Analysis: Mountain West play begins. Where does Boise State fit as we rank the league?
Mountain West men’s basketball action begins Wednesday with a slate of five games.
Boise State opens the 2022-23 conference season on the road at Nevada. Tipoff is 8 p.m. Mountain time at Lawlor Events Center, and the game will be streamed online by Nevada Sports Net.
The Mountain West performed well during the nonconference portion of the season, with all but Wyoming and Fresno State finishing with winning records.
Below is a look at how teams have fared so far and a peek at what’s to come. Teams are ranked according to Idaho Statesman analysis of nonconference action.
1. New Mexico
Record: 12-0
MW preseason poll: 5th
Nonconference strength of schedule: 267
KenPom, NET ranking: 66, 14
Best win: Saint Mary’s (No. 18 KenPom)
One of three unbeaten teams remaining in the country, the Lobos started the season 12-0 for the first time since 2012-13 and are perfect in nonconference play for just the fifth time in program history. Jamal Mashburn Jr., a preseason all-conference pick, has scored in double figures 33 consecutive games and ranks second on the team at 16.8 points per game behind Morris Udeze’s 17.5 points per game. The Lobos are ranked No. 22 in the latest AP Top 25 and receiving votes in the Coaches Top 25 poll. New Mexico ranks second in the Mountain West and 12th nationally at 84.5 points per game.
2. San Diego State
Record: 9-3
MW preseason poll: 1st
Nonconference strength of schedule: 23
KenPom, NET ranking: 25, 38
Best win: Ohio State (No. 15 KenPom)
The Aztecs spent a portion of the season ranked after starting out with wins over BYU, Stanford and Ohio State. They are still receiving votes in both polls despite the toughest nonconference schedule among Mountain West teams. San Diego State was chosen as the league’s preseason favorite, receiving 16 of a possible 20 first-places votes. The Aztecs returned four starters from last year’s team, including 2021-22 MW Newcomer of the Year Matt Bradley, who averaged a team-leading 16.9 points, while shooting 43.8% from the field last season.
3. Utah State
Record: 11-2
MW preseason poll: 8th
Nonconference strength of schedule: 100
KenPom, NET ranking: 39, 22
Best win: Oral Roberts (No. 76 KenPom)
Receiving votes in both Top 25 polls until this week, the Aggies won their first nine games of the season to tie a school record. Utah State has been tough from 3-point range, ranking in the top 10 in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage (.447, 1st), effective field goal percentage (.598, 2nd) and 3-pointers made per game (11.50, 5th). The Aggies set a school record with 21 made 3-pointers in a win over Westminster on Dec. 15. Junior guard Steven Ashworth leads the MW and ranks fourth nationally in 3-point field goal percentage (.540), and leads the conference and ranks fifth in the nation in 3s made per game (4.00).
4. Boise State
Record: 10-3
MW preseason poll: 3rd
Nonconference strength of schedule: 146
KenPom, NET ranking: 60, 61
Best win: Colorado (No. 56 KenPom)
The reigning Mountain West regular season and tournament champions started the season 1-2 but then rattled off nine straight wins despite playing several games without leading scorer Marcus Shaver Jr., who is out with an undisclosed injury. During their nine-game winning streak, which ended with a loss at Santa Clara last week, the Broncos relied on their defense, which held opponents to 55.8 points per game while outscoring them by an average of 19.9 points. Boise State coach Leon Rice said Shaver’s return is “real close,” which could mean he’s back in time for the Broncos’ conference opener at Nevada.
5. Colorado State
Record: 8-5
MW preseason poll: 4th
Nonconference strength of schedule: 125
KenPom, NET ranking: 92, 84
Best win: Saint Mary’s (No. 18 KenPom)
Colorado State is coming off its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2013 after earning an at-large berth last season, and it had to replace reigning Mountain West Player of the Year David Roddy, who was selected 23rd overall by the Philadelphia 76ers and immediately traded to the Memphis Grizzlies. Senior guard Isaiah Stevens, a preseason all-conference pick, missed the first eight games of the Rams’ season with a broken bone in his foot. He has since returned to surpass more than 1,400 career points and currently ranks second in program history with 469 career assists.
