The Mountain West Conference has put together a number of quality teams this season. But which teams will make it out of the MWC and onto the big stage at the NCAA Tournament? Which Mountain West hoops teams have what it takes to finish hard and make their way to the ultimate prize among mid-major basketball teams—the NCAA Tournament? Let’s take a look at a few of the strongest Mountain West Conference basketball teams at this point in the year, and see if a few of them have a shot at winning the league title and advancing to the NCAA Tourney. Make sure you root for your team down the stretch by buying NCAA basketball tickets at StubHub.com and coming out to all the home games.

New Mexico – The Lobos are out in front of the Mountain West right now, but not by much.  As of Feb. 21, 2010, New Mexico is atop the conference standings with an 11-2 conference record and a 25-3 overall record, ahead of BYU in the league standings by less than a game. New Mexico has an AP ranking of 12, which is pretty darn solid at this point in the year, so even if they can’t lock down the league title, the Lobs will get a ticket to the dance based on their regular season play. One thing that might give reason for doubt is the fact that New Mexico hasn’t played many tough teams from large conferences.  Wins over Cal and Texas A&M are the highlights of the schedule, but other than that the Lobos need more experience against the major conferences.  Still, they bring an 11-game win streak into their Feb. 23 meeting with Colorado State.

BYU – The Cougars of BYU are right on the heels of the Lobos, and they’re also looking to secure either a conference title or an at-large bid to the tourney. With an AP ranking of 16, BYU looks like a lock to get into the Tourney either way.  This team was perhaps at its peak back in the end of January, when they were 20-1, just having beaten San Diego State in a tough away game. They fumbled two games to tough teams, and now they’re headed into the final four regular season games with a three-game win streak.  According to KenPom.com, one of the leading college basketball stats websites on the Internet, BYU possess the No. 8 overall offense in the nation, sparked by sharpshooting from the outside, and an incredible free throw consistency. This is a team that could go far in the NCAA Tourney.

The Best of the Rest – UNLV and San Diego State are both prototypical “bubble” teams as good programs with solid resume achievements, but that might get bounced out at the last minute by other good teams. It’s a good thing these two teams do not play one another again in the regular season.

Not all of these teams will make the Tournament, and it’s even possible that a Mountain West team will come from out of nowhere to advance to the national scene. So you’d better pay attention to this thrilling conference as the rest of the season plays out—you never know when something maddening will happen in the month of March.

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