No. 10 SDSU rallies to beat No. 21 New Mexico 51-48, claim outright Mountain West title

New Mexico forward Cameron Bairstow scores against the defense of San Diego State forward Josh Davis during the first half of a NCAA college basketball game Saturday, March 8, 2014, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi) (The Associated Press)

San Diego State forward Josh Davis pulls away a rebound from New Mexico forward Cameron Bairstow during a battle with during the first half of a NCAA college basketball game Saturday, March 8, 2014, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi) (The Associated Press)

SAN DIEGO – Xavier Thames and Matt Shrigley each made two free throws in the final 9 seconds to complete No. 10 San Diego State's rally from a 16-point second-half deficit for a 51-48 victory over No. 21 New Mexico on Saturday night to win the outright Mountain West Conference title.

Thames finished with 23 points for SDSU (27-3, 16-2), which clinched the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament in Las Vegas. Josh Davis, SDSU's other senior, had nine rebounds.

The fans rushed the court and black and red confetti fell from the ceiling at Viejas Arena, where the Aztecs were 15-1 this season. Their only home loss was to Arizona on Nov. 14.

Cameron Bairstow scored 20 points and keyed two big runs for New Mexico (24-6, 15-3).

SDSU used a 19-1 run to take a 44-42 lead with 4:59 to go.