SDSU vs. Colorado State

When: 8 p.m. Tuesday

Where: Viejas Arena

On the air: CBSSN; 760-AM

Records: SDSU is 10-4 (3-2), CSU is 10-6 (4-1)

Series history: SDSU leads 52-44 and has won 12 of the last 15. The teams split the series last year – a 71-55 Aztecs win at Viejas Arena and a 79-71 Rams win at Moby Arena.

Aztecs update: The third game in seven days, following a 67-38 home win against Air Force last Wednesday and a 62-48 loss at New Mexico on Saturday. The loss dropped them further in Associated Press poll balloting. Three weeks after being No. 20 (and as high as No. 13 on some ballots), only one of 62 voters ranked them. That puts them 10th among others receiving votes, or 35th overall. That’s in line with the major metrics, where the Aztecs are 36th in Kenpom and 40th in the NET. Their strength of schedule ranks 16th in one metric and 18th in another. As much as the offense has struggled recently, the defense has excelled. It now ranks fifth among 364 Division I programs in Kenpom defensive efficiency and second nationally in defensive field-goal percentage at 35.5%. Houston is first at 34.7%. Eight SDSU opponents have had their worst shooting performances of the season, and three others their second worst. The game matches the top two defenses in conference games, with SDSU first and Colorado State second (and 50th nationally). Miles Byrd (13.4 points) has passed Nick Boyd (12.7) as the team’s leading scorer. No one else is in double figures. The Kenpom metric projects a 69-60 Aztecs win.

Rams update: They opened at 207 in the NET in early December and have since climbed to 84. They’re 4-1 in the Mountain West after winning the last three by 22, 27 and 22 points, although against the bottom half of the conference (San Jose State, Fresno State and UNLV). They also have a win at Nevada and a home loss against New Mexico. Point guard Isaiah Stevens is gone, now on a two-way contract with the NBA’s Miami Heat. Colorado transfer Nique Clifford (16.9 points, 9.9 rebounds), however, opted to return and is the Mountain West’s top pro prospect in the eyes of many scouts. His 8.6 defensive rebounds per game rank third nationally. Senior Jalen Lake (12.8) is the only other player averaging double figures for the season, although sophomore Kyan Evans is at 11.2 points and shooting 53.8% on 3s over the last six games. Austrian forward Rashaan Mbemba had a career-high 22 points on 8 of 9 shooting in Saturday’s 84-62 win against UNLV. The Rams are shooting 78.1% at the line, which ranks 20th in Division I. One favorable stat for SDSU is CSU’s problems of the offensive glass, where they rank 319th nationally in retrieving their own missed shots. It is not a very big team, starting 6-2, 6-4, 6-6, 6-7 and 6-8.

Next up: Saturday vs. UNLV (5 p.m., CBSSN)

— MARK ZEIGLER