Six Mountain West Hoops Programs Among Top 60
Courtesy of Theresa Kurtz , Mountain West Conference
Around the Mountain West
The Mountain West is celebrating its 25th season of men's basketball during the 2023-24 campaign.
In the current NET rankings, the Mountain West has six programs ranked among the top 60: New Mexico (18), San Diego State (20), Utah State (24), Colorado State (28), Boise State (35) and Nevada (56). These six teams are a combined 104-28 on the season, including a 69-10 mark in nonconference action.
The Mountain West is one of two conferences (Big 12, 9; MW, 5) with five or more teams ranked among the top 35 of the current NET rankings.
The Mountain West is 104-38 (.732) in nonconference action in 2023-24, the fourth-best nonconference record among the 32 conferences. The MW has had a nonconference winning percentage of .600 or better in each of the last four seasons.
The Mountain West is one of two conferences (Big 12) that has at least six teams with 16 or more wins on the year.
Best in the WEST. The Mountain West is 24-7 against the Pac-12 (6-1) and West Coast Conference (18-6) in 2023-24.
The Mountain West is one of three conferences (Big 12, SEC) that has six or more teams with an overall winning percentage of .700 or better.
The Mountain West is the only conference to have all its teams finish the nonconference slate with a winning percentage above .500.
Three Mountain West teams are ranked in this week's Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls entering the 14th week of the 2023-24 season. Utah State ranks No. 22 in the AP poll and No. 21 in the coaches poll, San Diego State ranks 24th in both polls, while New Mexico is No. 25 in both polls.
For the third week this season, the Mountain West has three teams ranked in the Associated Press poll with New Mexico, San Diego State and Utah State among the top 25 heading into the 14th week of the season.
The Mountain West is one of five conferences (Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, MW, SEC) with three or more teams ranked in the Associated Press poll.
Boise State and Colorado State are receiving votes in the national polls.
Five MW guards rank among the top 20 in the nation in total assists. Colorado State's Isaiah Stevens is fourth in the nation with 157 assists, while Utah State's Darius Brown II is seventh with 150 assists. Fresno State's Isaiah Hill ranks 17th with 134 assists and San José State's Alvaro Cardenas and New Mexico's Donovan Dent are tied for 19th with 130 helpers each.
CSU's Stevens and SDSU's Jaedon LeDee have been named to the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 and the Lute Olson watch lists. Additionally, Utah State's Great Osobor was named to the Lute Olson watch list.
The Mountain West is one of five conferences (ACC, Big 12, Big East, SEC) with three or more student-athletes on the Lute Olson watch list.
SDSU's LeDee and USU's Osobor are finalists for the Karl Malone Award, while CSU's Stevens is a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award.