WAC Basketball At Its Best

Ejm travels out West to watch the Aggies take on the WAC

Many Aggies will remember some of the ol’ Big West arenas like CS Northridge’s Matadome or Long Beach State’s Pyramid, each partially filled with a handful of fans to watch a hard-fought Big West battle, especially when Utah State came to town. Driving through San Jose reminded me of Big West days. My wife and I were able to visit the Winchester Mystery House. For those of you who haven’t had a chance to visit this bizarre place, you must go. But after leaving there and then going to the Events Center on the campus of San Jose State, you may feel like you’re still visiting the Winchester Mystery House. The mystery: How is it that such a large metropolitan area like San Jose, capital of the Silicon Valley, does not support their local team more? Sure, they haven’t turned heads in quite some time, probably dating back to their old Big West days. But college athletics is still the best form of spectator sports. Upon entering the Events Center, you are reminded of such arenas as Long Beach St’s Pyramid. And not surprisingly, Utah St played just as they had in the Big West, winning a hard-fought battle 67-56 in typical Aggie basketball fashion. There were no flashy dunks or ally-oops, but with Stew’s style of team basketball, the result was as expected: a solid conference victory.

After driving between deep snow drifts in Donner Pass and wondering how snow plows were ever able to remove that much snow, my wife and I were able to arrive in the San Joaquin Valley, the breadbasket of the U.S. The hub of that breadbasket is Fresno, California, where all three of my maternal uncles live. Driving through the endless and rich fields of the San Joaquin Valley has always made me feel at home. Countless times I was tempted to drive our Aggie-blue Ford Ranger on the side of Highway 99 to visit an orchard or to take a byway to one of the many large dairy farms along the way. Many Californians will sniff at Fresno, calling it “Fresneck” or other choice names. To this Utahan, Fresno will always be a treasured destination.

It will be even more treasured after Utah St’s match-up with Fresno St on January 7 of 2006. This was a game that every college basketball fan lives for. There were in-your-face dunks, last second three point shots, fans thinking the game was over before the fat lady sang, athleticism and skill. Since Aggie fans know the outcome (Fresno St won in 2OT on January 7), let me talk about a few things that stood out to me. At the end of regulation where Matheus was fouled, I was certain that he was fouled in the process of shooting. Matheus missed his first free throw and regulation time abruptly ended, leaving me in confusion.

In the first overtime, Fresno St’s Quinton Hosley was a force that Utah St was not able to stop. Regardless of this, Utah St still had an opportunity to win with a 1/3-court shot by Nate Harris, which missed. Later, in the second overtime, I thought the game would be over after Fresno St built a 10-point lead. Utah St was not to be denied. This was something I’ve never witnessed from an Aggie team ever before. After pulling within three points at 1:19, Jaycee Carroll did not realize that there was an abundance of time left on the clock and committed a foul. Ja’Vance Coleman punished him by making one free throw, turning it into a 4-point game with 1:15 left to play.

Still, Utah St had gained the momentum necessary to overcome the 4-point deficit. Utah St in-bounded the ball into Fresno St’s ¾ court pressure. Nate Harris received a pass, beyond the three-point line, only to realize with much surprise that he had a clear lane to the basket. Nate, with much determination, took the ball to the hoop and jammed! The Aggies were down 2 points with 1:07 to play.

This game was well within reach, once again. David Pak then stole the ball from Kevin Bell on Fresno St’s in-bound play. Kevin Bell then committed a Jaycee-Carroll-like foul. David Pak punished him by making one free throw. Utah St was down by 1 point now with 51 seconds to play. Sadly, Fresno St’s Dwight O’Neil was able to break down Utah St’s defense and score a lay-up with 27 seconds left, putting Fresno St ahead by 3 points.

Nothing can describe the amazement in me after David Pak brought the ball up the court and passed to Nate Harris just beyond the three-point line. Nate was wide open for a 3-point shot. Nate calmly examined the basketball and shot his set shot from three… nothing but net! I couldn’t believe it! Utah St had tied the game! You could hear my shout of joy across the 16,000-fan capacity Save Mart Center.

But there was too much time left. There was, in fact, 17 seconds left. All you have to say to Utah St fans is “Jerry Green” when the opposing team has the ball at the end of the game. Sure enough, Ja’Vance Coleman left a dagger in every Aggie’s heart by drilling a three point shot at the end of the second overtime. All I could say was, “Wow! Wow! What a game!”

