San Diego State bites back, beats No. 13 Gonzaga 84-74 in Spokane

The Foley Center Library sits at the center of Gonzaga’s campus, across a lawn from the McCarthey Athletic Center where the 13th-ranked Bulldogs play home basketball games.

It was hard to tell which was quieter Friday night.

Just as it had 13 years earlier, San Diego State muzzled the fearsome, ferocious Kennel. In 2010, it was a three-point game with Kawhi Leonard powering the Aztecs to one of the most iconic wins in program history. On Friday night, it wasn’t close to that close.

The Aztecs got the signature victory missing from their résumé, leading by as many as 15 and winning 84-74 against a program that has reached 25 straight NCAA Tournaments (and eight straight Sweet 16s) and at a place where the visitors were 1-88 over the last five years.

More jaw-dropping stats:

It snapped the Zags’ 59-game nonconference home win streak that goes back eight years. It was their largest home loss since an 11-point setback on Dec. 8, 2012 against No. 13 Illinois. It broke a streak of 173 home games without losing by double digits. And it was only their 13th loss in 285 games at McCarthey Athletic Center since it opened in 2004.

SDSU now owns two of those 13.

“Just thinking about what an accomplishment it is to come in here and win,” Dutcher said, shaking his head. “They play a lot of good teams, but none of them want to come here and play. They play them in neutrals.”

“A lot of guys played with swagger tonight, offensively and defensively,” senior guard Darrion Trammell said. “We were getting after it. We were locked in.”

The Aztecs (11-2) won the game over 40 physical and at times chippy minutes despite foul trouble for Lamont Butler and off nights from fellow starters Micah Parrish and Elijah Saunders. But they really won it over the past couple weeks, which have been their best practices of the season.

They were finally healthy. They tirelessly worked through Gonzaga’s sets and added some new offensive wrinkles of their own. They traditionally each hoist a halfcourt shot at the end of the morning shootaround, and Friday they made three.

They didn’t panic when they trailed by eight late in the first half and rallied to lead by one at intermission.

They didn’t panic when a 15-point lead dwindled to two after one turnover after another against Gonzaga’s 1-2-2 press. Reese Waters drained a 3 from the right side. Sophomore Miles Byrd, playing his most significant minutes of his career in place of Parrish, drained one from the left corner. Then Jaedon LeDee beat the Zags downcourt on the break for an easy basket, something else they’ve worked on all week.

San Diego State forward Jay Pal, top, fouls Gonzaga guard Dusty Stromer.

(Young Kwak / Associated Press)

Jay Pal, another bench player who was on the floor in crunch time, provided the exclamation point with an emphatic dunk.

“They deserve a lot of credit for coming on the road, and they played great,” Gonzaga coach Mark…