6. UNLV
Record: 11-1
MW preseason poll: 6th
Nonconference strength of schedule: 222
KenPom, NET ranking: 75, 51
Best win: Dayton (No. 59 KenPom)
The Rebels featured six returners and nine newcomers, including six transfers from the Division I level. Jordan McCabe was the Rebels’ lone returning starter, though. UNLV started the season 10-0 — its best start since winning 34 straight in 1990-91. After defeating then-No. 21 Dayton on Nov. 15, UNLV began receiving votes in both of the Top 25 polls, but has since dropped out after a 75-73 loss to San Francisco. The Rebels have been good at turning over their opponent, ranking No. 2 nationally in turnover margin (8.0), third in turnovers forced per game (21) and fourth in steals per game (11.2).
7. Nevada
Record: 10-3
MW preseason poll: 9th
Nonconference strength of schedule: 95
KenPom, NET ranking: 87, 59
Best win: Sam Houston State (No. 80 KenPom)
Although the Wolf Pack lost their top two scorers from last season (Grant Sherfield and Desmond Cambridge Jr.) to the transfer portal, the new group has come together quickly, including six wins to start the season. Senior guard Jarod Lucas, an Oregon State transfer, leads the Wolf Pack in scoring and ranks fourth in the Mountain West at 16.8 points per game while knocking down 38.8% of his 3-point attempts. Senior guard Kenan Blackshear transitioned to point guard to replace Sherfield and ranks first in the Mountain West and 42nd nationally with 5.2 assists per game.
8. Wyoming
Record: 5-7
MW preseason poll: 2nd
Nonconference strength of schedule: 200
KenPom, NET ranking: 124, 218
Best win: Louisian Tech (No. 165 KenPom)
Wyoming returned eight lettermen who accounted for 85% of the team’s scoring and 84% of the team’s rebounding a year ago. But the Cowboys have played the season without preseason all-conference center Graham Ike — out indefinitely with a foot injury — and fellow preseason pick Hunter Maldonado missed one game with a head injury. The result is a losing record through nonconference play for a team that was expected to contend for a Mountain West title. Ike is expected to return some time in January, according to the Casper Star Tribune.
9. Fresno State
Record: 4-7
MW preseason poll: 7th
Nonconference strength of schedule: 108
KenPom, NET ranking: 139, 199
Best win: UC Irvine (No. 102 KenPom)
Fresno State entered the 2022-23 season with eight returners, including seniors Jemarl Baker, Jordan Campbell, Anthony Holland and Isaiah Hill. The Bulldogs were coming off a 23-win campaign in 2021-22 and a postseason title after winning The Basketball Classic in April, but they had to replace standout center Orlando Robinson, who is now in the NBA with the Miami Heat. Fresno State has taken its lumps to start the season, including losing five straight games and seven of its past 10. Hill (10.1 PPG), Holland (9.6 PPG), Campbell (7.1 PPG) and Leo Colimerio (5.3 PPG) are returning starters.
10. San Jose State
Record: 9-4
MW preseason poll: 10th
Nonconference strength of schedule: 258
KenPom, NET ranking: 152, 127
Best win: Santa Clara (No. 101 KenPom)
A perennial Mountain West cellar dweller — their last winning season came in 2010-11 — the Spartans already have more wins (9) than all of last season (8), but they’ve done so with one of the easier nonconference schedules in the Mountain West. San Jose State returned four starters: Omari Moore, Alvaro Cardenas, Trey Anderson and Tibet Görener. The Spartans added transfers Sage Tolbert III from Temple and Robert Vaihola from Fresno State. Moore was a 2021-22 All-Mountain West honorable mention honoree.
11. Air Force
Record: 9-4
MW preseason poll: 11th
Nonconference strength of schedule: 362
KenPom, NET ranking: 171, 151
Best win: Montana (No. 182 KenPom)
As they did last season, the Falcons benefited from one of the easiest nonconference schedules in all of Division I. Air Force is only two wins away from its total for all of last season (11), but conference victories will be hard to come by for the Falcons, who won just four Mountain West games a year ago. Air Force is riding a seven-game home winning streak, its longest since 2010. Seventeen of the 20 players on the Air Force roster are freshmen and sophomores.
