Aztecs Soar Over Air Force in Easy Victory : College basketball: A rare WAC breather marks end of losing streak for SDSU.

The shot went in, a 17-foot jumper, and now Courtie Miller was backpedaling on defense.

Jim Harrick, San Diego State assistant coach, bounded to his feet and pumped an arm at Miller.

“Whaddaya say!” he yelled.

Miller waved him off and smiled. It was in the first minute of the second half, Miller had made his initial field goal of the night, and the Aztecs were on their way to a rout.

SDSU was all over Air Force Saturday night, 76-59, in a victory the Aztecs needed badly. It snapped a three-game losing streak. Three games? Hey, it seemed much longer. SDSU (10-13, 5-8) had lost five of six, and the Aztecs were dropping fast in the Western Athletic Conference standings. Entering the game, they were in a tie with Hawaii for seventh.

Victory? Whaddaya say.

“The thing about it is, when you look at the win-loss record, this one weighed just as heavily as any other win,” SDSU Coach Jim Brandenburg said. “It was darn important to us. It was a darn big win.”

For one thing, the Aztecs have matched their highest WAC victory total during Brandenburg’s four years. They finished 5-11 in the 1987-88 season, and haven’t won more than five WAC games since 1985-86, when they went 7-9.

For another, it should give the Aztecs some confidence. All season, they have relied heavily on center Marty Dow and guard Arthur Massey. Saturday, in front of 2,423 in the San Diego Sports Arena, five Aztecs scored nine or more points. Massey led the way with 20, Keith Balzer had 11, Miller 10, and Dow and Ray Barefield nine apiece.

For Dow, it was the first time since Dec. 22--a string of 14 games--that he didn’t reach double figures. As for Massey, a total of 15 of his 20 came after halftime--during and after the Aztecs exploded on a big run. He connected on eight of 12 field goal attempts. For a guy who was shooting only 38% in WAC games, it was a welcome relief.

“It was like everyone else was sticking shots, and that helped out,” he said.

SDSU made 17 of 31 field goal attempts (55%) in the second half and finished at 44%.

The Aztecs moved ahead by 10 at the half and sealed this one with a 15-0 run early in the second half. By the end of that spurt, SDSU led, 52-27, and the guys on the end of the bench were starting to think about loosening up. Walk-on guard Jason Powell, who had played a total of five minutes all season, was summoned with 4:32 still to play and SDSU ahead, 69-41.

The largest Aztec lead was 30, and they did that four times. It was by far their easiest WAC victory--they had won their four WAC games by a combined margin of just 11 points.

And it was their largest victory margin over a Division I opponent since they defeated St. Francis of New York, 91-72, on Dec. 27, 1988.

SDSU started slowly but outscored Air Force, 20-8, in the final nine minutes of the half to take a 32-22 halftime lead.

Balzer jump-started them by canning three consecutive shots--a three-pointer and two jumpers from the free-throw line--to help the Aztecs turn a 14-12 deficit into a 21-14 lead.

“(Balzer) gave us a cushion,” Brandenburg said. “He gave us time and confidence to get going. We knew going into the second half that if we didn’t re-establish ourselves in the first five minutes, it would be a dogfight.”

Despite the fact that SDSU shot just 32% from the field in the first half, they were in command because of a 21-17 rebounding margin and an unyielding defense. Miller took two charges to help the cause, and the Aztecs limited Air Force’s leading scorer, Chris Lowry, to five points.

“I think you could see our guys were a little more focused tonight,” Brandenburg said. “We were pretty well prepared for this ballgame from the outset.”

It was quite a change from Thursday, when the Aztecs were whipped by Colorado State, 67-50. The Rams’ victory enabled them to trade places in the standings with SDSU.

“There was a quote in the Times that said it will be interesting to see if we stick around a little longer or fold,” Brandenburg said. “We talked about that. And we decided to stick around a little longer.”

Colorado State and Hawaii played late Saturday night, so most Aztecs will have to wait until today to find out if they are still tied for seventh or whether they edged ahead of the Rainbows. Regardless, the jockeying for position for the WAC tournament figures to heat up as the season enters its final two weeks, because SDSU and Hawaii play twice--here Thursday and in Hawaii March 2.

Whaddaya say?

“It was a nice win for us,” Massey said. “We’ve been on that losing spurt too long.”