The WAC isn’t quite what it used to be and, with the M-West moving in such a positive direction, and the Pac-12 still dominating the recruiting trails due to their immense resource advantages, this league may not be getting better any time soon, but it still puts forth some decent basketball and usually produces a champion capable of making a run in the Dance.
Championship Picks
11 for #1 Nevada
7 for #2 New Mexico St. (Gersh, Gross, Lohse, Mac, RDoc, Teddy, Waters)
2 for #3 Idaho (KA, Stri)
Biggest Upsets
QF – #7 Fresno St. (J, KA)
SF – #4 Utah St. (Waters)
Previous CTC Champions
2011 – Waters
2010 – Teddy
2009 – Bry
2008 – Alexi
#3 Idaho vs. #6 Hawai’i
Hawaii was supposed to actually compete in this league this year, but it is always going to be hard for the Warriors because, as much as Hawaii sounds like a huge recruiting advantage, it actually isn’t because every road game is the equivalent of a cross-country flight for the mainland programs. And, if weather and lifestyle that dictated recruiting advantages, then I don’t think Lexington, KY; East Lansing, MI; Lawrence, KS; or Columbus, OH, would be the homes of some of the country’s elite programs. The Vandals of Idaho have had a really nice season this year, and have the ability to win this tournament, if everything falls right.
Bry, Lohse, and Waters are the only 3 with Hawaii here. Stri and KA both have Idaho winning this whole tournament, and 5 more people have them going to the finals (Alexi, Dave, J, RSmith, Scoot).
#2 New Mexico St. vs. #7 Fresno St.
Fresno St. was really bad early and pretty good late, so they’re playing their best ball at the right time, but it’s hard to imagine that even their absolute best would be good enough to beat a really good NMSU team on even an average day.
J and KA both have this big upset of Fresno. 7 people have NMSU winning this tournament (Gersh, Gross, Lohse, Mac, RDoc, Teddy, Waters).
#1 Nevada vs. #8 San Jose St.
The Wolfpack dominated the first month and a half of conference play, but showed signs of vulnerability late. They shouldn’t have any trouble with a bad SJSU team, but you never know.
No one has SJSU here, and the majority of the field has Nevada taking this title.
#4 Utah St. vs. #5 Louisiana Tech
La Tech looked like they were heading for a last-place finish and then something clicked. I have no idea what it was, but they just started beating teams, so we’ll see if they can carry it into this tournament. USU is not the typical USU team that we’ve come to know. They even lost a couple conference games at home – something previously unthinkable.
Only 3 people (Dave, Mac, Stri) have this mild upset of La Tech. Waters has USU going all the way to the finals.
