This is the 8th article in a series previewing each team and position rankings in the Mountain West leading up to the 2024-2025 basketball season
MW Rankings:
4. San Diego State
5. New Mexico (Link): Mountain West Basketball Countdown – #5 New Mexico | Big Blue USU Aggie News
6. UNLV (Link): Mountain West Basketball Countdown – #6 UNLV | Big Blue USU Aggie News
7. Colorado State (Link): Mountain West Basketball Countdown – #7 Colorado State | Big Blue USU Aggie News
8. San Jose State (Link): Mountain West Basketball Countdown – #8 San Jose State | Big Blue USU Aggie News
9. Wyoming (Link): Mountain West Basketball Countdown – #9 Wyoming | Big Blue USU Aggie News
10. Air Force (Link): Mountain West Basketball Countdown – #10 Air Force | Big Blue USU Aggie News
11. Fresno State (Link): Mountain West Basketball Countdown – #11 Fresno State | Big Blue USU Aggie News
Prior Season Results and Predictions:
- Record: 26-11 overall, 11-7 conference
- My Prediction: Top 3 in the MW
- Summary: SDSU finished 5th (below it’s normal spot close to the top of the league) in league standings and lost in the championship game of the conference tournament. However, they still were able to grab a 5 seed in the NCAA tournament and beat UAB/Yale to advance to the sweet 16 where they lost to UCONN
- All Conference Players/Other Awards: Lamont Butler (Honorable Mention All-Conference/All-Defense), Jaedon Ledee (1st Team All-Conference)
Metrics for the last 5 Seasons:
- Conference Regular Season Winning %: 79.5% (ranked 1st in conference)
- Conference Regular Season Champion: 2 (Tied for 1st in the conference)
- Conference Tournament Champion: 2 (Tied for 1st in the conference)
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 4 (Ranked 1st in the conference)
- NCAA Tournament Wins: 7 (Ranked 1st in the conference)
2024-2025 Season Review:
Conference Prediction: #4 in the Mountain West
Overview: SDSU was impacted by graduation and the transfer portal going into the 2024-2025 season. They do have a potential all conference wing in Reese Waters (Injured for the first 6-8 weeks of the season) and some young guys that should step up this year such as Myles Byrd and Miles Heide. A name to watch is Magoon Gwath. Redshirted last year but reports are that he will start and has NBA length and athleticism.
SDSU also did a nice job in grabbing guys from the transfer portal/recruiting class that should solidify their starting line-up and provide depth. This isn’t as experienced of a squad as recent years but should still win plenty of games.
Production Returning: Scoring 21% (returning), Rebounding 26%, Assists 17%, Blocks 35%, Minutes 26%
Key losses: Jaedon Ledee (Graduation), Jay Pal (Graduation), Lamont Butler (transfer to Kentucky), Micah Parrish (transfer to Ohio State), Darrion Trammell (Graduation), Elijah Saunders (transfer to Virginia)
Key Returners: Reese Waters (starting wing, former 6th man of the year in the PAC 12), Miles Byrd (young wing who provided a spark off the bench last year), Miles Heide (young big guy who also provided spark off the bench), BJ Davis (former top 125 recruit, point guard was the star of the scrimmage with UCLA), Magoon Gwath (redshirt last year, but lots of upside)
Newcomers:
- Nick Boyd: Combo guard transfer from FAU where he was a part time starter and averaged 9 ppg
- Wayne McKinney: Point guard transfer from San Diego where he averaged 13 ppg
- Pharoah Compton: Top 100 freshman recruit, 6’8″ big man
- Kimo Ferrari: 3-point specialist, transfer from Brown. Averaged 7 ppg
- Taj Degourville: Freshman wing, high 3-star recruit. Played final year at Wasatch Academy
- Jared Coleman Jones: Big man transfer from Western Kentucky where he averaged 11 ppg and 8 rebounds
- Thokbar Majak: Raw 7’0″ freshman from Sudan
Strongest Position: Guard/Wing: Waters, Boyd and Byrd will bring talent and stability at these positions. SDSU needs Degourville to come in and play at a high level to help provide depth.
Biggest Question Mark(s): They have minimal experience at the big man positions. Where they may have 3 of the 4 in the depth chart as either a freshman or sophomore. Jared Coleman Jones should help the position but key to the team competing at the top of the conference will be if Heide, Gwath or Compton can step up. Lots of hype in the program around Gwath.
Projected Starters: Nick Boyd (Guard), Reese Waters (Guard), Miles Byrd (Wing), Jared Coleman Jones (Forward), Magoon Gwath (Forward)
Bench: BJ Davis (Guard), Wayne McKinney (Guard), Taj Degourville (Wing), Pharoah Compton (Forward), Miles Heide (Center)
Potential All Conference Guys: Reese Waters, Magoon Gwath (Freshman of the Year), Pharoah Compton (Freshman of the Year), Nick Boyd
Key Non-Conference Games: Gonzaga (home), Creighton (Neutral), Oregon (Neutral), Texas A&M (Neutral), Cal (Neutral)
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