SB Nation - Air Force Falcons

RPI WATCH: 12/13/09

BracketCat — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:00:31 -0000

The circle is complete: By beating the brains out of Lon Kruger's team, perhaps we finally have erased the demons that have plagued K-State basketball for 20 years — roughly ever since he ditched us for Florida. (AP Photo/Laura Rauch)

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Sorry, guys. I accidentally set this to publish at 11:45 p.m. tonight when I meant for it to go last night. My bad.

Wow, what a Saturday.

I guess I'll start with us. I've adding a ranking indicator, because now that Xavier beat Cincinnati today (likely knocking them out of the Top 25), it's a 99-percent certainty that we will be ranked at this time tomorrow.

Meanwhile, our RPI is an eye-popping TWO. I don't think we're likely to top Duke anytime soon, so this basically is the pinnacle for our resume this year, at least from a numbers standpoint. Kudos to Frank Martin for drawing up a PERFECT non-conference schedule, one that now is ranked fourth, after briefly spiking at second last night.

UNLV was added to the ledger of Top 50 wins, and Wazzu's win over Air Force, coupled with playing us, moved the Cougars into the Top 100. That gives us six quality wins so far, and to that you can add Fort Hays State's movement into the Division II Top 25 last week. We've beaten some damn good teams.

What does all this mean? Barring an absolute collapse in Big 12 play, we're going to be in the NCAA Tournament. And if things keep up like this, we'll have a pretty high seed, too. We almost don't need this feature anymore — the resume speaks for itself. But I'll keep tracking everything, nonetheless.

Here's a little trivia for you: Four teams in the country have three RPI Top 50 wins. Who are they? Answers after the jump. Oh, and be sure to vote in my poll.

Answer: Georgetown, Kansas State, Texas, Villanova

Bonus Answer: Kansas has ZERO Top 50 wins. LOL!

Current Kansas State Ranking = TBD

Current Kansas State Record = 9-1

Current Kansas State RPI = 2

Current Kansas State SOS = 4

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) = Loyola, Dayton, UNLV

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) = IUPUI, Washington State, Xavier

Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = none

Loyola (6-2, 1-1) | RPI = 40: Win over San Francisco (66-63)
Western Illinois (4-6, 0-2) | RPI = 320: Loss to Eastern Illinois (44-41)
Boston (4-6) | RPI = 146: Win at Marist (88-72)
No. 25 Ole Miss (8-1) | RPI = 34: Win over McNeese State (83-67)
Dayton (7-2) | RPI = 24
IUPUI (8-3, 2-0) | RPI = 60: Win over Indiana-South Bend (92-56)
No. 22* FHSU (7-1): Win over Missouri Western (67-54)
Washington State (8-2) | RPI = 88: Win over Air Force (75-68)
Xavier (5-3) | RPI = 68
No. 18 UNLV (7-1) | RPI = 29: Loss to Kansas State (95-80)
Alabama (6-3) | RPI = 91: Loss to No. 5 Purdue (73-65)
UAPB (0-6) | RPI = 273
Cleveland State (4-6, 0-2) | RPI = 232: Win over Wilberforce (113-61)
South Dakota (5-4) | RPI = 119
Missouri (6-3) | RPI = 161: Win over Fairleigh Dickinson (87-36)
No. 16 Texas A&M (8-2) | RPI = 18: Loss to New Mexico (84-81)
Colorado (6-4) | RPI = 229
No. 2 Texas (8-0) | RPI = 5: Win over Texas State (87-54)
Oklahoma State (7-1) | RPI = 26
Baylor (7-1) | RPI = 105
No. 1 Kansas (9-0) | RPI = 21: Win over La Salle (90-65)
Nebraska (7-2) | RPI = 151: Win over Oregon State (50-44)
Iowa State (7-3) | RPI = 155
Oklahoma (7-3) | RPI = 142: Win at Utah (78-73 in overtime)
No. 23 Texas Tech (9-0) | RPI = 18

*Division II Top 25

Checking in With the RPI: 12/13/09

Jeremy Mauss — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 02:07:33 -0000

Checking in with the RPI will be twice a week Thursday's and Sunday's. That is because most of the games are on Wednesday and Saturday, so those next days will have the most change in RPI.

As a league the Mountain West is rated 6th in the RPI.

