Our take on the upcoming ALL-WAC teams

The 2007-2008 All-WAC teams are apparently to be announced on Sunday so we wanted to beat the voters who count to it with our own offerings.

As a reminder, here are the pre-season selections by the WAC coaches. Surprisingly, there were a few clunkers, especially on the second team.

Preseason Coaches All – WAC Team
First –Team

Jaycee Carroll Utah State (Preseason Player of the Year)
Reggie Larry Boise State
Justin Hawkins New Mexico State
Marcelus Kemp Nevada
Fred Peete New Mexico State

Second-Team

Matt Nelson Boise State
Kevin Bell Fresno State
Hector Hernandez Fresno State
Demarshay Johnson Nevada
Bobby Nash Hawaii

Fred Peete just never put it together this season and we'll be very surprised if he even makes the second-team this season. He's certainly been helpful to NMSU -- no doubt -- but not having a mainstay season.

Hector Hernandez was among the most disappointing as he seemed to really miss playing alongside Dominic McGuire and Quinton Hosley. His numbers, 9.5 ppg on a shooting percentage of .388 -- this for a 6-9 senior -- were unremarkable. Hernandez scored 11.2 ppg. and shot .453% as a junior. To his credit, he did grab 7.3 rpg. this season.

Demarshay Johnson had moments this season but nothing equating to any ALL-WAC status. The same with Bobby Nash.

There are a number of newcomers we talk about later in this piece who deserve a position on the ALL-WAC second team.


Very interestingly, the pixel-stained wretches -- other wise known collectively as the WAC newspaper beat reporters -- somehow had the foresight to include Kevin Bell of Fresno State on their first team choices -- they didn't pick a second five.

Preseason Media All-WAC Team
First-Team

Jaycee Carroll Utah State (Preseason Player of the Year)
Reggie Larry Boise State
Kevin Bell Fresno State
Justin Hawkins New Mexico State
Marcelus Kemp Nevada

Surprisingly, Nevada's JaVale McGee is nowhere to be seen. His numbers were small last year but it was obvious that he would be the starting center for the Wolf Pack this season and be playing major minutes.

Headlining the For-What-It's-Worth Department, here are our 2007-2008 ALL-WAC selections as selected today:

Jaycee Carroll - nobody could stop him, period and this is a 6-2 guard not necessarily graced with the ultimate athletic prowess.
Kevin Bell - seriously, the Bulldogs might have won one, maybe two conference games this season without Bell.
Marcelus Kemp - Without his scoring and ability to draw the focus of a team's defense, everyone else on the Wolf Pack would have been less effective.
Justin Hawkins - He was so often the glue that kept the Aggies rolling despite the absences of various players.
Reggie Larry - He led his team in minutes played, scoring, rebounding, offenive rebounding, blocked shots and was a close second in steals.

For self-disclosure sake, we didn't forsee Kevin Bell's shooting improvement nor the overall effectiveness of Reggie Larry. If it was the pre-season, our top five would probably have included Boise State's Matt Nelson in place of his teammate. Nelson had a fine season but it's just that Larry enjoyed an even better one.


Now Kevin Bell could certainly qualify as Most Improved Player (MIP) but we're actually going with Boise State's Tyler Tiedeman whose scoring average went from 4.4 ppg. as a junior to 14.0 ppg. this season. His shooting was 540% overall and an amazing .503% on a team-leading 145 three-point attempts. Tiedeman shot .472% overall last season and .397% from long range on 57 three-point attempts. Nobody predicted such a dramatic improvement.

Speaking of Bell, he scored 18.7 ppg. this season, shooting .455% on 422 attempts and drawing 206 foul shots -- this after shooting less than .400% last year.

Lousiana Tech's Kyle Gibson is also deserving of mention in the MIP category despite the poor season for the Bulldogs. Gibson scored 15.5 ppg. and grabbed 5.5 rpg. after 4.5 ppg. and 1.6 rpg. in 2006-2007.

Hawaii's Riley Luettgerodt deserves listing here for doubling his scoring average this season from 6.2 ppg. to 12.3.

NMSU's Jonathan Gibson too as he produced 12.5 ppg. while shooting .422% on a team-leading 161 three-point attempts. Last year, it was 2.6 ppg. and a .338 overall shooting percentage, .286% on his threes.


As for WAC Freshman of the Year and the WAC Freshmen Team:

The top award must go to Armon Johnson of Nevada. Johnson scored 11.7 ppg. on .496% overall shooting. while adding 4.1 rpg. and 97 assists.

Trying to avoid any bias, we see the runner up as Justin Graham of San Jose State, despite missing some leagues games due to injury. He scored 11.6 ppg. with a team-leading 68 assists while shooting .494% overall and .438% on threes.

Utah State's Tai Wesley is right behind, his placement due to the lesser role he played on his respective team. Wesley scored 10.2 ppg. while nabbing 4.4 rpg. He led the Aggies with 23 blocked shots and also garnered 64 assists .

NMSU's Wendell McKines is also a worthy mention what with his 6.7 ppg. on .591% from the floor and 6.1 rpg. Teammates Herb Pope and Jahmar Young produced well once eligible but we'll go with McKines out of the three. That certainly should make some jaws drop.

