The San Diego State men's basketball team's non-conference schedule had the Aztecs squaring off against quality teams such as Baylor, UC-Berkeley, Long Beach State and Creighton.

But the docket was also dotted with a parade of cream puffs, as SDSU has faced UC-Riverside, Elon, Redlands, San Diego Christian (really) and Chicago State (which had an 0-15 record) in its last four games.

Mountain West action is staring San Diego State in the face, and things will get a lot more challenging and interesting for coach Steve Fisher's charges. Twenty-second ranked San Diego State (14-2) meets No. 12 Nevada-Las Vegas at Viejas Arena on January 14 at 1 p.m., a meeting between two clubs with seven-game winning streaks.

SDSU and UNLV have combined to win five of the last six Mountain West Tournament championships, and the Runnin' Rebels have their sights on big plans this season. They are considered the favorite to win the Mountain West and just might go deep into the NCAA Tournament.

The two-time defending Mountain West champ Aztecs are coming off a surprisingly difficult 73-65 win over Chicago State, a contest that was looked at as a "gimme" but didn't turn out that way. "We allowed Chicago State to believe that they were going to win the game,'' Fisher said. "They played well ... we didn't react the right way.''

If the Aztecs pull that against a talented side such as UNLV, they will leave Viejas with their feelings severely hurt, not to mention a loss.

"I think it's going to be a good starter for us,'' said Aztec forward Tim Shelton, who has played in 13 of 16 games despite chronically-gimpy knees. "Obviously, a lot of people say we just got through the easiest part of our season.''

And those observers would be right. If the Aztecs could have been assured of their current standing at the start of the season, they would have taken it in a second. Gone from last year's 34-3 Sweet 16 team are stalwarts D.J. Gay, Kawhi Leonard and Malcolm Thomas.

Leonard was a first-round pick of the San Antonio Spurs, while the Spurs signed Thomas the other day, reuniting him with Leonard. With those guys gone, guard Chase Tapley is the man. He has responded with a team-leading 17.3 points a game, while shooting 52.6 percent from the field. Tapley has also chopped in 4.2 rebounds and 2.4 assists per outing.

"Chase is a guy that's got some added responsibility (this season),'' Fisher said. "He's got to score for us, he's also got to guard. Chase can score the ball; he always has and always will. "He takes shots and knows that they're going in. You love that kind of attitude. We've got to have Chase playing and playing well.''

Also playing well is guard Jamaal Franklin, second on the squad in scoring at 15.1 per game and fellow guard Xavier Thames (11.4). Next in line is another guard, Torrey Pines High product James Rahon. Despite being plagued by a sore foot virtually all season, Rahon is averaging 10.1 points a game, though he needs to improve on his 41.2 field-goal percentage.

UNLV, which knocked off then-No.1 North Carolina, 90-80, on November 26, is led by swingman Chase Stanback, averaging 14.8 a game. The Rebels also defeated then 19th-ranked Illinois on the road in December, and have also beaten Cal and UC-Santa Barbara, as have the Aztecs. Their only losses were to Wisconsin and Wichita State.

With contests at New Mexico, Wyoming and Colorado State this month, the early MW slate does the Aztecs no favors. For now, facing UNLV gives them enough to worry about.

"It's going to be about intensity and it's going to be nice to be playing at home,'' Shelton said. "They are a good team, they are ranked for a reason. They have beaten some tough opponents and they are experienced. It's going to be a good game.''