Outside of a quadruple-overtime marathon in Laramie and UNLV continuing a record streak, it was a fairly uneventful week in the Mountain West, as the power rankings come out looking pretty similar to last week’s. The teams at the top took care of business and held steady for another week, although it still feels like there’s much to be sorted out at the top of the league in the final three weeks of the season.
Power Rankings
1. Boise State (9-3, 16-7, last week: 1)
The Broncos looked sluggish against Air Force Saturday at home, and even trailed in the later part of the second half. But a 13-0 run held the Falcons at bay and gave the Broncos their fourth straight win to stay ahead of the pack.
2. Nevada (8-4, 19-6, last week: 2)
Now 3-3 in their last six, the Wolfpack were once again held under 60 points and below 30 percent shooting in a road loss at SDSU Sunday.
3. Colorado State (9-4, 17-9, last week:4)
The Rams have quietly risen to the top tier of the league by winning six of seven. Strong defense has been the key, as the Rams have held opponents under 65 points in four of those wins.
4. New Mexico (8-5, 15-10, last week: 3)
Lobos coach Craig Neal confirmed that F Tim Williams will be out for another three weeks with a stress fracture in his foot. Although they picked up a win against Air Force earlier in the week, I have my doubts about what UNM will be capable of in his absence.
5. Wyoming (6-7, 16-10, last week: 7)
I don’t think this Cowboys team is among the best in the league, or at least they haven’t shown anything to indicate that. But it’s hard not to like what I saw in a 102-100 win in 4 OT over Fresno State Wednesday, especially hitting 15 threes.
6. Fresno State (6-7, 14-11, last week: 5)
The Bulldogs have now lost three straight games that they arguably could have been favored in. Coming in as 3-point underdogs at Colorado State Saturday, Fresno State got blown out in the second half and ended up losing by 16.
7. San Diego State (6-6, 14-10, last week: 6)
I keep wanting to give up on this team, but the Aztecs looked more capable in a home win over Nevada, playing their signature tough defense to hold off the Wolfpack’s potent offense.
8. San Jose State (6-6, 13-10, last week: 8)
If you need evidence that the structure of the league has been completely flipped, San Jose State has won four straight games, all against the three traditional powers of the decade (UNLV x2, New Mexico and San Diego State).
9. Utah State (5-8, 11-13, last week: 9)
10. UNLV (3-10, 10-16, last week: 10)
11. Air Force (3-9, 10-15, last week: 11)
Three Stars
1. D.J. Fenner, Sr., G, Nevada
Fenner exploded for 37 points on 12-15 shooting against rival UNLV Wednesday. At 49 percent, Fenner leads the league in three-point shooting.
2. Terrell Brown, Fr., G, San Jose State
Since getting starters minutes 5 games ago, Brown has been in double figures every game. The freshman scored 12 points against UNLV Saturday, including the game-winner with 13 seconds to go.
3. Jason McManamen, Sr., G, Wyoming
McManamen’s struggles shooting the ball since conference play started have hurt the team. However, he broke out of his funk in Wyoming’s 4 OT thriller against Fresno State, dropping 30 points and hitting seven threes.
Game of the Week
Colorado State at Wyoming, Tuesday Feb. 14, 9:00 ET
These teams hate each other’s guts, and they are matching up on Valentine’s Day. If Wyoming wants to make a push, getting a win at home in the Border War would be a good place to start.
Streaking
Since the three-point line was created by the NCAA in 1986, UNLV has played in exactly 1,000 games. And in those 1,000 games, the Runnin’ Rebels have hit a three-pointer in every single one. The four-figure mark was set Saturday against San Jose State when Uche Ofoegbu knocked one down in the first half. Princeton and Vanderbilt have also hit a 3 in every game since the rule was instituted, but the 1,000 mark is the longest out of all of them. If nothing else, this is another piece of obscure sports knowledge to carry going forward, or an only somewhat-convincing reason to watch the last-place Runnin’ Rebels.