Also throw Louisiana Tech's Dwayne Lathen in the mix for consideration as he has enjoyed a sparkling second half of the season.


The Top WAC Newcomer is a battle royal. Idaho's Jordan Brooks with 12.9 ppg., 6.3 rpg.,129 assists and 47 steals as the focal point for the Vandal offense cannot be discounted. Utah State's Gary Wilkinson put up 13.3 ppg. and 6.9 rpg.while shooting .575%. Two San Jose Staters are deserving of mention: C.J. Webster with 10. 8 ppg., 6.3 rpg. and 60 assists and Chris Oakes' 10.7 ppg. and 7.5 rpg.

Ulitimately, we have to go with Brooks for his role and the importance of it in making the relatively weak Vandals go.

Last night's WAC happenings

New Mexico State didn't stumble -- heck they did a stomp -- but Boise State let a golden opportunity slip from its grasp and even LA TECH took a win in Thursday night WAC action.

Aggies roll past San Jose State at home
Felix Chavez
Las Cruces Sun-News
3/07/2008

LAS CRUCES — Fred Peete looks pretty comfortable in the point guard spot.

On Thursday night, the senior guard helped the Aggies offense operate in solid fashion in an 88-65 win against San Jose State at the Pan American Center.

Peete finished with a workman-like line of eight points, seven assists, seven boards and just one turnover in 33 minutes. He now has 40 assists and nine turnovers in the team's last six games.

"Fred has done a great job in running the team at the guard spot," forward Justin Hawkins said. "It's a position he likes being in and he's responded with good games."

Added Peete: "The guys have done a great job of finishing. I've been able to take care of the ball and everything has gone well the past few games."

New Mexico State head coach Marvin Menzies said the two have had several meetings recently to talk about his play at the point.

"Fred deserves all the credit for what's he's done," Menzies said. "He's focused, he's conscientious about how many assists and turnovers he has. He's comfortable in what's he's doing and he's getting everyone involved."

Thursday's game was a far cry from the 83-81 win the Aggies had in San Jose last month.

The Aggies controlled the action for the most part, outrebounding, outshooting and outworking the Spartans in improving to 18-13 overall and 11-4 in the Western Athletic Conference. San Jose State slips to 12-17 and 4-11...

Go here for the remainder.

AND

The Broncos had the stars and planets aligned but fell to USU:

'Sad, sad night' for Boise State men in loss to Utah State
Nick Jezierny
Idaho Statesman
March 07, 2008

The Boise State men's basketball team couldn't win an outright WAC championship Thursday night because the Broncos couldn't make enough shots from behind the 3-point line or the foul line.

Utah State took advantage of BSU's shooting woes and put on an offensive clinic of its own in steamrolling the Broncos 88-69 in front of a season-high crowd of 10,352 at Taco Bell Arena.

"It's just a sad, sad night," said Bronco senior Reggie Larry, who went over the 1,000-point barrier in his career by scoring a team-high 23 points, pulling down nine rebounds and blocking four shots.

The loss by the Broncos (22-8 overall, 12-4 WAC) likely relegates them to co-, tri- or quad-champions of the WAC. A victory against Utah State (22-9, 11-4) would have given BSU the outright championship. The Broncos still could be the outright champs if Nevada, New Mexico State and Utah State lose theirfinal conference games Saturday.

"We had a chance to end it here at home and we kind of let it slip away," point guard Anthony Thomas said. "It hurts a little bit."

After Thomas started the game with a made 3-pointer, but the Broncos missed their next 13 shots from behind the arc. They finished 2-of-17 from 3-point range. The two 3-pointers were a season-low total for the Broncos. The 11.8 percent was the worst of the season. The 69 points also were the fewest scored by BSU this season.

"We've always had good balance," BSU coach Greg Graham said. "When we got the ball inside, we hurt them. We didn't have enough firepower from the outside."

And the Broncos certainly didn't help themselves at the free-throw line. They made just 21-of-33, including 9-of-17 in the first half, when the Aggies took a 44-30 lead that never dipped below nine points the rest of the way.

"They pulled away because we couldn't make free throws," Graham said. "I thought that was the key to the game - that and the rebounds."

Utah State owned a 38-22 advantage on the boards, including 12 on the offensive end. Aggie post players Stephen DuCharme, Tai Wesley and Gary Wilkinson combined for 42 points and 19 rebounds. Jaycee Carroll scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half and had nine rebounds...

Go here for the remainder.

AND

Matt Gibson foul trouble provided the opening for LA TECH to edge past Hawaii and nab a win.

LaTech ambushes Warriors, 69-62
Chris Weego
Special to The Honolulu Advertiser
March 7, 2008

RUSTON, La. — One streak had to be broken. Heading into the matchup, Hawai'i held a four-game losing streak while Louisiana Tech had dropped five straight.

The ball bounced the Bulldogs' way as UH fell, 69-62, at the Thomas Assembly Center last night.

"For some reason, we haven't been able to take care of the ball," said Hawai'i head coach Bob Nash. "Louisiana Tech really wanted to get the win and they worked really hard. They forced us into 20 turnovers and out-rebounded us."

The Rainbow Warriors (11-17, 7-8 WAC) could not keep the Bulldogs (5-23, 2-13 WAC) off the boards as Louisiana Tech held a 35-28 rebounding advantage and scored 18 second-chance points.

