SAN DIEGO -- Nevadas Deonte Burton didnt stand much of a chance against San Diego State. Oakland Athletics Store . The No. 5 Aztecs held Burton, the Mountain Wests leading scorer, to 11 points, 10 below his average, in beating the Wolf Pack 73-58 on Saturday night. "When you are playing half court and they are doing their pressing, run and jump defence, they really did a good job of helping on him," Nevada coach David Carter said. "Youve got to give them credit, too. He was looking for it but they played good defence and really got us out of rhythm." Xavier Thames scored 17 points, Winston Shepard had 16 and SDSU tied the school record with its 20th straight win. The Aztecs (21-1, 10-0 Mountain West) matched the 20-game win streak by the 2010-11 team, which won its first 20 games before losing at BYU. That team was the first in school history to reach the NCAA round of 16 after getting the programs first victories in the NCAA tournament. It finished 34-3, best in team history. The current Aztecs are the first to open league play 10-0. SDSU was coming off a 67-65 win at Boise State in which it erased a 14-point deficit before winning on a 3-point shot by Dwayne Polee II with four seconds left. The Aztecs only loss was a 69-60 home defeat to then-No. 6 Arizona on Nov. 14. Jerry Evans Jr. scored 17 points for Nevada (12-12, 7-4). After taking control late in the first half, San Diego State pulled away in the second half. The Aztecs went on a 7-0 run to go up 55-41 with 10:57 left. Aqeel Quinn hit a 3-pointer, JJ OBrien made two free throws after he was fouled hard by Burton and Dwayne Polee had a steal and a layup. After Nevadas Michael Perez made a 3-pointer, Winston Shepard took a pass from Matt Shrigley for a baseline dunk and then made a layup for a 59-44 lead. The Wolf Pack closed to 61-52 on a layup and 3-pointer by Evans before the Aztecs quickly pushed the lead back to 15. Josh Davis had a layup, Shepard a bank shot and Davis a steal and a slam dunk. "They played good pressure defence the whole game," Evans said. "That is a great group and everyone that played contributed. They were too much to overcome tonight. You spend a lot of energy getting the ball past half court. For 40 minutes it is tough to even run a play. "We just gave up baskets at the wrong time and they were getting to the free throw line." The Aztecs closed the first half on a 7-0 run -- including two free throws and a layup by Josh Davis -- for a 37-31 lead. It would have been a 9-0 run by Dwayne Polee missed an easy layup with three seconds left. Shepard made two straight shots for a 30-26 lead before the Wolf Pack went up 31-30 on Ronnie Stevens shot off a rebound and AJ Wests three-point play. 01:26ET 09-02-14 Oakland Athletics Gear . Peter Dawson took his long before he started the job. "I was playing an American one year at Oxford Golf Club, and he introduced me to this travelling mulligan," Dawson said. Chris Bassitt Jersey .J. -- Having Ondrej Pavelec earn his 100th NHL win and seeing Mark Scheifele and Evander Kane break goal droughts were nice highlights for the Winnipeg Jets. https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/ . Maria Silvia Bastos Marques, president of the EOM (Municipal Olympic Company), will be leaving her post but will remain as an advisor, a city hall statement said Tuesday.NEW YORK - Sometimes a little bit of confidence goes a long way. Looking at the standings - where the Raptors sit atop the woeful Atlantic Division - wins in Dallas and Oklahoma City count just the same as less impressive victories over the 76ers and Jazz. Internally, those triumphs have meant everything to this young, impressionable Raptors team. Whether theyre facing a late-game deficit, protecting a lead, or staring down one of the leagues elite teams, the Raptors believe they can win. "It does give you confidence to know you went out and beat [some] of the best teams in the league on their home floor," Dwane Casey said before his team rallied back to defeat the division-rival Knicks, 95-83 at Madison Square Garden on Friday. "That should help us know that hey, you can do it." Having played 36 minutes of lackluster, uninspired basketball against an undermanned club that was nearly as lethargic, the Raptors looked like a team that believed, that knew they could flip on the switch when it mattered most. Trailing by as many as 12 points in the third quarter, Toronto held the Knicks to 5-of-19 shooting in the fourth, outscoring the home team 29-12 in the final frame. Once again, the Raptors showed supreme