Fisher Of Men

It was back in 1991 when Steve Fisher first gathered the talent and gave the nation "The Fab Five" arguably by many as the greatest recruiting class ever assembled. That was then. This is now. Oh how time flies. Its also been said that good things often take time. Could he do it again? Before Coach Fisher took over in 1999 the Aztecs had suffered a 17 year NCAA tourney drought including 13 of 14 losing seasons in 14 years. Piece by piece Fisher has carefully rebuilt the Aztec program into a potential powerhouse. All eyes will now be directed to the Marriott Center as the San Diego State Aztecs come into town riding the nations longest active winning streak at 20 games with a #4 ranking (AP25 Poll). It will likely be standing room only in this matchup of epic proportions. Steve Fisher certainly has plenty of valuable experience to draw upon over 19 years winning over 402 games. The Aztecs are certainly heading on the right track with a coach who has been a fisher of men.

San Diego State returns all five starters and ranks #8 in FG percentage (49.2 to be exact) which clearly shows the decision process taking quality shots and making nearly half. The Aztecs are also in the top 30 in rebounding margin as well helping considerably second chance opportunities. They are led by 6-7 sophomore forward Kawhi Leonard who averages 15.7 points per game including 10.3 rebounds per contest. Yes, over 10 board a game. At the other forward is 6-9 senior Malcolm Thomas who averages nearly 12 a game and 8 rebounds. The Aztecs can also spread things around and stretch defenses. On the season senior DJ Gay has knocked down 118 threes. He's definately not afraid to spot up and take the jumper from the perimeter averaging nearly 13 points a game. There is definately some solid balance to this squad. The offense is spread enough that they have over 6 players who have taken at least 100 shots making it tough to focus on one individual.

Last time the two met it was the cougs who walked away victorious 82-68. Jimmer had 26 and Emery chipped in 18 points. It's a different day and another shot at the cougs. Can the cougs do it again? If Jimmer is on the court don't count the cougs out. Wednesday's mountain of a matchup will clearly be a huge game with some bigtime hype for both sides. It could easily be one of the biggest games in state history featuring two top ten teams both from the MWC. This is one you won't want to miss. Set aside your schedule. Whatever it takes to get there or watch on tv to see who really will be the fisher of men.