The Bulldogs also took advantage of the charity stripe as they hit 30 of 35 free-throw attempts to help seal their second conference win of the season.

"They shot 35 free throws and when you give a team that shoots 76 percent from the free-throw line, that's a lot of points," Nash said. "When you give a team that many shots, you're not going to win many games."

Hawai'i led through most of the first half, building as large as a seven-point lead before Louisiana Tech closed to 25-24 at halftime.

The teams battled back and forth in the second half until senior guard Matt Gibson, who led the Warriors with 22 points, picked up his fourth foul with 10:59 to play...

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A hat tip to the on-court Matt Gibson

Love him or hate him and the latter seems to be the choice of the majority of opposing fans, Matt Gibson is a competitor who gives his all on the court. He's certainly stumbled a few times what with some suspensions but the bottomline is we would like having Gibson on our team.

Emotions help ignite UH's fiery point guard
Dayton Morinaga
Honolulu Advertiser

"You can teach fundamentals, like how to dribble and how to shoot," Matt Gibson says. "You can't teach how to have heart, how to play with energy. I've always felt like that's how you can make up for mistakes or missed shots."

This Is The Way I Live

Matt Gibson does everything at full throttle.

Like a speed demon, he is equal parts exciting and dangerous as the point guard for the University of Hawai'i men's basketball team.

It is why he is one of the most beloved and bewildering Rainbow Warriors of all time.

"The first day I met him, I knew he was unique," teammate Alex Veit said. "He's like his own category."

Gibson, a 6-foot-5 senior, is in the stretch run of his collegiate career. The 'Bows will close the regular season with road games at Louisiana Tech tomorrow and then at New Mexico State on Saturday.

The Western Athletic Conference Tournament is scheduled for March 11 to 15 at Las Cruces, N.M.

Hawai'i, which is 11-16 overall and 7-7 in the WAC, will be the No. 5 seed for the tournament, regardless of what happens this week.

"As a senior, as the point guard, I feel like a lot of the responsibility for how we do is in my hands," Gibson said. "The fact that we're not No. 1 in the WAC right now, I place a lot of the blame on myself. But this season's not over. We make a run here at the end, and all those losses will be forgotten."

This Is The Way I Live

The words are part of a tattoo on Gibson's left arm. The rest of the tattoo features a young man sitting on a bench, his face buried in his hands, a basketball at his feet.

"I don't like tattoos, and every time he gets one, I let him know I don't like it," said his father, Lon Gibson. "But that one bothered me more than the others. It just looked so sad."

Gibson had the tattoo done prior to this season.

"It represents the times of me persevering through my struggles," he said. "It reminds me that life isn't always easy or fair, but all I have to do is open my eyes and basketball will always be there."

Just like the tattoo, Gibson can be an enigma...

Go here for the remainder.

To go or not to go, that is the question

No, for those of you with minds below the belt, this post has nothing to do with bathrooms and the various actions that take place there. For you cultural posers, no, the blog title above didn't come from the pen of Willie Shakes. Close but nyet.

It's all about JaVale McGee and whether or not he should remain in Reno or start cashing major checks in The Big Show. He is nowhere near polished nor ready for major minutes in the NBA -- relying pretty much on his amazing physical gifts to fill up a boxscore rather than any technical proficiency, especially offensively. Plus, he needs 30 more pounds and an accompanying upgrade in strength.

But the primary question just may be what is in his best interests? Is it to remain in the college ranks where he won't be challenged to the degree he needs by matchups in practice and also rarely so in actual games? Or does he land a nice professional contract and be challenged on a daily basis but while rarely seeing time on the court for at least the first season, maybe two?

Pack basketball: McGee is long on potential, could be bound for NBA
Steve Sneddon
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
March 5, 2008

He is a work in progress, far from complete, but he offers tantalizing glimpses of his future.

JaVale McGee has already established himself as an amazing shot blocker. At times, he's like a hockey goaltender swatting away shots. Unfortunately, there are times game officials are pretty sure he's goaltending and call him on it.

Still, McGee is having one of the best shot-blocking seasons of any player in program history. He leads the Western Athletic Conference in blocked shots at 2.79 per game (which ties him for 13th in Div. I). With 81 blocks, he is 15 shy of the Nevada single-season record set by Edgar Jones in the 1977-78 season.

McGee is averaging 13.6 points and 7.1 rebounds as Nevada prepares to close its regular season at Fresno State on Saturday night.

"The big fella, when he plays, he's probably the most imposing guy in the conference," Boise State coach Greg Graham said.

It was a compliment. There was no doubt about it. But it also was a recognition that the 7-foot, 237-pound McGee is not always the same imposing player game after game. That's part of being a work in progress for McGee, who as a freshman found himself in the sizeable shadow of three-time WAC player of the year Nick Fazekas.

Fans watch McGee and imagine what he will be like as a junior and senior at Nevada. Scouts look at him and wonder if he might declare for the NBA draft in June, though they are far from sure he will do it.

McGee appeared on the NBA's radar before a 106-70 loss to then-No. 1 North Carolina in December, but when he had 14 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots in that game, he became larger than a blip on the screen.

"I think about (the NBA) a lot, but I have a season to play," McGee said...

Go here for the remainder.

