thing on through.”

The teams played close for the first 10 minutes – each held early four-point leads – until San Diego State launched an 18-1 run that paved the way for the Aztecs to take a 39-25 lead into the break.

Aguek Arop tied the game at 17 with a layup off an assist by Lamont Butler, and moments later, after a traveling call against Furman’s Jalen Slawson, Micah Parrish drove to the basket for his first score of the game, a layup, to put SDSU up by two.

Parrish stayed hot over the remaining eight minutes of the half, including a layup following a steal by Darrion Trammell that gave his team a 13-point lead. He added 10 more points to pace the team with 14 before the break.

The Aztec defense, meanwhile, was a nightmare for the Paladins, holding them to no field goals for almost 11 minutes until Mike Bothwell broke through with a jumper with just 23 seconds left in the half. Still, Matt Bradley answered, hitting his own jumper with time ticking down, as the Aztecs maintained their largest lead of the day, at 14 points.

The lead only grew once play resumed.

Parrish passed the baton to Trammell, who hit a three-pointer after an offensive rebound by Nathan Mensah to open up the scoring in the second half. With an Adam Seiko layup approaching the 14-minute mark, the advantage reached 21, and with six minutes to play Butler’s bucket put the Aztecs up by 25.

Four players scored in double digits, led by Parrish with 16, and followed by Trammell with 13. Butler added 12 points, six rebounds and six assists.

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