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Aztecs get bounce-back win over Wyoming

Jan 30, 2011 - 6:21 AM San Diego, CA (Sports Network) - Chase Tapley scored a career-high 24 points, and No. 4 San Diego State bounced back from its lone loss of the season with a 96-57 victory over Wyoming in a Mountain West Conference battle at Viejas Arena.

James Rahon added 14 points while D.J. Gay contributed 12 for the Aztecs (21-1, 6-1 MWC), who dropped a 71-58 decision to ninth-ranked BYU on Wednesday. On Saturday, they made a school-record 17 three-pointers.

"It was a self-check to let us know that we can be beat if we don't come out and play the way that we want to play," Gay said. "I think that if we beat BYU, I don't know if we would have come out with as high of an energy as we did against Wyoming today. That loss against BYU was definitely a team self- check."

Billy White added 10 points and Brian Carlwell grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds in San Diego State's 15th straight home win.

Desmar Jackson led the Cowboys (8-13, 1-6) with 19 points. JayDee Luster added 10 points with four assists and Amath M'Baye and Djibril Thiam both scored eight points in the loss.

"They're the best team that we've played in the four years that I have been here," Wyoming coach Heath Schroyer said. "I was an assistant in this league when Utah went to the Final Four. It all depends on their seed, but they are better than them. They are really, really good. When they make perimeter shots, I don't know if anyone in the country can beat them let alone in this building."

Wyoming has lost five straight and six of seven.

The Aztecs came out the gate fast, starting the game with a 14-0 run, capped by a White dunk at 16:26. SDSU led 27-9 just past the midway point of the first half when Mehdi Cheriet's jumper ended an 11-0 Aztec run.

Tapley finished with 15 points on 6-of-9 from the field in the first half while both Gay and Rahon added nine points. The Aztecs shot 60.6 percent from the field in the opening stanza on their way to a 53-22 lead.

The second half was never in contention.

Game Notes

Despite the loss, Wyoming still holds a 37-31 lead in the all-time series...The Aztecs are 12-1 in games following their last 12 defeats...SDSU shot 53.8 percent from the field, including 17-of-33 from beyond the arc...The Cowboys shot 29.7 percent from the field.