Three beat reporters provide the details on the WAC playing out

If WAC ends in four-way tie, New Mexico State will get No. 3 seed
Jason Groves
Las Cruces Sun-News
3/04/2008

LAS CRUCES — On Monday, Commissioner Karl Benson said he wasn't surprised that the Western Athletic Conference race would come down to the final week of the season.

New Mexico State is one of four teams that could end the regular season with a 12-4 conference record atop the league standings.

"We were anticipating that it would be very competitive and very balanced and I think those four teams have separated themselves from the rest of the league," the WAC Commissioner said on Monday. "I think we have four very competitive teams and four teams that will be very deserving of postseason."

The race is so tight that even after clinching a share of the regular-season conference title over the weekend, Boise State could find itself the No. 4 seed for next week's WAC Tournament at the Pan American Center.

Boise State can win the conference outright with a win at Utah State in Boise on Thursday, but if the Broncos fail to do so, four teams could enter the conference tournament with a 12-4 conference record.

"That tie would be broken by comparing records of the four teams against each other," Benson said.

New Mexico State is one of three teams that currently have four losses. NMSU still needs help to grab a share of the league title, but the 10-4 Aggies hope to enter the four-loss logjam scenario by winning home games against San Jose State and Hawaii this week...

Go here for the remainder.

AND

WAC basketball: Utah State has upper hand in four-way tie
Steve Sneddon
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
March 4, 2008

The wild and wacky WAC regular-season basketball race could be getting wackier in the next five days.

If the Western Athletic Conference basketball race ends in a four-way tie with Boise State, Nevada, New Mexico State and Utah State tied at 12-4, Utah State would receive the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament, commissioner Karl Benson said Monday.

Right now, Boise State, which clinched a share of the WAC title at Hawaii last Saturday, is the only school that is assured a piece of the conference championship. It can claim an outright title with a home win over Utah State on Thursday. But if Boise State loses to Utah State and the other contenders all win the rest of their games, the Broncos' seeding in the tournament at Las Cruces, N.M., March 11-15 would drop rapidly.

"That (12-4) tie would be broken by comparing the records of the four teams against each other," Benson said on the WAC coaches conference call. "And under that scenario, Utah State would be 4-2 against the field and would be the (No. 1) seed.

"New Mexico State and Nevada would both be 3-3 against the field. Nevada would be awarded the No. 2 seed based on their regular season wins against New Mexico State (which would be No. 3) And Boise State would be the No. 4 seed."

Nevada, which plays at Fresno State on Saturday, and Boise State are the only contending teams with just one regular-season game remaining. Utah State has two games left after beating Fresno State at home Monday. The Aggies play at Boise State on Thursday and at Idaho on Saturday. New Mexico State has two games remaining, both at home, against San Jose State on Thursday and Hawaii on Saturday...

Go here for the remainder.

AND

It looks like a logjam atop the WAC
DARRELL MOODY
Nevada Appeal
March 4, 2008

Don't look now, but heading into the final week of the season there could be a three-way or four-way tie for the regular-season Western Athletic Conference championship.

Boise State leads the way at 12-3 in league with a home game left on Thursday night against the dangerous Utah State Aggies. Nevada is currently in second place with an 11-4 record and an away game Saturday at Fresno State left. New Mexico State is 10-4 with home games left against San Jose State and Hawaii. Utah State is 10-4 after its win over Fresno State Monday night.

A four-way tie will happen if Boise State loses and Nevada, Utah State and New Mexico State win out. In that case, a four-way tie is broken by a team's record against the other three teams.

In that case, Utah State would be the top seed with a 4-2 record because of its potential sweep of Boise State and splits with New Mexico State and Nevada. The Pack would be the No. 2 based on its 3-3 record, which includes a sweep of New Mexico State. New Mexico State, providing it doesn't get upset, would also be 3-3, but would be third seed because it was swept by Nevada. Boise State would fall all the way down to fourth because it would have been swept by Utah State and New Mexico State.

A three-way tie would be broken the same way, according to WAC spokesperson Kara Irving.

Karl Benson, the WAC commissioner, said that the WAC is destined to be a one-bid conference. He did note, however, that Nevada (79), Utah State (88) and Boise State (97) were all in the top 100 in terms of Ratings Percentage Index (RPI)...

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Here's Steve Sneddon with a word or two about predictions

Here's a portion of Steve Sneddon's latest column which points out just how surprising the Boise State season has been so far, with both the media and coaches missing the boat on the Bronco rise (we didn't see it either):

WAC notebook: Boise State has bucked expectations
STEVE SNEDDON
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
3/4/2008

Almost everyone overlooked the Boise State men's basketball team at the Western Athletic Conference Media Day in October.

Neither the coaches nor the media had the Broncos in their top four in the conference preseason polls. Each poll had Boise State pegged at No. 5 after the Broncos lost senior Coby Karl. But coach Greg Graham's team reloaded faster than almost everyone anticipated.

The Broncos (22-7 overall) have already earned a share of the WAC title at 12-3 with one regular-season game against Utah State in Boise left to play Thursday. They can win the title outright. It's also possible that the Broncos could find themselves in a four-way tie at 12-4 to end the regular season, and in that scenario they would enter the WAC Tournament as the No. 4 seed.

