In an all San Diego showdown, University of San Diego beat San Diego State 76-61 Wednesday night at Viejas Arena.
It was the Torero's first win at San Diego State since 200.
Isaiah Pineiro led USD with 21 points and Isaiah Wright had five of his 18 points in a key stretch in the second half.
If local basketball fans didn't know just how good this USD team is, they know now.
"We knew going into this game they're a really good team, but we're a really good team also and if we play the way we do we can beat anyone. We get a little disrespected sometimes, so it was a good win," said Pineiro.
Coach Sam Scholl added, "certainly when you beat a really good team and program, certainly you're going to feel good about it and you feel like your team has a taken a step forward."
Scholl said his favorite moment was how the Toreros handled the win.
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"We didn't go run and storm the floor, because these are the kind of wins that our program is supposed to get, supposed to aspire to," he said. "We didn't act like we won a national championship. It's good win against a really, really good program. It's a great step forward for us but we have a lot to learn and we have another game coming up."
With the win, USD improved to 7-2, while SDSU dropped to 5-3.
After leading 33-26 at halftime, the Aztecs were outscored by 19 points (47-28) in the second half.
SDSU coach Brian Dutcher gave credit to their crosstown rival, "They looked like they didn't panic. They played their system, they played their game, and they played very well.
"I think the guys got frustrated the second half," Dutcher said about the Aztecs. "And that's the way basketball works. When the ball doesn't go in and you're not shooting very well, you get frustrated at the defensive end. We just didn't score enough."
Next up for USD is a home game Sunday against Cal State Northridge.
San Diego State hits the road for a Saturday game at Cal.
