Walton's buzzer-beater lifts Aztecs to win, By Rob Weiler The Daily Universe
<br><br>
Provo, UT (U-WIRE) -- San Diego State forward Chris Walton has not had the type of collegiate career that his father Bill and brother Luke enjoyed during their years at UCLA and Arizona. 
<br><br>
Although Chris' individual statistics don't compare to his predecessors, Walton's impact on his team is unquestioned by his coaches and teammates-and BYU's. 
<br><br>
Coming off the bench, Walton scored 12 points and pulled down six rebounds for the Aztecs, including an offensive rebound and game-winning jumper to beat the Cougars 59-57 in the Marriott Center on Saturday. 
<br><br>
With 17.9 seconds remaining, San Diego State (7-7, 1-0) put the ball in the hands of Brandon Heath. Looking to redeem the game-winning shot he missed last year in Provo, Heath drove to the hoop and missed an open layup, but Walton found the ball put just enough touch on his shot to get the ball to sit on the rim and fall in as the horn blew. 
<br><br>
BYU (5-10, 0-1) head coach Steve Cleveland said his team did everything they needed to in the closing eight minutes of the game except to leave with a win. 
<br><br>
"What you remember from this game is the three mistakes in the last minute of the game," he said. "It put the game up for grabs." 
<br><br>
Along with allowing Walton to get the offensive rebound, Cleveland pointed to a traveling violation by Mike Hall while trying to inbound the ball and Austin Ainge's missed free throw with 25 seconds left to give the Aztecs the ball back. 
<br><br>
"Those are the plays we need to make in close games," Ainge said. "Every night it's different, but there's a key moment when you have to put them away when you have 'em, and we didn't do that." 
<br><br>
Both teams played a sloppy first half, shooting less than 30 percent, but the Cougars dominated the boards to get enough second chance points for a nine-point lead at the break. 
<br><br>
The Aztecs clawed back into the game with a 14-2 run midway through the second half, pressuring the ball the entire length of the floor defensively to pull BYU out of its offensive and take a six point lead, 46-40. 
<br><br>
BYU answered with solid defense, holding San Diego State scoreless for nearly five minutes and getting to the foul line to take a 51-48 lead. 
<br><br>
But Heath took charge the rest of the way for the Aztecs, scoring nine of his 11 points in the final three minutes and setting up the thrilling finish. 
<br><br>
"You can't lose home games in our conference," Hall said. "If we lose home games it's going to be tough." 
<br><br>
Hall led the Cougars with 16 points and six rebounds, while Jared Jensen tossed in 10 points and seven rebounds. 
<br><br>
BYU's next game will be on Tuesday at home against Montana State in its final non-conference game of the season. 
<br><br>
COUGAR TRACKS: BYU has not lost to San Diego State at home since 1996. ... The loss is only the second home loss in 32 conference games. ... Garner Meads returned after missing three games, scoring five points and hauling in six rebounds in 12 minutes. ... BYU's streak of consecutively made free throws ended at 33 in the first half. ... BYU held the Aztecs to 19 points in the first half, the first time San Diego State has not scored 20 points in a half this season. ... The Cougars had a season high 47 rebounds. ... BYU head football coach Bronco Mendenhall made an appearance at half court during a time out in the first half to encourage students and fans to be excited about the 2005 football team. 

(C) 2004 The Daily Universe via U-WIRE