All the RPI info was found at Real Time RPI

Air Force

Record = 5-3

RPI = 200

SOS = 153

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Western States (D-II), Dickinson State (D-II), Charleston Southern, North Carolina Central, Prairie View A&M

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) =

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) = Northern Colorado, Washington State

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = Missouri State

BYU

Record = 8-1

RPI = 62

SOS = 222

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) = Bradley,

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Idaho State, Hawaii, Southern University, Weber State, San Francisco, Arizona State, Fresno State

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = Utah State

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Losses (RPI 1-50) =

Colorado State

Record = 7-3

RPI = 117

SOS = 210

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = UC Davis, Winston Salem, Mayville State (D-II), San Francisco, Colorado, Montana, Denver

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = Oregon

Eh Losses (RPI 75-100) = Northern Colorado

Good Loses Indiana State

New Mexico

Record = 10-0

RPI = 14

SOS = 96

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) = California, Texas A&M

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) = UC Riverside, San Diego

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = New Mexico State (2 wins), Nicholls State, Miami (OH), Hawaii, Louisiana Tech

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) =

Eh Losses (RPI 75-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) =

San Diego State

Record = 8-2

RPI = 37

SOS = 105

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) = San Diego

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = UC San Diego (D-II), Santa Clara, Fresno State, Northern Arizona, UCSB, Cal State Fullerton, Arizona

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) =

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = St. Mary's, Pacific

TCU

Record = 5-5

RPI = 144

SOS = 109

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Mid-American Christian (non D-I), Cal State Northridge, SMU

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = Arizona State, Nebraska, Wichita State, Louisiana Tech

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = Texas Tech

UNLV

Record = 7-1

RPI = 29

SOS = 40

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) = Pittsburgh

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) = Nevada

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Louisville, Southern Illinois, Holy Cross, Santa Clara, Arizona

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) =

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = Kansas State

Utah

Record = 5-5

RPI = 209

SOS = 155

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Utah State, Southern University, Illinois, Weber State, Idaho State, Michigan

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = Idaho, Seattle, Oklahoma

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = Oklahoma State

Wyoming

Record = 5-4

RPI = 294

SOS = 314

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Peru State (non D-I), Boise State, Pepperdine, LMU, Northern Colorado

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = South Dakota State, Denver, Monmouth, Hampton,

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) =

Washington State 75, Air Force 68

Grady. — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 07:29:35 -0000

NCAA Basketball Stats

Once again, we make things interesting late in the second half by letting an opponent creep back in the game via turnovers and sloppy defense.

I was hard at work (hardly working?) today so I don't have a lot of thoughts to provide. I did get to hear some of the radio broadcast, but I'll leave it to you in the CougCenter comment army to provide some insights of your own. Likes? Dislikes? Frustrations? Exuberance? A win is still a win.

Player of the Game: Reggie Moore. 16 points (4/6, 1/3 3pt, 7/7 FTs), 10 freaking assists, 2 boards and only 3 turnovers. A double double for the talented freshman. I miss Tony Bennett a whole lot less when I remember Reggie wouldn't be on this team if he was still here.

Unsung Hero: Nikola Koprivica. 8 points (3/7, 2/3 FTs) and 11 rebounds. Wait, what? 11 rebounds. That can't be right. Nik. 11 rebounds. It's not a typo. I'm in shock. Maybe this performance explains Bone's irrational hatred of Abe Lodwick, who started again but only received 7 minutes because... who knows? Turnover issues, maybe? Also, this game saw 20+ minutes given to Koprivica, Harthun and Enquist. I'm really only OK with Nik getting that kind of PT, what with being our sixth man and only senior and all. However, I'm still excited to see Harthun get some shots down and get some significant game experience. But hey, 14 minutes for Brock Motum! That's what I'm talkin' bout.

It was over when... Klay drained a three to make it 74-64 with 31 seconds remaining.

Stat of the Game: The Cougs held the Falcons to 22.7% three-point shooting. Not bad considering that was a huge issue for us earlier this season.

Checking in With the RPI: 12/10/09

Jeremy Mauss — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:44:03 -0000

This may or may not be a daily feature just depends how things work out, but lets give it a go and try a daily for the rest of the week and see how much change there is. Here we will take a look at the current RPI ratings for the entire Mountain West making notes of good wins, bad wins, and their upcoming schedule for the next few games.

As a league the Mountain West is rated 9th in the RPI.

All the RPI info was found at Real Time RPI

Air Force

Record = 5-2

RPI = 194

SOS = 177

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Western States (D-II), Dickinson State (D-II), Charleston Southern, North Carolina Central, Prairie View A&M

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) =

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) = Northern Colorado

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = Missouri State

BYU

Record = 7-1

RPI = 85

SOS = 253

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Bradley, Idaho State, Hawaii, Southern University, Weber State, San Francisco, Arizona State

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = Utah State

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) =

Colorado State

Record = 4-3

RPI = 134

SOS = 183

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) = Denver

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = UC Davis, Winston Salem, Mayville State (D-II), San Francisco

