UTAH VALLEY AT SEATTLE, 4:00 PM Eastern (no TV)
Oh the Whacky WAC.
A week ago, the WAC looked like it might be the least competitive conference in the country. New Mexico State sat with a top 100 RPI and KenPom rating and was being discussed as a possible at-large candidate should they falter in the conference tournament. The rest of the conference was at or below .500 overall and had ratings in the sub-200 zone,. It is amazing what one week can do to change a team and conference’s fortunes.
On Thursday night, New Mexico State suffered a 5 point loss in a thrilling game to Chicago State. They followed that up last night with another thriller, and another loss, to the UMKC Kangaroos. As a result, the door to the WAC championship seems to have been thrown wide open, and the SCGD has diverted course from our original destination today (the huge C-USA showdown between Louisiana Tech and Southern Miss) to instead head to the Pacific Northwest as the Utah Valley Wolverines travel to take on the Seattle Redhawks.
Utah Valley is the current WAC leader at 3-0 in conference and 9-7 overall. Their current four game winning streak has them well into the top 200 in all ratings. While their non-conference schedule did not feature any great wins, they do have a victory over a Weber State team that may be among the best in the Big Sky. More importantly, the Wolverines are off to a great start in conference play, as they seek their first ever NCAA tournament bid (in fact, this is the first season that have been in a conference that receives an automatic bid after spending the last four in the Great West).
Seattle is not seeking its first ever NCAA bid this year, though it has been quite some time for the Redhawks. Seattle last made the field in 1969, and after the 1980 season dropped down out of Division I. Five years ago they decided to make the jump back up in divisions, and completed their transition, becoming postseason eligible, as of last season. So far this year they are 9-8 overall, but only 1-3 in WAC play. A win today, however, will get them right back into the thick of things in this suddenly wide open conference race.