"To get the share of it and know you have it is a great thing because of how good the conference is and how hard we've worked over the past years to get there," Graham said on the WAC coaches' weekly conference call Monday. "But yet we still have a game left. We have a chance to win it outright.

"There's still a lot to play for and we talked about it with our guys. We let them celebrate a little bit, but (told them to) keep our focus for the games coming up,"

The Broncos clinched the tie with a 78-71 win at Hawaii on Saturday, when they were forced to play without forward Matt Nelson, who sprained his foot at San Jose State. Nelson, who is expected to play against Utah State, and three other senior starters have been the nucleus of the success.

"Probably, two things have been the biggest plus," Graham said. "We've, knock on wood, fortunately, shot the ball most of the year and we've been able to give a combination of inside with Reggie (Larry) and Nellie and have been able to shoot the ball with Tyler (Tiedeman) and Bausch (Matt Bauscher) and Reggie outside as well.

"I think the other thing that that has shown well for us is Saturday we set a school record for 11 road wins. I think that bears into the fact of the age of our team. We start four seniors and three are fifth-year seniors."

For the season, the Broncos are 11-4 at home and 11-3 on opponents' home courts...

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The best laid plans of mice and men

The Fresno State basketball season started out so promising. Redshirt transfers Bryan Harvey and Rekalin Sims were going to provide backcourt and frontcourt scoring power. Hector Hernandez and Eddie Miller were to expand their games. Dwight O'Neill would be providing toughness and help at both ends of the floor. Plus, star point Kevin Bell was in his final go-around in running the show.

Only Bell came through.

Harvey played half the season and then ran aground on the shoals of academics. Sims encountered legal trouble and a period of academic laziness and that combination resulted in his removal from the team (even though the legal charge was later dropped).

Hernandez and Miller had their moments but neither displayed a more fully-rounded skills set.

O'Neill broke his hand early on and has missed most of the season.

Here's a bit on Fresno State's laets loss, with a telling comment from Coach Steve Cleveland:

Carroll, Aggies hand men's hoops another loss
Fresno State can't surprise, even with Bell's career night.
Gary Estwick
The Fresno Bee
3/04/08

LOGAN, Utah - During the final seconds of another setback, Fresno State had to wait for Jaycee Carroll to exit the court at Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, perhaps the final home appearance for Utah State's All-America guard.

The sellout crowd of 10,270 fans roared as Carroll jogged to the sideline, convinced that his Senior Night heroics had sealed a season perfection in Logan. The Aggies were about to end their 2007-08 campaign undefeated at home, and this year, neither Kevin Bell nor his Bulldogs could ruin the celebration.

Utah State won 79-66 on Monday night, avenging last season's home finale defeat to Fresno State.

"It was a good way to finish," said Carroll, who tied a season high with 33 points.

Bell did all he could to ruin the moment, never leaving the court despite a sore right ankle. He even scored a career-high 31 points, twisting his body near the rim for awkward yet effective scoring angles and converting on the perimeter with his unorthodox release.

"I'm darn glad Kevin Bell is a senior," Utah State coach Stew Morrill said,. "I don't want to see him anymore in my life, in my nightmares, nothing."

Still, Fresno State dropped to a new descent.

The Bulldogs are now 13-17 overall and 5-10 in the Western Athletic Conference. Their first losing regular season record in four years is already clinched. Even their No. 6 seed in next week's WAC Tournament is in jeopardy: The Bulldogs will drop one seed if they lose Saturday at home against Nevada in their home finale and Idaho upsets Utah State at home.

Most of Fresno State's problems are old problems. The kind that after nearly a season of disappointments, have proved to not be fixable - not this season anyway. The Bulldogs squad that entered last summer with perhaps too much offense is missing three of those players and look to be at least two standouts away from winning another conference game.

"We just don't have all of the pieces right now," Fresno State coach Steve Cleveland said...

Go here for the remainder.

Mr. Toad's Wild Ride - WAC style

It was yet another wild night in the WAC Thursday evening -- here you go.

This wasn't unexpected but was closer than many thought:

BSU men all alone in first place in WAC standings
The Broncos win at SJSU for the sixth straight time and turn their attention to Hawaii.
NICK JEZIERNY
2/29/08

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Redshirt freshman Paul Noonan gave the Boise State men's basketball team the lift it needed, then senior Tyler Tiedeman strapped the Broncos on his back down the stretch to help them earn an important win Thursday night.

BSU scored a 74-68 victory over San Jose State in front of 2,247 at The Event Center. The win, coupled with New Mexico State's loss at Nevada, puts the Broncos (21-7 overall, 11-3 WAC) in sole possession of first place.

"It's definitely a big win," said Noonan, who scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half and helped BSU erase a seven-point deficit.

The victory could be a costly one, though. Senior Matt Nelson, who scored 12 points, seven rebounds and a team-high four assists, left with 1 minute, 35 seconds to play with an ankle injury. His status for Saturday night's game at Hawaii is uncertain.

"I don't think he's going to be able to play," said teammate Matt Bauscher, who returned from his own ankle injury and started Thursday. "He basically did what I did."

Tiedeman, who was plagued by foul trouble in the first half, led five Broncos in double figures with 16 points. He scored eight in a row after the Spartans (12-15, 4-9) had taken a 59-53 lead with 7:57 to play to give the Broncos the lead for good...

