Sam Wasson of bleedCRIMSON.net and Travis Mason-Bushman of Vandal Nation are the RTC correspondents for the Western Athletic Conference.

The top four teams in the league put on an strong showing in the ESPNU BracketBusters on Saturday with Utah State, New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech all picking up victories in their nationally televised games. Nevada came up just short against Missouri State leaving the league with a 3-1 record. The rest of the league did not fare as well as the remaining five teams went 1-4 in their BracketBusters games with San Jose State being the only team to win their non-conference matchup.

With BracketBusters out of the way, fans now turn their attention back to the league race. It’s down to the final two weeks of play and the top four teams still all have a chance to win the league. Utah State leads the race to the finish line at 11-2. Just behind the Aggies are the league’s other Aggies, New Mexico State at 9-3. Louisiana Tech and Nevada are tied at 8-4 in third place. The path to the regular season title appears to heads through Logan, UT, as the UtAgs finish with two of three at home including a showdown with second place New Mexico State. NM State hosts the Idaho schools before closing out the season on the road at Nevada and Utah State. Nevada likewise finishes with two on the road and two at home as they’ll head to San Jose and Honolulu this week before returning home to face New Mexico State and La. Tech. La. Tech also hosts the Idaho schools before finishing the season at Fresno State and at Nevada. With quality competition among the top four it’s anyone’s guess how the top four seedings will shake out but it’s guaranteed to be an exciting finish.

Current Standings

1. Utah State, 22-6 (11-2)
2. New Mexico State, 17-9 (9-3)
3. Louisiana Tech, 21-6 (8-4)
4. Nevada 16-10 (8-4)
5. Fresno State, 13-15 (6-7)
6. San Jose State 13-12 (5-7)
7. Idaho, 13-13 (4-8)
8. Hawai’i, 9-17 (2-10)
9. Boise State, 12-15 (2-10)

Team Rundowns

Boise State, 12-15 (2-10).  The Broncos split a pair of games against Big West foes as they defeated Cal State-Bakersfield 81-62 but fell 82-74 to UC Davis in an ESPNU BracketBusters game. The Broncos are fighting not only for their postseason lives but potentially their coach’s job as well. The Broncos head out on the road to face top half foes La. Tech and NM State this week. The Broncos lost by 15 to the Bulldogs in Boise while they were more competitive against the Aggies falling by just three.

The week’s results:  02/17 W vs. Cal State-Bakersfield, 81-62, 02/20 L vs. UC-Davis, 82-74

Upcoming games:  02/25 @ Louisiana Tech, 02/27 @ New Mexico State

Fresno State, 13-15 (6-7).  The Bulldogs lost a close contest to Big West leading UC Santa Barbara on Saturday in an ESPNU BracketBusters game. Fresno State had a chance to take the lead late in the game but a three pointer from Paul George clanked off the back of the rim and UCSB held on for the win. Up next for Fresno is a pair of in-state games against CS-Bakersfield and then a showdown at San Jose State, a battle for fifth place in the league and a chance to showcase two of the league’s most dynamic players in Paul George and Adrian Oliver.

The week’s results:  02/20 L vs. UC-Santa Barbara, 64-60

Upcoming games:  02/23 vs. Cal State-Bakersfield, 02/27 @ San Jose State, 03/01 @ Utah state

Hawai’i, 9-17 (2-10).  The slide continues for the Warriors as they’ve dropped eight in a row. Hawai’i fell on the road by 24 at New Mexico State in a game that wasn’t even that close. Then in an ESPNU BracketBusters game that the injury-riddled team would rather have not been playing, the Warriors lost to Cal Poly 102-89, again a game not nearly as close as the final margin indicated. UH fell behind by 21 points at halftime but to their credit they scored 59 points in the second half. Unfortunately for Warrior fans, the Mustangs scored 51 points in a half where defense was clearly optional. Hawai’i hosts Utah State and Nevada this week and perhaps the 59 point outburst is a sign that the Warriors are ready to emerge from the dark tunnel of losing.

The week’s results:  02/15 L @ New Mexico State, 88-64, 02/20 L vs. Cal Poly, 102-89

Upcoming games:  02/26 vs. Utah State, 02/28 vs. Nevada

Idaho, 13-13 (4-8).  The up and down season for the Vandals continues as they dispatched Seattle 82-72 only to fall to Long Beach State two nights later in the BracketBusters. Idaho appears to have clinched their spot in the WAC Tournament but need to win at least one more game to mathematically clinch a spot. UI travels to second place New Mexico State for a nationally televised game on ESPN2 followed by a trip to third place Ruston to take on La. Tech.

