Mountain West Wire’s Player of The Year Watch List: Week One

We are tracking each Mountain West performance of this week to determine the player of the year.

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Mountain West Wire’s Player of The Year Watch List: Week One


Take A Look At Who Played Well for Mountain West Teams In Week One.


Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

Who is in the running for Player of the Year?

The staff at the Mountain West Wire wanted to do something a little different this year. We are going to keep track of the top performers from teams around the Mountain West throughout the year and vote on who had the best performances that week. 

How It Works: 

Each person will award 15 points in total to five players and should award it as so:

1st place (Player of the week): 5 pts

2nd place: 4 pts

3rd place: 3 pts

4th place: 2 pts

5th place: 1 pt

The player with the most points total will be our player of the week and we will keep track of the point totals every week so that the player who has the most at the end of the year will receive the Mountain West Wire Player of the Year award. Just copy the players below and type your names above it like we do for the pick them docs we get and award your points. 

Now some guys made the list and others didn’t. A big thing to think about was consistency throughout the week. Something that hurt some guys was having a decent game one day and a bad one the other day. Guys who made the list had a great game one day and a good one on other days, or good games both days.

This column will come out on Sunday nights or Monday mornings depending on how late some games finish on Sundays. 

The order for the first week is as follows:

1. Lindsey Drew, senior guard Nevada (5 points):

30 Points 8 Assists 6 Rebounds against Utah 

24 Points 9 Rebounds 7 Assists against Loyola Marymount 

2. Derrick Alston Jr, junior guard BSU (4 points):

25 Points 5 Rebounds 4 Assists against Life-Pacific 

28 Points 2 Rebounds against Oregon 

3. Amauri Hardy, junior guard UNLV (3 points):

15 Points 6 Assists 5 Rebounds against Purdue Fort-Wayne 

27 Points 4 Rebounds 3 Assists against Kansas State 

4. Jordan Schakel, junior guard SDSU (2 points):

15 Points 4 Rebounds 2 Assists against Texas Southern 

19 Points 5 Rebounds against Brigham Young 

5. Sam Merrill, senior guard USU (1 point):

28 Points 5 Rebounds 3 Assists against Montana State 

14 Points 6 Rebounds 6 Assists against Weber State 

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Future Hoops Foes: Week One Recap of Week Two’s Opponents

Get a quick preview of each team this week on the schedule.

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Taking a Look Mountain West Opponents in Week Two and how they Performed in Week One.


Each Mountain West Team’s Opponents for Week Two


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Take a look at each team’s opponents for this week and how they did last week.

We seek to take a look at each team’s opponents for the next week while also taking a look at their performance the previous week. These should be coming out on Sunday nights or Monday mornings going forward until the end of non-conference play depending on possible late night games on Sunday or not. And then traditional previews will take over since with conference play comes more familiarity with opponents.

Air Force Falcons 

Tues, Nov. 12th 

Army Black Knights:

Coach K’s alma mater is 1-1 on the season but that lone win comes against the US Merchant Marine Academy. That lone loss came at the hands of 10th ranked Villanova by 43 points. They are led by senior guard Tommy Funk who is averaging 13.0 PPG, 6.0 RPG and 4.5 APG. These military academy games mean a lot to these schools and I look forward to the Falcons taking the Black Knights on at home. 

Boise State Broncos

Fri, Nov. 15th 

California-Irvine Anteaters:

The Anteaters will face a familar face to Boise State fans in Life-Pacific on Tuesday. But after that they take on Boise State in The Taco Bell Arena on Friday. Irvine is 1-1 so far downing San Diego on opening night and losing to Pepperdine on Saturday by 3 points in Malibu. UC-Irvine is led by senior guard Evan Leonard who is averaging 19.0 PPG, 6.0 RPG and 2.0 APG through two games. 

Colorado State Rams 

Wed, Nov. 13th 

Omaha Mavericks:

The Mavericks are 1-1 on the season but have not won against a division one team thus far. They are led by junior guard Ayo Akinwole who is averaging 16.5 PPG, 8.5 RPG and 7.0 APG through two games and has junior forward Matt Pile who is averaging a double-double (14.0 PPG and 12.0 RPG). 

Sat, Nov. 16th

Loyola Marymount Lions:

Loyola Marymount is coming off of a close loss to Nevada in Reno on Saturday which put them at 1-1 on the season. Eli Scott was the guy on Saturday but the Lions are actually led by sophomore forward Ivan Alipiev who is leading the team with 19.0 PPG and 7.5 RPG. 

Fresno State Bulldogs 

Tues, Nov. 12th 

San Diego Torreros:

San Diego is in a bit of a rebuild after losing a talented group of seniors last year. They are 0-2 on the season and are led by sophomore guard Joey Calcaterra, who is averaging 16.0 PPG in both losses. 

Sun, Nov. 17th 

California State University San Bernardino Coyotes:

The Bulldogs take on an undefeated Coyotes team who have two wins against division two opponents. They are led by senior guard Jeremy Smith who is averaging 26 PPG through week one. 

Nevada Wolf Pack 

Tues, Nov. 12th 

Texas-Arlington Mavericks:

The Mavericks are off to a great 2-0 start including a 14 point win against Tulsa on Saturday. Watch out for senior forward Jabari Narcis who is averaging 11.5 PPG, 7.0 RPG and 2.0 BPG. If he has a big night in the paint, the Wolf Pack don’t have enough front court depth to keep him in check. 