Now Utah St was 1-2 in conference play with an upcoming home game against league-leading Louisiana Tech and favorite Nevada on the road. What would become of Utah St’s long-time greatness in basketball under Stew Morrill? Well, Utah St held serve in the Spectrum by beating Louisiana Tech 64-55. Utah St fans had been educated as to how much talent the WAC would offer in that game. And, at the same time, WAC teams had been taught how difficult it is to win in the Dee Glenn Smith Spectrum where Utah St boasts a 107-9 (.922) record under Stew Morrill. La Tech’s 6’8” 245lb Paul Millsap scored 20 points and grabbed 17 rebounds. I’m still asking myself when the last time an opposing college basketball player came to Logan and scored that many points and grabbed that many rebounds.

This is the WAC, yet Utah St now was sitting squarely in second place with a 4-2 conference record. Next up for Utah St would be Nevada, the favorite to win the conference regular season title. Nevada had beaten Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas, a feat that many only dream of. On top of that, many were touting Nick Fazekas as the conference MVP and future NBA first round draft pick. This would surely be a loss for Utah St. Surely? Don’t doubt Stew. Utah St pulled off a tremendous victory (59-53) after leading nearly the entire game by as much as 10 points or more. Utah St is now sitting at 5-2 and still claims second place in the WAC, a half game behind La Tech. But what is to become of the rest of the season? Will there be a post season?

Let me try to answer both of those questions the best way I know how. Utah St has 11 games remaining, 2 of those against OOC opponents, 7 of those at home, and 4 of those games on the road against conference foes. Boise St and Idaho are two of those conference road games. Idaho has not won a game in conference play, but has nothing to lose and could be dangerous. Boise St has a 2-4 conference record and plays a style of basketball that depends on an up-tempo game. Both are games that Utah St should win and must win if they are interested in playing in March and getting national attention. New Mexico St, 3-2, and La Tech, 5-1, are the other two games on the road. It is very conceivable that Utah St would lose at least one of those games. I’ll leave it to the mind of the reader to guess what the outcomes will be.

Utah St has 5 home conference games left. Those teams are a combined 13-13 in conference play. Hawaii is 4-2 and plays in Logan on Big Monday, televised by ESPN. Nevada will come in with revenge on their minds and will give Utah St everything they can handle. I’ve said it from the beginning of the year, and pardon my optimism, but Utah St won’t lose at home this season. Therefore, Utah St’s final conference record could end up being anywhere between 12-4 and 14-2. Obviously 14-2 will, in all likelihood, be good enough for a regular season title. 12-4 may not be good enough depending on numerous factors. As the 10th best conference in the country, it is probable that Utah St would get an at-large bid with a regular season outright title, granted there aren’t any hiccups to South Dakota State or to Idaho. Utah St also has a game to be played in Logan for the ESPN Bracket Buster. At this point, it seems likely that the game will not only be televised by ESPN, keeping in mind Utah St’s standing in a highly regarded WAC, but Utah St could be matched up with an opponent that would improve its RPI. Assuming Utah St doesn’t win the WAC Tournament, the team could finish anywhere between 22-7 and 26-4 by Selection Sunday.

Many Aggie fans remember the 2004 debacle that left many of them wondering if it were possible for Utah St to get an at-large bid. It was evident that Utah St was the top team left out of the Big Dance. The NCAA selection committee clearly defined the border of the Bubble by not inviting Utah St. If this year’s team establishes a greater resume than the 2004 Aggies, they’ll be invited. Air Force was an example of a team that many felt did not deserve to get in over Utah St. Air Force had won the Mountain West Conference’s regular season title only to lose Colorado State in the first round of the MWC tournament. Air Force finished the regular season with an RPI of 70. They were also outright regular season champions in the Mountain West Conference, rated the 7th best conference that year.

In summary here’s each team’s resume that year.

Air Force, 2004:
RPI: 70
SOS: 183
Overall Record: 22-6
Conference Record: 12-2
Bad Losses: UT Pan Am (212)
Good Wins: BYU (31), Utah (36) twice
Conference RPI: 7
Notables: Regular Season Conference Champion, Outright

Utah St, 2004:
RPI: 43
SOS: 186
Overall Record: 24-3
Conference Record: 17-1
Bad Losses: CS Northridge (186)
Good Wins: BYU (31)
Conference RPI: 18
Notables: Share of regular season title.
Utah St, 2006:
RPI: Currently about 50 (better)
SOS: 163 (better)
Overall Record: ???
Conference Record: ???
Bad Losses: Possibly Utah (currently 150)
Good Wins: Possible Bracket Buster Team, possibly Nevada
Conference RPI: 10 (better)
Notables: An outright conference regular season title with no hick-ups seems to be a must.

Can Utah St establish a better resume? Will the national picture line up so that the committee doesn’t have to leave out what could be a deserving Utah St team? You decide. And, as you ponder your decision, ponder this: Don’t you think it’s great to be in the WAC? Go Aggies!