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = Oregon

Eh Losses (RPI 75-100) = Northern Colorado

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = Indiana State

New Mexico

Record = 8-0

RPI = 24

SOS = 129

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) = California

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) = Louisiana Tech

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = UC Riverside, New Mexico State (2 wins), Nicholls State, Miami (OH), Hawaii

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) =

Eh Losses (RPI 75-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) =

San Diego State

Record = 7-2

RPI = 42

SOS = 91

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = UC San Diego (D-II), Santa Clara, Fresno State, Northern Arizona, San Diego, UCSB, Cal State Fullerton

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) =

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = St. Mary's, Pacific

TCU

Record = 4-4

RPI = 167

SOS = 151

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Mid-American Christian (non D-I), Cal State Northridge, SMU

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = Arizona State, Nebraska,

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) = Louisiana Tech

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = Texas Tech

UNLV

Record = 6-0

RPI = 12

SOS = 74

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) = Pittsburgh, Nevada, Louisville, Arizona

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Southern Illinois, Holy Cross, Santa Clara

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) =

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) =

Utah

Record = 5-4

RPI = 215

SOS = 201

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Utah State, Southern University, Illinois, Weber State, Idaho State, Michigan

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = Idaho, Seattle

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) = Oklahoma State

Wyoming

Record = 3-4

RPI = 330

SOS = 335

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) =

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) =

Bad Wins (RPI 100+) = Peru State (non D-I), Boise State, Pepperdine, LMU

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = South Dakota State, Denver, Monmouth, Hampton,

Eh Losses (RPI 51-100) =

Good Loses (RPI 1-50) =

Falcons Beat Prairie View, Look to Washington State

bhsmarine — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 13:19:55 -0000

Final - 12.8.2009	1	2	Total
Prairie View Panthers	20	21	41
Air Force Falcons	36	39	75

Complete Coverage >

The Falcons shot the roof off Clune Arena on their way to a 75-41 victory. The Falcons shot 52% from the field, 44% from 3-point range and 88% from the free throw line. Grant Parker lead them with 14. Against a inferior team they did what they should have and dominated and as a team dished out 22 assists to a mere 8 turnovers.

Air Force will travel to 6-2 Washington State this Saturday. It will be the first big test of the season for the Falcons. If Air Force can keep it close and use their free throw shooting and ball discipline they might squeeze one out late. On the road will be tough as WSU is averaging 80 points a game and is 3-0 at home. They will have to slow down sophomore Klay Thompson who is averaging 25.9 points per game. I would look at the effort more then the final score to evaluate the Falcons in this one.

Next Game

Air Force Falcons
@ Washington St. Cougars

Saturday, Dec 12, 2009, 1:00 PM PST
Spokane Arena - Spokane, WA

Complete Coverage >

Redman says he was joking about Charlie Strong

Mike Rutherford — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 19:27:25 -0000

From The Bozich:

"I said it in a totally joking manner," he said. "We were talking about golf and the Falcons and then they asked me about the coaching situation. I believe I said 'I think it's going to be Curtis Strong.' I didn't even know that his first name was Charlie.

"I just said that was what I was hearing. My wife (Ashley) read it on the message boards and told me about it.

"Why would I be the one making any announcement about the U of L football program? I'm not the athletic director. Anybody who would believe that strictly because it's something that I said would be an idiot.

"But I apologize if I have stirred anything up."

Well, I guess that's that.

Just one last question, Chris. Were you also joking about THE GRUDEN COMMENTS YOU MADE TO YOUR FRIENDS IN YOUR BASEMENT FIVE WEEKS AGO???

Oh...shit.

Mountain West Conference Basketball Preview 2009-10

Jeremy Mauss — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 03:41:55 -0000

he college basketball season began last night, but the Mountain West begins their season this Friday night. The Mountain West is trying to progress and start getting three teams in the NCAA tournament. Some prognosticators have three teams in the NCAA tournament with San Diego State, UNLV, and BYU. The three teams would be a record for the barley a decade old Mountain West conference.

BYU is the league favorite with four of their five starters back, eight total players over all, plus a super-hyped prospect in Tyler Haws. The Cougars just need to get past the first round to consider the season a success. Guard Jimmer Fredette is pegged as the conference player of the year, and will be their main scoring option. The other Cougar on the preseason all-league team is Jonathan Tavernari to lead them this year.

UNLV has the chance to win the league with the three transfers from big time programs in Derrick Jasper from Kentucky, Chance Stanback from UCLA, and Steve Jones from Arizona State. If these new transfers can gel with the team then the Rebels will make a serious run at the conference title. Coach Lon Kruger will the team prepared for the 2009 season and get them back into the NCAA tournament.