Sat, Nov. 16th

Southern California Trojans:

As Andy Enfield’s seat started to get a bit hot in Los Angeles he went out and got one of the best recruiting classes in the last decade for the Trojans and it’s paying off. His team is being led by his two five star freshman Isaiah Mobley and Onyeka Okongwu, and Big O is showing dominant play while averaging a double-double (20.0 PPG and 11.5 RPG). 

New Mexico Lobos 

Wed, Nov. 13th

Green Bay Phoenix:

The Phoenix are 1-1 on the season after a 51 point win against Wisconsin-Stout and a loss at Purdue. Watch out for freshman guard Amari Davis who averaged 12.5 PPG in last weeks action and junior guard PJ Pipes who is averaging 2.5 SPG. 

Sat, Nov. 16th

Mcneese State Cowboys:

The cowboys are 0-2 on the season and face Wisconsin on Wednesday before taking on the Lobos on Saturday. Look out for junior guard AJ Lawson who averaged 17.5 PPG in two games against Western Michigan and Louisiana Lafayette.

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Nov. 12 Mountain West Basketball Picks, TV Schedule, Odds

Nov. 12 Mountain West Basketball Picks, TV Schedule, Odds A few big games this Tuesday. Contact/Follow @MWCwire How many wins will the MW get? Air Force at Army, 7 p.m. et, TV: STADIUM KenPom: Army -2 Final Score: Air Force 69, Army 57 . …

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Nov. 12 Mountain West Basketball Picks, TV Schedule, Odds


A few big games this Tuesday.


Contact/Follow @MWCwire

How many wins will the MW get?

Air Force at Army, 7 p.m. et, TV: STADIUM

KenPom: Army -2

Final Score: Air Force 69, Army 57

Jeremy: Army

Brandon B: Air Force

Josh F: Army

Ted: Air Force

Eric: Air Force

Andrew: Air Force

Jesse: Air Force

Denver at Utah State, 9 p.m. ET, TV: MOUNTAIN WEST NETWORK

KenPom: Aggies -21

Final Score: Utah State 97, Denver 56

Jeremy: Utah State

Brandon B: Utah State

Josh F: Utah State

Ted Utah State

Eric: Utah State

Andrew: Utah State

Jesse: Utah State

UT Arlington at Nevada, 10 p.m. et, tv: mountain west network

KenPom: Nevada -7

Final Score: Nevada 80, UT-Arlington 73

Jeremy: Nevada

Brandon B: Nevada

Josh F: Nevada

Ted: Nevada

Eric: Nevada

Andrew: UT Arlington (obligatory upset pick)

Jesse: Nevada

Fresno State at San Diego, 10 p.m. et, TV: WCC NETWORK

KenPom: Fresno State -1

Final Score: San Diego 72, Fresno State 66

Jeremy: San Diego

Brandon B: Fresno State 

Josh F: San Diego

Ted: San Diego

Eric: Fresno State

Andrew: Fresno State

Jesse: San Diego

UNLV at Cal, 11 p.m. et, TV: pac-12 network

KenPom: Cal -4

Jeremy: Cal

Brandon B: UNLV

Josh F: Cal

Ted: Cal

Eric: UNLV

Andrew: UNLV

Jesse: UNLV

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College Basketball Rankings: Utah State Remains No. 17 In AP Poll

Utah State is a top 20 team while San Diego State is getting votes.

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College Basketball Rankings: Utah State Remains No. 17 In AP Poll


Aggies go 2-0 and are No. 17


Contact/Follow @JeremyMauss & @MWCwire

Utah State remains in top 20

The first week of college basketball is in the books and there were not too many surprises that happened to shake up the rankings. The Champions Classic shuffled the top five since the top four teams played but that is about it.

Utah State is 2-0 after a fairly close win over Montana State and then the Aggies demolished in-state foe Weber State 89-34. Those results kept the Aggies at No. 17 in the latest rankings. The next chance for Utah State to make a move is when they take on No. 23 LSU but that game is not until Nov. 22 in a neutral site game in Jamaica.

San Diego State is getting som consideration by earning two points after wins vs. Texas Southern and a quality win on the road to defeat BYU, 76-71.

The Aztecs have just one game this week against Grand Canyon but they have struggled this year and are 0-2 with losses to Illinois and Davidson. So, a win over GCU may not have that big of an impact in the rankings.

AP Poll – Week 2

Rank Team Points Previous
1 Kentucky (64) 1,622 2
2 Duke 1,538 4
3 Michigan State 1,451 1
4 Louisvile 1,425 (1) 5
5 Kansas 1,354 3
6 North Carolina 1,187 9
7 Maryland 1,166 7
8 Gonzaga 1,136 8
9 Virginia 1,134 11
10 Villanova 1,064 10
11 Texas Tech 888 13
12 Seton Hall 869 12
13 Memphis 828 14
14 Oregon 804 15
15 Florida 616 6
16 Ohio State 544 18
17 Utah State 507 17
18 Saint Mary’s 438 20
19 Arizona 415 21
20 Washington 373 NR
21 Xavier 370 19
22 Auburn 247 24
23 LSU 237 22
24 Baylor 179 16
25 Colorado 151 NR

Others receiving votes:VCU 137, Florida St. 112, Texas 95, Marquette 67, Tennessee 49, Providence 23, Purdue 21, Houston 18, Utah 14, Missouri 13, Arkansas 11, Mississippi St. 9, Georgetown 4, Liberty 3, San Diego St. 2, Creighton 1, Dayton 1, Northeastern 1, Vermont 1.

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