National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
San Diego St. 65, McNeese St. 36
When: 10:00 PM ET, Saturday, December 21, 2013
Where: Viejas Arena at Aztec Bowl, San Diego, California
Officials: # David Hall, # Gregory Nixon, # Mike Scyphers
Attendance: 12414

No. 23 San Diego State 65, McNeese State 36: Josh Davis scored a dozen points and grabbed a season-high 17 rebounds as the Aztecs shook off a dreadful start and defeated the visiting Cowboys for their eighth straight win.

Sophomore Winston Shepard, who sat out the Aztecs' last game after violating team conduct rules, didn't start but came off the bench to lead San Diego State (9-1) with 14 points. Matt Shrigley added 11 points but Aztecs' leading scorer Xavier Thames was held to five points on 1-of-13 shooting.

Ledrick Eackles paced McNeese State (2-9) with 13 points but the Cowboys shot just 23.1 percent from the field and fell to 0-7 on the road. Adrian Fields added seven points for McNeese State, which is in the midst of an eight-game road swing.

Both teams shot miserably in the first half and the Aztecs took a tenuous 21-18 lead in the break. Eackles had 11 points for the Cowboys before intermission but the rest of McNeese State was just 3-for-19 from the floor.

McNeese State led 25-23 early in the second half before Aqeel Quinn (12 points) knocked down a 3-pointer for the Aztecs with 15:02 to play and they never trailed again. Thames, who missed his first 10 shots from the field, buried a 3-pointer to give San Diego State a 36-25 lead and they pulled away.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Dwayne Polee missed his second straight game due to an illness and JJ O'Brien didn't play with a hand injury for San Diego State. ...San Diego State coach Steve Fisher has 474 career wins. ...The Aztecs didn't make a 3-pointer in the first half but finished 7-for-27 from 3-point range.
Top Game Performances
 
McNeese St.   San Diego St.
Ledrick Eackles 13 Scoring Winston Shepard 14
Ledrick Eackles 5 Assists Xavier Thames 3
Craig McFerrin 12 Rebounds Josh Davis 17
Ledrick Eackles 2 Free Throws Made Winston Shepard 6
Desharick Guidry 2 Steals Aqeel Quinn 5
Kevin Hardy 2 Blocks Skylar Spencer 4
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
McNeese St. 36 23.1 2-18 4-5 7 39 5 4 15
San Diego St. 65 37.3 7-27 14-20 9 47 9 12 10