San Diego State is the other contender for the league title and they have Freshman Kawhi Leonard who is preseason freshman of the year, and will make an immediate impact for the Aztecs. Then the Aztecs ahve Billy Whie who is preseason all-league, but the darkhorse player is Eric Lawton who starred at Pepperdine as a freshman. Lawton had to transfer to San Diego Community College for his sophomore year and was co-MVP of the Pacific Coast Conference Player of the Year.

Tyrone Shelley also starred at Pepperdine as a freshman with his high school teammate Thomas. He was the team leader in scoring, and for his freshman season, Shelley was named a 2007‑08 CollegeHoops.net Mid‑Major Freshman First‑Team All‑American.

Utah and New Mexico could be spoilers for the league title, or possibly emerge as an NCAA tournament team. Utah did lose Center Luke Nevil and others but they do have a very good coach in Jim Boylen. New Mexico also has a great coach in Steve Alford, and as Utah lost Luke Nevil they lost their leading scorer in Tony Danridge who was their play maker. The Lobos have a great home court advantage at The PIt which could grab the Lobos the few extra wins they need to sneak up in the Mountain West Standings.

Below is the projected order of finish and check the links for a more indepth preview of each team check the links below.

The All-Preseason Team

G - Jimmer Fredette (Jr.) - BYU
G - Jonathan Tavernari (Sr.) - BYU
F - Billy White (Jr.) - San Diego State
F - Zvonko Buljan (Sr.) - TCU
C - Tre'Von Willis (Jr.) - UNLV

Preseason Player of the Year

G - Jimmer Fredette (Jr.) - BYU

Preseason Newcomer of the Year

G - Derrick Jasper (Jr.) - UNLV

Preseason Freshman of the Year

F - Kawhi Leonard (Fr.) - San Diego State

BtB 2009-10 Mountain West Preview

Chris Dobbertean — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 02:00:29 -0000

Last season, the Mountain West's eternal Utah rivals represented the conference in the NCAAs, with both Utah and BYU falling in the first round. The Utes fell victim to in a now-traditional 12 over 5 upset, while the Cougars lost to Texas A&M for the second straight tourney. San Diego State could've been the third pick MWC team to make the field of 65, but the Committee passed on the Aztecs, despite their run to the conference title game. SDSU recovered to make it to the NIT semis. UNLV looked to be a solid bet for the tourney midseason, but a 4-6 finish to the MWC season, featuring three losses to the Aztecs, doomed them to the NIT as well.

Teams like the Utes, Aztecs, Rebels, and New Mexico all lost significant contributors during the offseason, but they also brought in plenty of new blood. How quickly they can integrate their talented newcomers will determine if they can pose a serious threat to BYU, the team who lost the least after 2008-09, at the top of the league.

When you add in Wyoming, who managed to finish 7-9 in the league last season, six of the league's nine members have gotten to the point where they're competitive night in and night out. That means TCU and Colorado State really need to raise their games and the league can only hope that Air Force can get back to the level they reached back in the early and mid-00s.

On the schedule front, there will be one big change this season. In a bid to improve non-conference scheduling and attract more national attention, the Mountain West and Missouri Valley conferences will face off in their first-ever challenge series this season.

More on the nine teams of the Mountain West after the jump.

Let's start with a look at last season's final MWC standings.

Mountain West Conference Standings

(updated 3.31.2009 at 10:02 PM EDT)

	Conf		Overall
	W	L	W	L
BYU Cougars	12	4	25	8
Utah Utes	12	4	24	10
New Mexico Lobos	12	4	22	12
San Diego St. Aztecs	11	5	26	10
UNLV Runnin Rebels	9	7	21	11
Wyoming Cowboys	7	9	19	14
TCU Horned Frogs	5	11	14	17
Colorado St. Rams	4	12	9	22
Air Force Falcons	0	16	10	21

Now here are my picks for the 2009-10 season, presented in reverse order. If a team name appears as a red link, click it to visit that school's SBNation site throughout the season for more in-depth analysis. You can also visit our Mountain West site, the Mountain West Connection.

Air Force (last NCAA: 2006) If Jeff Reynolds' Falcons played offense as well as they play defense, they'd return to contention. Thanks to the graduation of the team's three leading scorers from last season, that doesn't look likely this season. The Academy's top two returnees, 6-4 junior guard Evan Washington and 6-8 junior F/C Grant Parker, averaged a combined 12.8 ppg last season, so it could be another long season in Colorado Springs. The Falcons will participate in the Reggie Minton Invitational against Dickinson State, then either Northern Colorado or Texas Southern. They'll also face Niagara in UTEP's Sun Bowl invitational.

