Dow Puts Aztecs by Lobos

SAN DIEGO —  They were screaming in the San Diego State locker room.

They were celebrating in a way they had yet to celebrate this year. They were dripping wet; some soaked in sweat, others were toweling off from the shower. All were drenched in SDSU’s biggest victory of the season, a 52-51 heart-tugger over New Mexico in front of a crowd of 2,871 in the San Diego Sports Arena.

“Marty’s in the shower,” Joe McNaull yelled to reporters as the locker room door swung open. “God! He had a great game.”

SDSU threw Marty Dow to the the wolves, er, Lobos Thursday night, and the senior center didn’t bat an eye. He stepped onto the court against one of the best centers in the nation, Luc Longley, and played every ace he had. He shot from outside. He checked Longley so close on defense he’ll probably have friction burns this morning. He played every last second of a game that came down to the final possession.

The Aztecs led, 52-51, and were looking to close out the Lobos when guard Arthur Massey went into the air with 27 seconds left and lost the ball. Vladimir McCrary grabbed it at the top of the key, and the Lobos moved downcourt.

They had one timeout left but didn’t use it. Why call time when everyone knows you’re going to pack it in to Longley anyway? They tried to get it in to Longley, but Dow slapped it away.

The ball bounced away, and New Mexico got it again. Four seconds left. Rob Robbins tried an off-balance jumper from the left side of the key, about 15 feet out.

The shot went up, skipped off the left side of the rim, bounced off the right side, bounded into the air and into Courtie Miller’s hands. Game.

SDSU (7-8, 2-3 in the Western Athletic Conference) had stunned the preseason favorite for the league championship. New Mexico (11-6, 1-4) skidded to its fourth loss in a row.

“We’ve got some kids in there that really spilled their guts tonight,” said SDSU Coach Jim Brandenburg, standing outside the Aztec locker room and pointing inside.

None more than Dow, SDSU’s 7-foot-1 middle man. He was the only Aztec to play the entire 40 minutes, and he finished with 18 points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two steals.

He made nine of 15 field-goal attempts, and not all from inside. He has been working on his outside shot in practice for a month, and he unveiled it against New Mexico. His first five baskets came from at least 13 feet out.

“It didn’t surprise us, but it bothered us,” New Mexico Coach Dave Bliss said. “We knew he was a good shooter.”

Said Dow: “The opportunity just came tonight to where I could shoot that, and it worked out well for us tonight. They were just all open. You can’t pass up a 15-foot jump shot.

“All of the guys on the team told me, ‘Go ahead and shoot it. We have faith in you.’ ”

The turning point came when SDSU called a timeout with 4:49 remaining. The Aztecs trailed, 49-46, in a game in which neither team had led by more than four. They had been unable to capitalize on a four-minute span when Longley was on the bench with four fouls. But suddenly, things changed. After the timeout, Dow scored from inside, McKinney drove the lane and Miller got a dunk, and the Aztecs led, 52-49.

Longley cut the SDSU lead to one, 52-51, with an inside shot with 1:13 left, but the Lobos were stopped the rest of the way.

Longley finished with 18 points, five rebounds and five blocks. But the Aztecs outrebounded New Mexico, 34-21, and stopped the Lobos when they had to.

“If you play tough defense and rebound, you have a chance to stay in the game and win the game,” Brandenburg said.

“We beat a damn good basketball team tonight. However, I’m only half proud. We’ve got another game Saturday against Texas El Paso. . . . I’ll be completely proud if we can finish off this home stand.”

Aztec Notes

Jerry West, general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers, was at Thursday’s game primarily to scout New Mexico center Luc Longley. Most NBA people figure Longley will be a first-round draft choice. Then, there is SDSU center Marty Dow. Does he have a chance to play in the NBA? “He’s really improved,” West said at halftime. “He’s worked hard. He looks like one of those players who is a late developer. I really think how he plays the rest of the year, how he plays in all-star games, could put him in position to be drafted. Who knows what might happen?” One of the notes West scratched on his scouting report on Dow was, “Amazing how much he’s improved.” . . . Tony Clark, who is transferring to SDSU after spending the first semester at the University of Arizona, attended his first Aztec game. Clark said he will start practicing with SDSU once his admissions transcripts are transferred. “Once all of the paperwork is done,” Clark said. He was hampered with back spasms at Arizona and said he is still a little sore, but better.