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This could have consequences and makes Saturday's SJSU home game versus Idaho critical. SJSU remains a win ahead of Idaho and wants to avoid the task of being a participant in the play-in game to the WAC tourney:

Jason Kaneshiro
Honolulu Star Bulletin
February 29, 2008

Hawaii hadn't lost at home in more than a month. Idaho hadn't won on the road all season.

Both streaks came to a stunning end last night as the Vandals raided the Stan Sheriff Center for an 85-77 overtime win over the Rainbow Warriors before a crowd of 3,411.

A 3-pointer by Idaho's Michael Crowell with 22.1 seconds left in regulation knotted the game at 68-68, and the Vandals (7-19, 4-10 Western Athletic Conference) went 5-for-6 from the field and 6-for-7 from the free-throw line in the extra period to send the Rainbows (11-15, 7-6) to their third straight loss.

"It's disappointing to lose on your home court, or lose anywhere," UH coach Bob Nash said. "But it's doubly disappointing when you have the lead and all you have to do is come down and make a stop on defense.

"When the game is in the balance you gotta make a stop on defense and we didn't get it done tonight..."

Go here for the remainder.

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Nevada seems to have NMSU's number:

Pack hoops: Nevada has 'Fields' day
Steve Sneddon
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
February 29, 2008

It's hard for anyone to get any elbow room in a crowded Western Athletic Conference regular-season title race.

But the Nevada men's basketball team found enough room to squeeze into second place in the race as Brandon Fields scored a career-high 29 points and Marcelus Kemp had 27 points and eight assists to lead the Wolf Pack to a wire-to-wire 98-85 victory in front of 8,750 at Lawlor Events Center on Thursday night. The Wolf Pack, 18-10 overall and 10-4 in the conference, stayed a game behind first-place Boise State, which took a 74-68 win at San Jose State on Thursday.

"It was a big win for our team. It puts us in a better position to win the whole thing," Kemp said.

Fields also grabbed nine rebounds to lead Nevada to a 40-35 advantage on the boards against the WAC's best rebounding team. Fields came back after being held scoreless in the Pack's 74-49 loss in a BracketBuster game at Southern Illinois last Saturday.

"I was more aggressive on the rebounding end and once I became a good rebounder points came to me," Fields said...

Go here for the remainder.

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USU won as expected:

Ags too much for Tech
Shawn Harrison
Logan Herald Journal
February 29, 2008

A strong start and finish were more than enough for the Aggies on Thursday night.

An outmanned Louisiana Tech squad made it interesting for a while, but the Utah State men’s basketball team had no problem staying perfect at home this year. The Aggies snapped a three-game losing skid in Western Athletic Conference play with an 86-59 thumping of the Bulldogs in front of another sold-out (10,270) Dee Glen Smith Spectrum crowd.

This is the ninth straight season USU has recorded 20 wins.

“I’m really excited about that,” said Aggie guard Jaycee Carroll, who scored a game-best 30 points. “I’ve been staring at 18 and 19 on our win column for a long time. We had that losing streak, got off that and now have 20 wins. It feels really good. Now we have an opportunity to get a bunch more wins.”

Louisiana Tech (4-22, 1-12 WAC) did tie up the game at 23 with 6:47 left in the first half. But the Bulldogs would never lead in the contest.

“These games are always hard because you’re in a situation where you feel like you have to win, and you’re supposed to win,” USU head coach Stew Morrill said. “It’s a good win. We shot a high percentage, and we did what we needed to do.”

USU (20-9, 9-4) certainly did shoot the ball well. The Aggies shot a season-high 67.3 percent from the field, including making 35-of-45 from inside the 3-point arc. The 67.3 percent shooting tied for the seventh-best in school history...

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Shawn Harrison weighs in on the WAC post-season hopes and dreams

Here's worthy Shawn Harrison with a column on WAC tourney and post-season thoughts, including some pungent quotes from Stew Morrill.

Three unwanted words for the WAC
Shawn Harrison
Logan Herald Journal
February 27, 2008

There are three words this time of year that give college basketball coaches a chill up their spines.

Many are aware of the fact, some are hoping it isn’t true and others are just in denial. But as the regular season winds down, all are wondering about the postseason.

Unless you are in one of the power conferences, the phrase, one-bid league, can be an upsetting thought.

You hope it isn’t true, but the reality is for most leagues only the conference tournament champion is going dancing. After last weekend, I think we can pretty much be assured the Western Athletic Conference is a one-bid league this year.

There, I said it. Coaches can curse me, but that is the reality.

The thought has been lurking for some time, but it has become more apparent as the season wore on. After a less than stellar non-conference performance by all of the WAC schools, coaches used to making the postseason and league commissioner Karl Benson had said early on when conference play began that several teams needed to separate themselves. Then if a top team was defeated in the WAC Tournament, possibly two teams would get in the NCAA Tournament.

That has not happened.

With two weeks left in the regular season, five schools are battling for first place. While that is exciting, it does not help the league out. Only Boise State has 20 wins right now...