Colorado State (last NCAA: 2003) This season, there isn't a ton of hope up I-25 in Fort Collins either. Leading scorer Marcus Walker (17.1 ppg) is gone, and while sophomore PG Jesse Carr (8.8 ppg, 2.5 apg) is back from the injury that cut his freshman season short, he lacks targets in the backcourt. 6-9 junior Andy Ogide, who averaged 10+ points and nearly 6 boards a game in his first season after transferring from Ole Miss, anchors the frontcourt, while 6-7 junior Travis Franklin (6.5 ppg, 3.6 rpg) will have to boost his production. The Rams travel to Eugene for a round-robin that features host Oregon, UC Davis, and Winston-Salem State. CSU also welcomes Denver and Colorado to Moby Arena, while they visit UCLA.

TCU (last NCAA: 1998) Jim Christian lost leading scorer Kevin Langford (13.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg), but has two good building blocks remaining--6-9 Croatian Zvonko Buljan, who earned conference Newcomer of the Year honors in his first season out of junior college, averaging 12.3 points and almost 8 boards a game, and 6-6 Lithuanian senior Edvinas Ruzgas (10 ppg), the team's main perimeter threat. 6-2 sophomore Ronnie Moss (10.2 ppg) is also back, and the addition of JC transfer Greg Hill--another 3-point specialist--and freshman PG Xavier Roberson, is enough to ensure the Horned Frogs' backcourt should be strong. There isn't much experience in the frontcourt beyond Buljan though. Christian hopes 6-7 freshman Garlon Green, the brother of Dallas Maverick Gerald, 6-10 JC transfer Cheick Kone (from Mali), and 6-9 Nikola Cerina (from Serbia) can provide some help. TCU will participate in the West region of the NIT Season Tip-Off, where they have to face hosts Arizona State in their first game.

Wyoming (last NCAA: 2002) The Cowboys lost three key performers off a team that couldn't even manage a .500 mark in the Mountain West last season (and lost a CBI home game to Northeastern), including PG Brandon Ewing (18.5 ppg, 5 apg), SG Sean Ogirri (14.4 ppg), and 6-7 F Tyson Johnson (13.1 ppg, 7.5 rpg). 5-9 New Mexico State transfer JayDee Luster comes on just in time to replace Ewing at the point, while 6-4 JC transfer Thomas Manzano should see immediate minutes. Meanwhile, the frontcourt will be the Cowboys' strength, as 6-8 Afam Muojeke looks to build on a solid freshman season where he averaged almost 14 points and over 5 boards a game. 6-10 Adam Waddell (5.1 ppg, 3.9 rpg) is also back, while 6-9 Ryan Dermody is back from an injury that cost him last season. Plus, 7-2 Auburn transfer Boubacar Sylla comes aboard to play center this season. The Pokes' schedule is manageable, as they travel to Tennessee and Northern Iowa (for the Challenge) and host Akron this season.

New Mexico (last NCAA: 2005) Steve Alford's Lobos are going after their third straight 20-plus win season, but they'll have to do it without three of their four leading scorers from last season. 6-6 senior swingman Ramon Martinez will be expected to improve on the 10.6 points he managed in 2008-09, as will 6-1 junior PG Dairese Gary (8.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg) and 6-5 soph Phillip McDonald (7.3 ppg, 3.1 rpg). The frontcourt is a bit thin, as 6-8 sophomore A.J. Hardeman (2.2 ppg, 2.1 rpg) is the key returnee. Expect 6-7 JC transfer Darington Hobson to make an immediate impact on the frontline. The Lobos face a difficult schedule with California, Dayton, and Creighton (as part of the Challenge) visiting the Pit. Louisiana Tech, Miami (OH), and Nicholls State will also visit for a round-robin tournament. New Mexico will also visit Oral Roberts and face Texas A&M in Houston.

Utah (last NCAA: 2009) Jim Boylen has a lot of holes to fill, as the Utes will have to do without their four leading scorers from last year. The biggest loss is, of course, that of 7-2 Australian C Luke Nevill (16.8 ppg, 9 rpg). In the backcourt, you'll see more from 6-5 senior Luka Drca (7.7 ppg, 2.5 rpg) and 6-5 junior Carlon Brown (9.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg). Among the bigs, 6-11 Kim Tillie (3.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg) and 7-foot redshirt freshman Jason Washburn have the unenviable task of trying to replace Nevill. Two other JC transfers 6-7 G/F Jay Watkins and 6-9 F Matt Read will see a lot of action right off the bat. Utah has a difficult non-conference slate. They'll face Bradley, then either Illinois or Oklahoma State in the Las Vegas Invitational. The Utes also welcome Michigan, Oklahoma, and Utah State to the Huntsman Center, while they visit LSU and Weber State.

