SAN DIEGO (Daily Aztec) - San Diego State men’s basketball travels to Hawaii on Monday to face No. 1 Duke University in the Maui Invitational.
The invitational is a three-day, eight-team tournament from Nov. 19-21 that will feature six other programs: Arizona, Gonzaga, Xavier, Auburn, Illinois and Iowa State.
Aztecs head coach Brian Dutcher said matchups against a storied program like Duke are why players choose to go to SDSU.
“That’s why these kids come to San Diego State; we promise them we’re going to play marquee games and give them the opportunity to play on the biggest stage,” he said. “We’ll be on the biggest stage that day, so we’re excited for our opportunity to head to Maui and play Duke on Monday.”
Freshman forward Zion Williamson has quickly become a household name in his first three college games for the Blue Devils, dominating with high-flying dunks and easy baskets while averaging a team-leading 10 rebounds and 25 points per game on 82 percent shooting.
Dutcher said he already has planned who will be guarding the 6-foot-7, 285-pound freshman phenom.
“I have (sophomore forward) Matt Mitchell at about 230/245, we’ll be giving up some weight, but we’ll be close,” Dutcher said.
Duke (3-0) has won its first three games by an average of 31 points, notably defeating then-No. 2 Kentucky by 34 points to begin the season.
