Wild, wild Mountain West

By Michael Melissa Sports Central Columnist

There may not be a Duke or Arizona in the bunch.

They may not put points on the board like Kansas or have one top 25 team unlike the Pac-10, who has five according to the latest USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll (Oregon, No. 9; Arizona, No. 14; Stanford, No. 18; USC, No. 20; California, No. 25), or even have more than two teams in the RPI's top 50.

But who needs that kind of conference confidence when what you have in the Mountain West is a brand of basketball similar to the wild west. From gunslingers to gamblers, the MWC has been the best place to see exciting conference basketball this season.

Need an example?

Down 82-77 with 15 seconds remaining, UNLV needed a miracle against Colorado State in Fort Collins, Colorado. The Rebels worked the ball around to Dalron Johnson who hit a three-pointer with 4.8 seconds, 82-80. A quick foul and a made free throw by the Rams pushed the lead to three with less than four seconds remaining. The inbound pass went to the Rebels Lou Kelly, whose desperation three-pointer at the buzzer missed. However, Kelly was fouled on the attempt and with the game on the line hit all three freebies to force overtime.

The Rebels went on to win the game, 96-91.

Need more? How about four overtimes in a Wyoming vs. Air Force game? San Diego State jumps out to a 11-1 lead on UNLV and loses in the final seconds. It really is the wild west of basketball where the favorites don't always win and there always someone around ready to knock another down a notch.

Sure, it's not Duke vs. Maryland or Kentucky vs. Florida, but it's exciting basketball all the same and virtually every game night. The MWC has recorded a record seven overtime contests this season and the average margin of victory per game is an NCAA-leading 8.9. Only the Big East is within a point of that at 9.6.

So you can see why I'm giddy with anticipation.

Each game offers a legitimate upset. Wyoming, the No. 1 seed in the MWC tourney, needed four overtime periods to put away Air Force, the No. 8 seed. When they squared off in Colorado, the first place Cowboys escaped with a 51-48 win.

If that doesn't say how competitive this conference has been this season, then we're speaking different languages.

Utah, usually considered the class of the conference, has been a perennial NCAA Tournament team. As the No. 2 seed, they'll face No. 7 Colorado State who lost by five points to Utah in Salt Lake and gave No. 3 UNLV fits this season.

And speaking of UNLV, if Utah is the class of the conference, then UNLV is the black sheep of the bunch. After getting the hammer brought down on them last season by the NCAA and some growing pains early this year, first-year coach Charlie Spoonhour has taken this team to see the wizard and got them all a heart. That heart will be tested on Thursday as they close the first round with No. 6 New Mexico. The Lobos beat the Rebels at the Pyramid, but needed overtime to do it then fell in the season finale Saturday in what probably was UNLV's best effort of the year.

Maybe one of the more intriguing matchups in the tourney is No. 4 BYU, last year's MWC champ, and No. 5 San Diego State. The Cougars drilled SDSU in Provo to open conference play this season, then came down to San Diego and left with a 68-64 win. However, the Aztecs have shown their ability with impressive wins over Wyoming and New Mexico, both road wins. SDSU has become the team no one wants to play in the tourney.

To the casual observer, aside from maybe UNLV vs. New Mexico, there really isn't much to watch here. However, the MWC isn't about glamour. There is no glitz. Heck, sometimes there's very little basketball. Either way, expect upsets at every level.

The top half of the bracket doesn't hold much interest. If Wyoming gets through Air Force, they should be able to beat either BYU or the Aztecs.

It's the bottom half that holds all the mystery.

In the wings is a UNLV vs. Utah battle in semifinals. Utah racked up a school record 17 three-pointers in their first meeting, then proceeded to jump ahead 11-0 in their second matchup only to lose 72-64 on Big Monday.

If there is one team that has a distinct advantage, it's UNLV. The tourney is played on its home court. The Rebels have won two of the last three conference tournaments they've played in at the Thomas & Mack, skipping last season as per NCAA restrictions. With that in mind, also consider that UNLV is the hottest team in the MWC right now, winning eight of their last 10. The Rebels two losses in that stretch, at Wyoming and New Mexico, were by a combined seven points.

I could have went and predicted the winner for you, but then none of you would watch the wildest tourney this side of the Mississippi. Suffice it to say, it's any team's championship to win.

So buckle in and prepare for one of the wildest tourney's this side of the Mississippi.

Article courtesy of Sports Central.