UNLV (last NCAA: 2008) The Rebels are among many Mountain West contenders who lost a lot of star power after last season, as G Wink Adams, swingman Rene Rougeau, and F Joe Darger are all gone. However, Lon Kruger welcomes back 6-4 G Tre'Von Willis (11.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg) and brings 6-8 UCLA transfer Chase Stanback to bolster the frontline and 6-6 Kentucky transfer Derrick Jasper to run the point. 6-11 Carlos Lopez, another highly regarded newcomer, will push 6-8 Darris Santee and 6-10 Brice Massamba, two underperforming returnees, for playing time. UNLV hosts Louisville, Nevada, Kansas State, and Southern Illinois (in the Challenge), while they visitArizona and Hawai'i for the Diamond Head Classic, where they open with SMU.

San Diego State (last NCAA: 2006) It's a Winter Olympic year, so expect Steve Fisher's Aztecs to go dancing. SDSU's previous tourney appearances under the former Michigan coach were in 2002 and 2006. If the Aztecs do make it, their newcomers will have had a lot to do with it. Four key players from last year's NIT semifinalists are gone, including Lorrenzo Wade (14.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg) and Kyle Spain (14 ppg, 5.3 rpg). 6-8 junior forward Billy White (8.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg) is ready for a breakout year, as is 6-7 soph Tim Shelton (7.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg). Plus, Fisher's newcomers include a bunch of guys who can score. Three transfers with D-I experience should have an immediate impact--6-10 C Brian Cantwell (Illinois), 6-5 G Tyrone Shelley, and 6-9 F Malcolm Thomas (both Pepperdine). Plus, freshmen F Kawli Leonard, G Chase Tapley, and F Alec Williams add even more firepower. The Aztecs' schedule features a November 17 meeting with St. Mary's, a home game with Arizona, a visit to Arizona State, and four games in the inagural West Coast Classic. SDSU will host Santa Clara and Northern Arizona and visit Fresno State and Pacific in that event.

BYU (last NCAA: 2009) Dave Rose will be back to coach the Cougars this season after fighting a rare form of pancreatic cancer this summer. That means the Cougars, whose only significant loss was leading scorer Lee Cummard (16.8 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 3.4 ppg), should play some inspired basketball this season. Two of last year's key men 6-2 junior guard Jimmer Fredette (16.2 ppg, 4.1 apg) and dangerous senior swingman Jonathan Tavernari (15.7 ppg, 7.2 ppg, 38% from 3) should be even better this season, and there are plenty of other backcourt weapons at Rose's disposal--6-3 junior defensive specialist Jackson Emery (7,8 ppg, 3.8 rpg), 6-5 Ivorian sophomore Charles Abouo, and highly-regarded freshman Tyler Haws. In the frontcourt, 6-11 senior C Chris Miles is the anchor (7.1 ppg, 4 rpg), while 6-8 Noah Hartsock (2.4 ppg) is ready to build off the 10 points he scored in the Cougars NCAA loss and 6-10 soph James Anderson (2.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg) could also be ready for a breakout season. BYU's schedule includes home dates with Bradley in the MVC/MWC Challenge and Arizona State, along with games against Nevada and either C-USA favorite Tulsa or Nebraska in the Las Vegas Classic.

The Cougars are my pick to claim the MWC's auto bid for this season. They'll appear in my 2009-10 Final Preseason Bracket, which I will release on November 9. The big question is, how many at-larges can the Mountain West earn this season.

To wrap up this preview, here is my preseason All-MWC team, featuring the best returning players from last season.

Preseason All-MWC Team

Player of the Year: Jimmer Fredette, 6-2 G, Jr. (BYU)

Remainder of the Team
Roman Martinez, 6-6 G/F, Sr. (New Mexico)
Afam Muojeke, 6-7 G/F, So. (Wyoming)
Jonathan Tavernari, 6-6 G/F, Sr. (BYU)
Billy White, 6-8 F, Jr. (San Diego State)

Poll

Who is your pick to win the Mountain West this season?

Air Force

1 votes

BYU

4 votes

Colorado State

0 votes

UNLV

2 votes

New Mexico

4 votes

San Diego State

6 votes

TCU

0 votes

Utah

3 votes

Wyoming

0 votes

20 votes | Poll has closed

2009-10 BYU Basketball Preview

sroufe — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 04:00:53 -0000

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The season may not officially begin until November 13th versus Bradley, but now that Cougar Tipoff is past, preseason rankings and media predictions are submitted, and the football team's conference title hopes have gone the way of the dodo, it seems appropriate to preview the upcoming season. So read the official '09/'10 official prospectus if you haven't done so already and let's begin.