confidence in the face of adversity on the road. They found a way to win, a notable step for a franchise that has historically found creative ways to lose. "You definitely feel good once youre winning games," said DeMar DeRozan, who led the Raptors with 25 points, including eight in the pivotal fourth quarter. "You gain all the confidence game-in and game-out, especially playing all these teams, knowing we could beat them." "We understand were never out of the game until that last second runs out of the clock. It definitely helps, because last year we were in a ton of late-game situations we couldnt pull out. Wed kind of fold, get frustrated, let a big shot frustrate us. Now we dont let any of that frustrate us." The difference is noticeable. A year ago, the Raptors were 3-36 when trailing after three quarters. Two months into the season, they already have four comeback victories. Most impressively, Toronto is the NBAs third-best fourth-quarter team in terms of point differential. Outscoring opponents by 59 points in the final period, the Raptors rank behind Indiana and Miami, the cream of the crop in the Eastern Conference. “I think weve got some good closers," Kyle Lowry said after a 15-point, 11-assist performance, his 19th straight game with six or more dimes. "I think weve got guys who dont care about the moment, they just want to win games." Confidence has been the most crucial factor in the continued development of franchise centrepiece Jonas Valanciunas, who had a coming out party on the NBAs biggest stage Friday. Facing Tyson Chandler, one of the leagues toughest match-ups at his position, the Raptors sophomore registered a career-high 18 boards too go along with 16 points. Chris Bassitt Athletics Jersey. Valanciunas was not fazed by the moment or his competition, he held his ground and played up to it as much or more than he has before. "JV just be all over the place," DeRozan said with a chuckle. "Sometimes weve just got to tell him to calm down. He just wants it that bad. Youve got to love having a guy like that on your team." Lowry has been as tough on the 21-year-old as anyone in the organization. Routinely reprimanding him after missed assignments or botched pick-and-rolls, even Lowry sees and applauds the growth of the Raptors prized second-year centre. "It just makes me proud because Im on him more than everybody but when he does well I congratulate him and I appreciate what he does," Lowry said of Valanciunas. "I just want to see him be the best player he can be." "Ill buy him dinner one day," the veteran point guard joked. For Valanciunas, it was a big night, whether he cares to admit it or not. The witty, albeit soft-spoken, seven footer refused to bite on questions regarding his individual performance after the game. "I was just playing my game, Im trying to help the team," he maintained. "Thats all I do every game." "Im not trying to show swagger or something. Im a simple guy and Im just trying to play hard." Like the sinking Atlantic Division itself, one of these teams was going to win this game and through three quarters, that seemed like a maddening thought. Both teams got off to a sluggish start, especially the Raptors, coming off a brief Christmas break earlier this week. Toronto shot 38 per cent from the field and committed 10 turnovers in the first half before tightening the screws in the third quarter and running away with the game in the fourth. "We were playing in mud in the first half," Casey said. "Our effort was there it was just one of those games where we couldnt get going and I think it was a little bit because of the break, coming back, trying to get things going. We turned it on in the second half and its good to be able to not play your best game and still come out with the win against a very powerful offensive team in New York." The Knicks are a sinking ship, desperately trying to stay afloat in the division for as long as injuries remain a viable excuse for their failures. Carmelo Anthony, the NBAs second-leading scorer, missed Fridays game with an ankle injury and will not travel to Toronto for the back end of a home-and-home set with the Raptors Saturday. In many ways, Fridays game was the epitome of what has become the leagues most ridiculed division. More often than not it was painful to watch. As the Knicks, last seasons division champions, were booed off their home court it became clear; these are two teams headed in opposite directions. One with more confidence than theyve had in some time, the other losing hope with each passing day. ' ' '