SAN DIEGO – The Aztecs (8-2) host crosstown foe San Diego (6-4) Saturday at 1 p.m. inside Viejas Arena.
Aztec Tidbits
• SDSU's 8-2 start is the Aztecs' best since the 2007-08 season. With a win Saturday, SDSU will be 9-2 for the first time in 27 years (1995-96).
• The Aztecs are 7-0 at home this season, their best home start since 2012-13. If SDSU wins Saturday, it will be the first time they've started their home schedule 8-0 since the 2008-09 team which was a perfect 15-0 inside Viejas Arena.
• SDSU is one of just four teams in the nation to be 7-0 or better at home (UNLV, USC & Virginia).
• Since the beginning of last year SDSU is 17-5 inside Viejas Arena.
• The Aztecs' eight non-conference wins are their most since the 2012-13 season.
• SDSU is coming off a 70-59 win over Sacramento State, which snapped the Hornets' six-game winning streak.
• The Aztecs never trailed and were 8-for-13 (62%) from three, a season-high.
• Mercedes Staples led SDSU with 20 points and Alex Crain, who was playing in her 100th career game, scored a career-high 13 points and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field.
• The Aztecs are top 25 in the nation in points allowed (16th, 51.4), three-point field goal percentage defense (21st, .239) and FG% defense (21st, 34.2%).
• SDSU has had more steals than their opponent in all but one game. Their 11.7 steals per game ranks 28th in the country.
• The Aztecs have held the opposition under 40 percent shooting in eight of their 10 games.
• SDSU trails only UNLV (8-1), last year's regular season and tournament champions, in the Mountain West standings.
• Sophia Ramos (San Antonio, Texas) is one of three players in the nation with at least 1,600 points, 550 rebounds and 400 assists in her career.
• Ramos is in the top five in program history in seven statistical categories including assists (3rd), points (4th), threes (4th), and made free throws (4th).
• Ramos needs five assists to move into second place all-time and two rebounds to reach 600 for her career.
• Mercedes Staples (Centerville, Utah) is shooting 45.8 percent from three on the year and 39.4 percent in her SDSU career, good for second in program history. She is second in Mountain West in three-point percentage (.458) and third in made threes (22).
• Abby Prohaska (Liberty Township, Ohio) is one of five players in the nation shooting 100 percent (25-25) from the free throw line (minimum 2.5 made per game).
• SDSU had a seven-game win streak snapped on Sunday when they fell 65-56 to San Francisco at the Chase Center. That win streak was their longest since the 2012-13 team won 17 in a row.
So Much Depth
• SDSU has six players in their fifth year of college.
• The Aztecs have 10 players averaging 14 or more minutes per game and only one (Mercedes Staples) playing more than 30 per game.
• SDSU has six players averaging between 7.7 and 12.1 points per game.
• The Aztecs only have one player averaging more than 5.0 rebounds (Villalobos), but have five players averaging between 3.5 and 5.0, helping them to a +3 rebounding margin.
• The Aztecs have already had nine different players score in double-digits.
• Six different players have led the team in scoring in a game (including ties).
• Seven different Aztecs are averaging at least one steal per game.
• SDSU has used four different starting lineup combinations and eight different players have started.
• Three different players have had a double-double (Khylee Pepe, Abby Prohaska and Kim Villalobos).
Season Accomplishments
• SDSU's 8-2 start is their best since the 2007-08 season.
• The Aztecs are 7-0 at home for the first time since 2008-09.
• The Aztecs had back-to-back 50+ point wins (San Diego Christian and Antelope Valley) for the first time since 1984.
• SDSU had 27 steals against San Diego Christian, their most in a game in the Mountain West era (2000-present).
• SDSU held San Diego Christian to 30 points, the lowest point total they've held an opponent to since 2015, also against San Diego Christian (60-25).
• The Aztecs' two 50+ point victories were their largest margin of victory since Dec. 18, 2007, a 91-33 win over Navy.
• Against Seattle, Kim Villalobos became the first Aztec in five years (and just the sixth in the Mountain West era) to have at least seven made field goals, seven assists and three steals in a game.
• Yummy Morris (North Little Rock, Arkansas) won the Mountain West Player of the Week award on Nov. 28. She had a season-high 19 points against Seattle (Nov. 25) and averaged 15.5 points, 4.0 rebounds & 3.0 steals per game that week while shooting 65 percent from the floor.
• Mercedes Staples was a perfect 6-for-6 from three against Southeastern Louisiana (Nov. 15). to become the first Aztec in the Mountain West era to make six or more three-pointers without a miss.
• Abby Prohaska was 12-for-12 from the free throw line vs. Antelope Valley (Nov. 12), making her just the second Aztec in the Mountain West era to make at least 12 free throws without a miss (Sophia Ramos, 16-16 vs. New Mexico 1-29-20).
• Three different Aztecs have had double-doubles this year, Khylee Pepe, Abby Prohaska and Kim Villalobos. It was the first career double-double for Pepe and Prohaska.
• Alex Crain had seven steals against San Diego Christian, the most by an Aztec in a game since Dec. 19, 2013 (Ahjalee Harvey vs. Miami Ohio).
• The Aztecs received votes in the preseason USA Today Coaches poll.
Opponent Notebook (San Diego)
• USD is 6-4 on the year.
• The Toreros went 17-15 last year and 8-9 in the WCC.
• They have played just one true road game on the year.
• They lead the WCC in points allowed per game (58.4).
• They are second in the WCC in turnovers forced per game (17.5) and rebound margin (+7.1).
• Kiera Oakley (10.2 pgg) and Myah Pace (10.0 ppg) are their leading scorers. Pace averages a team-high 3.0 assists per game.
• Kasey Neubery leads the team with 6.7 rebounds per game.
• Head coach Cindy Fisher is in her 17th year at USD. She has led the Toreros to six 20-win seasons in the past 10 years.
All-time Series (San Diego)
• The Aztecs are 30-15 all-time against USD.
• SDSU is 20-8 all-time vs. USD at home.
• The Toreros have won seven of the last nine meetings.
• The Aztecs won the first 17 meetings and 24 of the first 25.
• The two schools have played against each other in each of the last 20 seasons.
• SDSU is 78-73 against teams currently in the WCC. They are 64-43 if you remove BYU who is leaving for the Big 12 next year.