2008-09 Review:
   Record - 25-8 (12-4 MWC)
   MWC Champions - (Regular Season) Title shared with New Mexico and Utah
   NCAA Tournament - Lost in Round 1 to Texas A&M, 79-66

Key Loss:

Lee Cummard, G/F - The Cougars' best overall player for at least the past two seasons. Cummard put up 16.8 PPG and 6.2 RPG last season, twice finished on the MWC First-Team, and was the MWC Co-MVP and an Honorable Mention AP All-American in 2007/08.

Key Additions:

Tyler Haws, G - Prepped at Lone Peak HS (as did incumbent guard Jackson Emery) in Utah County. Arguably, had the greatest high school career in state history. Finished as the Knights' all-time leading scorer (1,772) and won two state titles (nearly three). Haws isn't the best creator but he is an unbelievable finisher. That should work to his benefit during his freshman season as he'll be surrounded with some players (like Emery) with the ability and experience to find him on the break. Haws has the most upside of any BYU guard since Travis Hansen. Of course his dad, Marty Haws was a terrific guard for the Cougars during the late '80's. He has a nice perimeter game that could improve but he is an excellent rebounder for his size. He should see a lot of minutes during his freshman season prior to leaving on an LDS mission next year.

Brandon Davies, F - Just as Haws has tremendous upside, that can be said here as well. Davies is another local product (Provo HS) with major upside. He is very strong and possesses good fundamentals for a big man his age. What he lacks in quickness/agility, he makes up for in strength and efficiency in his footwork/ball control. Davies is a decent shot blocker as well. Again, like Haws, Davies should see some significant action this season and be a huge part of the Cougars' success over the next several years.

Brock Zylstra, G/F - Zylstra is back after serving an LDS Mission. He red-shirted in 2006-07. Zylstra is a smart, athletic wing from Southern California. He should provide some nice depth behind Emery and Haws but likely won't be a key member of the rotation. Zylstra should merit some minutes though, especially early in the season, and figures to play a larger role next season after Haws leaves on his mission and Tavernari graduates.

Logan Magnusson - G/F - Magnusson was one of the key contributors to Salt Lake Community College's team that won the NJCAA Division I National Title last season. (Magnusson played at Dixie State before that.) Magnusson won't provide the Cougars with much offense but is a nice guy to have on Rose's bench - a scrappy wing player with good size that defends well and rebounds aggressively.

Projected Depth Chart and Commentary:

PG - Jimmer Fredette; Lamont Morgan Jr.; Michael Loyd Jr.
SG - Jackson Emery; Brock Zylstra
SF - Charles Abouo; Tyler Haws; Logan Magnusson
PF - Jonathan Tavernari; Noah Hartsock, Brandon Davies
C - Chris Miles; James Anderson

Practice Squad - Tanner Lamb (Snow College, Orem HS); Andrew Johnston (Snow Canyon HS, St. George, UT) and Kyle Rose (Southridge HS, Beaverton, OR and nephew of coach Rose)

It is likely to depend on the opponent whether or not Rose starts Tavernari at the 4 rather than Hartsock (or perhaps Davies). Obviously that isn't his natural position and he understandably has a difficult time trying to defend true PF's in the post. However, he provides some major problems for teams that try to defend him on the perimeter with less mobile big-men. The problem with starting Tavernari at the 3 is that both Abouo and Haws have the talent to merit serious floor time there. It's a nice conundrum and one that should easily work itself out during the early part of the season.

Despite Tavernari's lack of size at the 4, the Cougars post players are as good a group collectively as the Marriott Center has seen in many moons. Miles figures to be improved with experience and is a substantial upgrade over Gavin MacGregor. (Though I hear G-Mac plays a mean trombone.) Hartsock is a year removed from his mission and should be dramatically improved in terms of both conditioning and skill-set. Of course there is Davies as well. And finally Anderson is a solid shot-blocker that isn't a horrific option of the bench when the others get into foul trouble.

The starting guard spots are final: Fredette and Emery. Of course, you know all about Jimmmmer and his crossssover. Some fans are so enamored with the aforementioned move you would have thought Tim Hardaway had transferred from UTEP. Still, Fredette is a fiery competitor, has a knack for getting into traffic and drawing contact and has greatly improved his perimeter game. His status awarded by the media as preseason MWC MVP appears a bit outrageous on its face but he is likely to be the best all-around player on the team this season. Morgan and Loyd each have their strengths (speed) and weaknesses (shooting, size) but are serviceable backups.

Emery, like Hartsock, should benefit exceedingly from having been home from Mexico for over a year now. When he's healthy he is the Cougars' best defender and possibly the best on-the-ball defender in the conference. I'm really looking forward to seeing him play this season. Emery is the ideal player to put beside Fredette as he doesn't demand the ball and Jimmer is so ostensibly pass-second.