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It still looks like New Mexico State is the ... 550 pound gorilla

Steve Sneddon has made it to my Christmas card list what with another fine column today -- this one on how New Mexico State is the top team to fear in the WAC. But we'll say the Aggies aren't quite yet at the level of the 800 pound gorilla. NMSU certainly has the best components of all the teams in the WAC but such is not a guarantee of finishing at the top. Let's see what happens on Saturday in Reno. The following contains some good quotes from both Marvin Menzies and Mark Fox:

Pack basketball: Nevada faces sharper Aggies team in Round 2
Steve Sneddon
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
February 27, 2008

Like any complicated puzzle, it took awhile to put this one together.

Now that it's complete, it's something to behold. These New Mexico State Aggies have all the pieces any college basketball team would want.

They've won five games in a row and they're a half game out of first place in the Western Athletic Conference. On Thursday at Lawlor Events Center, the Aggies will try to avenge an 87-78 loss to the Wolf Pack at Las Cruces, N.M., on Jan. 24.

"I think our chemistry has improved a great deal, guys getting familiar with each other," Aggies first-year coach Marvin Menzies said. "We finally got all of our players in place. I think the biggest thing for us is having a full complement and having them together for a stretch of seven, eight games.

"Plus, they're sharing the ball. They're looking to make the extra pass. I think guys are understanding that team concepts are really critical when it comes to playing well. It can't be 'me' ball. I think that's one of the biggest concepts we've bought into that has enabled us to play much better offense. Defensively, I think younger guys are understanding defensive schemes..."

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The WAC BracketBuster Dud

The ever-reliable Steve Sneddon of the Reno Gazette Journal has an article today on the gigantic egg laid by the WAC over the BracketBuster weekend:

WAC notes: Conference's BracketBuster future tied to ESPN TV deal
Steve Sneddon
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
February 26, 2008

Whether the Western Athletic Conference should continue to participate in the ESPN-affiliated BracketBuster was a hot subject Monday.

And for most WAC coaches the answer is tied to whether the WAC can get a better deal with ESPN that would provide more game coverage. Currently, the WAC contract calls for three televised games, not including the BracketBuster games. The coaches are in favor of a deal that would give the conference eight to 12 games.

Three of the nine WAC teams -- Nevada, Utah State and Boise State -- played in the official BracketBuster games that were televised. The other six teams were matched in non-conference games. All nine games will be returned in the 2008-09 season.

"My commitment to it (the BracketBuster) is dictated by our relationship with ESPN," Fresno State coach Steve Cleveland said on the WAC coaches' conference call. "I believe in ESPN. I believe in everything they do with college basketball.

"However, if that relationship is one that is not going to exist and we don't feel like we can go down the road with ESPN and there isn't a future then I'd rather do my own scheduling. Even the TV exposure we had (in the BracketBuster) was regional in nature."

The Nevada-Southern Illinois and Utah State-UC Santa Barbara games were shown on ESPNU, which isn't available on Charter Cable in Reno, and Boise State played Siena on ESPN360.com (available on the Internet).

Cleveland said the WAC needs to have a package that assures it of nine to 10 games besides the BracketBuster.

"We have to do something or it's going to impact recruiting over the next 10 years," Cleveland said. "I think that's an important piece. We have to do something now."

The conference's contract with ESPN extends through 2009-10. Commissioner Karl Benson said the conference negotiated unsuccessfully with ESPN for an extension in both the summer of 2006 and last summer.

"As far as the future (with the BracketBuster), I heard several coaches make very, very valid comments," said Benson, who will meet with the conference's coaches at the Final Four. "I would support a couple of their comments, saying that if the WAC can get a deal done with ESPN that results in a full-season package of both conference and non-conference games, then it probably would be worth it to go ahead with the BracketBuster..."

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Call it a black WAC Saturday

This was not a good Saturday night for the WAC.

The contest that astounded us the most was Hawaii's 79-62 defeat to UC Riverside. The Highlanders -- at home -- won both 20 minute sessions, 34-20 and 45-42. Matt Gibson was absent for the Rainbow Warriors due to injury and his absence apparently fomented a decline offensively and defensively for Bob Nash's squad.

But Boise State's stinker versus Sienna -- at home -- plus the margin of defeat (93-70), was also an eye-opener. Looking at the split, Sienna outscored the Broncos 45-40 in the first half but put up 48 points to Boise's 30 in the second 20 minutes.

As expected, Fresno State took the measure of visiting Cal Poly 76-70. Also as expected, New Mexico State stomped Long Beach State in Las Cruces 80-48 (we understand the travel and location constraints involved in some of the BrackBuster matchups but there was no reason to even hold this game). In that one, Long Beach missed its first 14 shots and was out-rebounded 55-26.

At home, Irvine beat Idaho 69-55, with the margin somewhat surprising. Samford took overtime to beat Louisiana Tech 73-70 in Ruston.

Utah State topped UC Santa Barbara 72-59 Friday night in Logan.

The following game also really hurts, really making it truly a black Saturday for the WAC. Nevada shocked us with this one:

Pack drubbed by So. Illinois
Steve Sneddon
Reno Gazette-Journal
February 23, 2008

CARBONDALE, Ill. — After the first 14 minutes, the Nevada basketball team wasn’t in the game, nowhere to be seen.

