SAN DIEGO – Billy White scored 19 points and Kawhi Leonard had 11 points and 10 rebounds to lead sluggish No. 7 San Diego State to a 60-53 victory over TCU on Saturday night.
Malcolm Thomas added 11 points and 14 rebounds for the Aztecs (23-1, 8-1 Mountain West), who have won three straight since their only loss, 71-58 at BYU on Jan. 26. SDSU continues to share the conference lead with No. 8 BYU, which beat UNLV 78-64.
TCU (10-14, 1-8) lost its sixth straight. Leading scorer Ronnie Moss remains on indefinite suspension. Hank Thorns led TCU with 16 points and Greg Hill had 12.
Leonard, a sophomore forward, grabbed a rebound at the final buzzer for his 16th double-double of the season and 33rd of his career.
The Aztecs looked lethargic in the first half and, after taking a 28-24 halftime lead, finally took control early in the second half.
Playing without guard Chase Tapley and forward Tim Shelton after first-half injuries, the Aztecs used a 6-0 run to take a 34-26 lead with 15:47 to play. James Rahon made a 3-pointer and two free throws, and Thomas hit one of two free throws.
Hill made a bank shot for TCU, and Leonard followed with a slam dunk to give SDSU a 36-28 lead.
The Aztecs came out flat three nights after winning by two points at Colorado State, reflected by their 12-for-29 shooting (41.4 percent) in the first half.
Tapley injured his left ankle during a nasty spill under the Aztecs' basket early in the game and didn't return. Later in the half, Shelton injured his right foot.
TCU took a 6-0 lead and, even after SDSU caught up, continued to play toe-to-toe with the Aztecs through the first half. SDSU had a chance to pull away but missed four straight shots during one stretch, while Garlon Green made a 3-pointer to give TCU a 21-19 lead.
The Aztecs finally got something going, with a dunk by Malcolm Thomas and a steal by D.J. Gay and a pass to Leonard for a layup and a 24-21 lead. Thorns made a rainbow 3-pointer to tie it before Gay hit a long jumper with 41 seconds left.
There was some confusion over possession at the end of the opening half. After the clock expired, SDSU coach Steve Fisher argued that the Aztecs should have had the ball with .4 seconds left. The refs put the time back on the clock and Leonard beat the buzzer with a quick jumper on the in-bounds pass from Gay for a 28-24 lead.
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