The week’s results:  02/18 W vs. Seattle, 82-72, 02/20 L vs. Long Beach State, 77-66

Upcoming games:  02/24 @ New Mexico State, 02/27 @ Louisiana Tech

Louisiana Tech, 21-6 (8-4).  The Bulldogs were two plays away from finishing the week 2-0 and two plays away from finishing the week 0-2. Instead they came away with a 1-1 record. A bad pass late in the game cost the Bulldogs a potential rare victory in Logan against Utah State but in their ESPNU BracketBusters game it was a banked three pointer by DeAndre Brown that gave the Bulldogs a 70-67 win over Northeastern. LTU hosts the Idaho squads this week before closing out the regular season on the road. The question for the Bulldogs is was the Northeastern victory enough to put them on the bubble? Aside from a loss at San Jose State, La. Tech doesn’t really have a bad loss. Their two non-conference losses were at New Mexico, a Top 15 team, and at Arizona. Conference losses to New Mexico State and Utah State are certainly nothing to be ashamed of.

The week’s results:  02/17 L @ Utah State, 67-61, 02/20 W @ Northeastern, 70-67

Upcoming games:  02/25 vs. Boise State, 02/27 vs. Idaho

Nevada 16-10 (8-4).  The Wolf Pack snuck out a victory over Fresno State 74-70 and lost a close game against Missouri State in the ESPNU BracketBusters. UNR head on the road to San Jose and Hawai’i this week. The game against the Spartans won’t be easy as SJSU has beaten both New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech earlier this season in San Jose and the trip to Hawai’i is never easy due in large part to the travel requirements. A road sweep this week will set up a demanding final week in which the Wolf Pack can potentially earn a regular season title with some help from Utah State’s opponents.

The week’s results:  02/17 vs. Fresno State, 02/20 @ Missouri State

Upcoming games:  02/25 @ San Jose State, 02/28 @ Hawai’i

New Mexico State (17-9, 9-3).  The crimson-clad Aggies earned a pair of victories last week with a 24-point win over depleted Hawai’i and then an 84-78 BracketBusters win over Pacific. NM State is now 5-0 in the BracketBusters event and they continued their domination of Pacific having won 30 of 38 meetings between the two schools. The Aggies host the Idaho schools this week. A home sweep will give the Aggies a chance to win at least a share of the regular season title with the northern navy-clad Aggies.

The week’s results:  02/15 W 88-64 vs. Hawai’i, 02/20 W @ Pacific, 84-78

Upcoming games:  02/24 vs. Idaho, 02/27 vs. Boise State

San Jose State 13-12 (5-7).  The Spartans earned the WAC’s only non-televised BracketBusters victory with their 77-66 win over Montana State. Up next for SJSU is Nevada and Fresno State at home. A home sweep can move Spartans up in the league standings and potentially set themselves up for a shot at a finish as high as fourth. The game at home against Fresno State gives the Spartans a chance to shine on national television on ESPNU.

The week’s results:  02/20 @ Montana State

Upcoming games:  02/25 vs. Nevada, 02/27 vs. Fresno State

Utah State, 22-6 (11-2).  The Aggies had the best week in the league defeating a pair of 20-win teams at home. Utah State escaped with a win over Louisiana Tech, 67-61, and dispatched of one of the Missouri Valley’s best in Wichita State, 68-58. USU has won 12 in a row and with an RPI of 33 has to be considered a strong bubble team. However, losses to Long Beach State (13-14) and Utah (12-14) don’t look good on the resume. The UtAgs can close out a regular season title if they’re able to take care of Hawai’i and Fresno State which could set up a one-game playoff for the regular season title and the top seed in the WAC tournament if the crimson-clad Aggies take care of their end of things.

The week’s results:  02/17 vs. Louisiana Tech, 02/21 vs. Wichita State

Upcoming games:   02/25 @ Hawai’i, 03/01 vs. Fresno State

UPCOMING GAMES

• 02/23 – Fresno State vs. Cal State-Bakersfield – 7:00 p.m. PT
• 02/24 – New Mexico State vs. Idaho – 9:00 p.m. MT (ESPN2)
• 02/25 – San Jose State vs. Nevada – 7:00 p.m. PT (Comcast SportsNet California)
• 02/25 – Louisiana Tech vs. Boise State – 7:00 p.m. CT
• 02/25 – Hawai’i vs. Utah State – 7:00 p.m. HT
• 02/27 – Louisiana Tech vs. Idaho – 7:00 p.m. CT
• 02/27 – San Jose State vs. Fresno State – 7:00 p.m. PT (ESPNU)
• 02/27 – Hawai’i vs. Nevada – 7:00 p.m. HT (Comcast SportsNet California)
• 02/27 – New Mexico State vs. Boise State – 7:00 p.m. MT (KTVB-Boise, AggieVision-New Mexico)
• 03/01 – Utah State vs. Fresno State – 7:00 p.m. MT (Bulldog Sports Network)

rtmsf (3998 Posts)

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 at 12:41 pm by rtmsf and is filed under Checking In On, wac. Tagged: adrian oliver, boise st, deandre brown, fresno st, hawaii, idaho, louisiana tech, nevada, new mexico st, paul george, san jose st, utah st, wac. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.