The Wolf Pack was pushed and shoved out of the ESPNU picture by a merciless Southern Illinois defense. Randal Falker scored 17 points and the Saluki defense did the rest with 14 steals in Southern Illinois’ 74-49 BracketBuster win in front of 7,321 fans at SIU Arena on Saturday afternoon,

“We got outplayed. We got outcoached,” Nevada coach Mark Fox said. “We got out every-thinged.”

The 25-point loss was one of the worst for Nevada this season, second only to a 106-70 loss at then-No.1 ranked North Carolina on Dec. 27. It was a season scoring low for the Pack, which previously hadn’t been held to less than 55 points. Nevada also equaled its season high with 21 turnovers.

“We were pretty much careless with the ball and they capitalized on it,” Pack senior Marcelus Kemp said.

Kemp said Southern Illinois was the best defensive team that Nevada has played this season.

“They’re real physical, everybody,” Kemp said. “They get away with a lot of fouls. That’s how this (Missouri Valley) league is. It’s how they play. We weren’t ready for it. The coaches told us, but we weren’t ready for it...”

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Nice feature on Jonathan Gibson

The Las Cruces Suns-News/Jason Groves has a nice feature on one of the surprises this season in the WAC, Jonathan Gibson:

Jonathan Gibson has developed into elite scorer for New Mexico State Aggies
Jason Groves
Las Cruces Sun-News
2/22/2008

LAS CRUCES — The hard work has paid dividends for Jonathan Gibson.

The New Mexico State University sophomore guard is 15th in the Western Athletic Conference in scoring (12.9 points per game), sixth in 3-point shooting percentage (44) and fifth in 3-pointers made, knocking down 2.33 per game.

"He is getting more minutes than he did last year and he has earned those by having one heck of an offseason in terms of developing his game," Aggies head coach Marvin Menzies said. "He still has a long way to go before he is able to conceptualize all of the things that he needs to do to be a complete player but he can put the ball in the basket right now."

Menzies is not the only coach who knows what Gibson is capable of.

"I've noticed that (opposing teams) shade to my side now if they are playing zone or playing man," Gibson said. "They try to pressure up on me now. I expect teams to watch film and try to make changes to try to contain me or stop me but I have to keep adding to my game..."

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Call me Preacher LaGrone

Well, we certainly didn't know this...

Pack's LaGrone balances life as a minister, basketball player
Steve Sneddon
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
February 20, 2008

His teammates call him preacher or bishop, and he smiles.

Long before Matt LaGrone decided to play college basketball, he knew where he was heading -- and that was into the ministry. He has been a minister in the Garden of Gethsamine Church, where his father is the bishop, since he was 13 years old.

The younger LaGrone combines playing basketball for Nevada with his duties at the church in a downtown office building on Second Street, giving a sermon the fourth Sunday of every month. The church is affiliated with the International Churches of Praise.

"It's not that hard because they're both my lifestyle," LaGrone said. "They just go together for me. When I play, I'm playing for an audience. God is in that audience."

The 6-foot-8, 230-pound sophomore has played in 25 of the Wolf Pack's 26 games, as it prepares to play at Southern Illinois in a BracketBuster game Saturday. LaGrone, who is averaging 2.1 points and 3.1 rebounds in 13.2 minutes per game, hadn't missed a game until a bruised back kept him out of the Idaho game last week. He's expected to play against the Salukis...

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Hey, let's play Boise State men's basketball trivia

Thanks to the indefatigable Nick Jezierny, you'll soon learn probably more than you ever wanted to know about the Broncos -- actually there is some interesting information here:

Broncos have win No. 20 within their sights
Nick Jezierny
Idaho Statesman
February 20, 2008

As they close in on the mark, here are 20 things to know about the Boise State men's hoops team.

The Boise State men's basketball team will try for its 20th victory of the season Wednesday night against Cal State Bakersfield.
The Broncos (19-6 overall, 10-3 WAC) are trying to become the eighth team in school history to reach that milestone. In honor of the impending feat, here are 20 miscellaneous things to know about this season's team.

1. Shooting stars. The Broncos lead the nation in field-goal percentage, making 51.6 percent of their shots. It is one of seven NCAA statistics where BSU ranks in the top 50 nationally.

2. Road warriors. BSU has a 9-3 road record this season, one shy of matching the school record set in 2003-04. The Broncos have at least two chances - Feb. 28 at San Jose State and March 1 at Hawaii - to tie and beat the record.

3. Leaders of the pack. BSU is in first place in the WAC, and this is the deepest in the season that the Broncos have led the conference. Their best finish since joining the conference in 2001 was a third-place finish in 2003-04. BSU was picked to finish fifth in preseason coaches and media polls.

4. Two-sport stars. Tyler Tiedeman ranks third nationally in 3-point field-goal percentage (50.4 percent). Not bad for a guy who's primary sport was baseball a few years ago. Tiedeman was a pitcher at the University of Arizona when an arm injury derailed a promising baseball career. He left Tucson and enrolled at Santa Rosa Junior College, where he resurrected his basketball career. He's been with the Broncos for three seasons. He's not alone.

Guard Matt Bauscher was a high school state singles champion in tennis in 2003 at Vallivue High, while Anthony Thomas also competes in the long jump, triple jump and high jump for the Broncos' outdoor track team.

5. The third degree. Three of Boise State's senior starters - Bauscher, Tiedeman and Matt Nelson - all have earned their undergraduate degrees at BSU...

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