Predictions:

BYU has a much weaker non-conference schedule than the past couple seasons that saw them pitted against North Carolina, Louisville and Wake Forest (to name a few). This year they do travel to Utah State, Fresno State, Nevada, Arizona and UTEP however. They also host Arizona State. Utah State lost forward Gary Wilkerson though and Arizona is in rebuilding mode after losing Chase Budinger (who is playing well so far for the Rockets I might add) and Jordan Hill. Nevada has a nice player however in Luke Babbitt and Fresno and Steve Cleveland has a good prospect as well in Paul George. Finally, the ASU game is interesting considering the Cougars actually won in Tempe last December (Andy Katz is a jerk) and the Sun Devils have since lost James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph. Add in the fact that the game is in Provo and the Cougars should win that game.

The Cougars should have a very good record going into conference play. That's 15 games into the season and I see no reason why BYU can't be 13-2 at that point.

In terms of conference play it will be interesting as always. Utah, of course, lost Luke Nevill, Shaun Green, Lawrence Borha and Tyler Kepkay all to graduation. It ought to be a rebuilding year in Salt Lake. UNLV lost Wink Adams, Joe Darger (goodbye faux-hawk!) and Rene Rougeau. Still Lon Kruger added some very nice transfers in Derrick Jasper (Kentucky) and Chace Stanback (UCLA). The Rebels may not be as deep as they've been in recent years but they'll still be dangerous with Tre'Von Willis and Matt Shaw as well. San Diego State also lost some experienced players but the Aztecs have added Kawhi Leonard, a freshman G/F from Riverside, CA. Leonard could have played anywhere and most expect him to impact the MWC immediately.

New Mexico has to be excited for basketball even if they weren't going to be that good right? Well, the Lobos should compete again for the conference championship. Despite losing Tony Danridge and Daniel Faris there remain some nice players in Albuquerque. That includes Phillip McDonald who, like Leonard, had his pick of schools to choose from coming out of high school.

So those are the traditional "powers" in MWC basketball. Wyoming, Air Force, Colorado State round up the rest of BYU's conference schedule but none of those programs are likely to compete for the conference championship this season. Of course the Rams should be improved - Andy Ogide could be either a dud or all-conference.

In summary, BYU biggest competition should come from UNLV. SDSU and New Mexico should also be solid. BYU however appears to have the most experience and the most depth of any team in the conference. Combine that with the Cougars' track record at home and they should actually improve on their 12-4 record from last season. I think they can win 14 conference games and go into the MWC tournament with a 27-4 record.

It's not like I'm going out on a limb here. The MWC Media, Athlon, Doug Gottlieb (ESPN), USA Today and Yahoo! Sports have all projected the Cougars to win the conference with a similar record. Athlon projected BYU to be a 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament and Joe Lunardi has them as a 7 seed. I think those seedings are realistic and attainable for this club. And as we've seen multiple times over the past decade, if the Cougars are finally going to get that infamously elusive tourney win in March, they'll need to be seeded at least as high as 7.

There's a lot to look forward to, especially after the roller-coaster of a football season we've had in Provo. Hopefully, Cougar fans can find some stability in an unlikely (at least in terms of the erratic Tavernari being called "stable") source.

GO COUGARS!!!

Fredette photo via bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com

2009 Mountain West Hoops Media Day Coaches Interviews

Jeremy Mauss — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 11:15:20 -0000

The 2009 hoops season is underway with the media days taking place on Tuesday in Denver. Now here is your chance to watch the interviews from all nine coaches.

Air Force Coach Jeff Reynolds

BYU Head Coach Dave Rose

Colorado State Head Coach Tim Miles New Mexico Head Coach Steve Alford San Diego State Head Coach Steve Fisher TCU Head Coach Jim Christian UNLV Head Coach Lon Kruger Utah Head Coach Jim Boylen Wyoming Head Coach Heath Schroyer

SB Nation - Air Force Falcons

RPI WATCH: 12/13/09

What will K-State be ranked in today's AP poll?

Checking in With the RPI: 12/13/09

Washington State 75, Air Force 68

Checking in With the RPI: 12/10/09

Falcons Beat Prairie View, Look to Washington State

Next Game

Redman says he was joking about Charlie Strong

Mountain West Conference Basketball Preview 2009-10

BtB 2009-10 Mountain West Preview

Mountain West Conference Standings

Preseason All-MWC Team

Who is your pick to win the Mountain West this season?

Air Force

BYU

Colorado State

UNLV

New Mexico

San Diego State

TCU

Utah

Wyoming

2009-10 BYU Basketball Preview

2009 Mountain West Hoops Media Day Coaches Interviews