YCS College Basketball Preview-Sober Section

A third of the Mountain West outlaws drinking, but the arrival of J.R. Giddens should balance things out. Alcoholics need not worry, party school San Diego State looks to be the heavy favorite. Once again, NCAA Tournament picks in bold italics, NIT choice italics.

1. San Diego State: Ryan Amoroso has the Aztecs as 7-6 favorites to take home another Mountain West championship. Steve Fisher has built another strong squad, even without the help of Ed Martin and the Fabulously Paid For Five. Brandon Heath, last season's leading scorer in Mountain West at 18.4 points a game, returns to lead the Aztecs up tempo attack. In his senior season, the 6'4 Heath will look to run the offense more in preperation for his professional future. Joining Heath in the backcourt will be 5'9 sophomore Richie Williams. Williams had a very solid freshman year, averaging just under 7 points a game to go with 4 assists. He does a nice job of leading the talented Aztecs attack. Freshman Kashif Watson will be spell both Williams and Heath. The 6'3 combo guard was an excellent pick-up for the Aztecs and will give Fisher the flexibility to play three guards against smaller teams. Even with the departure of double-double man Marcus Slaughter, the Aztecs still have an outstanding frontcourt. Sophomore Kyle Spain had a very respectable freshman season, averaging 9 points and 6 rebounds a game. The 6'5, 218 pound Spain can bang low, and shot 51.7 % from behind the arc last season. Joining Spain upfront will be athletic four man Mohamed Abukar. The 6'10 Abukar started his career at Florida, but has blossomed at SDSU. He averaged 14 points and just under 5 rebounds a game last season, and his inside-outside ability causes serious match-up problems for Aztecs opponents. Rounding out the starting five will be heralded JuCo transfer Jerome Habel. Habel should capably replace Slaughter, as he can score in the post, rebound, and block shots. Louisville transfer Lorrenzo Wade will play a key role off the bench in the Aztecs frontcourt. The athletic 6'6 forward has tons of potential, and should thrive in their up-tempo system. While the Aztecs likely only go seven deep, that rotation is capable of dominating the Mountain West and making some serious nose in the Big Dance.

2. BYU: Four starters return for Dave Rose's surprising Cougars. After the sudden departure of current Fresno State head coach Steve Cleveland, BYU was predicted to finish at the bottom on the Mountain West last season. Twenty wins later, the Cougars completed a shockingly good season that has ratcheted up expectations. Sophomore Trent Plaisted made a big impression last season, averaging just under 14 points and 7 rebounds a game in his initial campaign. The 6'11 center gives the Cougars a dominant inside presence ala former Cougar Rafael Araujo. The well traveled Keena Young joins Plaisted upfront. Originally slated to join high school teammate Kendrick Perkins at Memphis, Young received a swift kick out the door after Perkins declared for the NBA Draft. After spending a year at South Plains junior college, he signed with BYU despite a previous verbal commitment to Texas Tech. Finally settled at BYU, Young had a very nice junior season averaging 10 points and 6 rebounds a game last season. The athletic 6'6 forward creates many match-up problems playing an undersized four. On the wing, heralded sophomore Lee Cummard should break out this season. Cummard, a top 75 recruit, struggled his freshman season scoring just five points a game in a starting role. However, that could be attributed to rust following his Mormon mission. This year, he should be more comfortable and will be a key part of the BYU offense. Providing depth upfront will be Venezuelan forward Fernando Malaman. The 6'9 Malaman averaged 7 points and just under 4 rebounds a game. A skilled forward, Malamam shoot 43% from three last season. Rashaun Broadus returns to run the Cougars offense. The 6'0 point guard averaged 9 points and 3.7 assists a game last season. Joining him in the backcourt will be 6'6 guard Jimmy Balderson. Balderson averaged 10 points a game in the sixth man role last season, and should be key part of the Cougars offense as a starter. Austin Ainge, Celtic GM Danny Ainge's son, and Mike Rose, the coaches son, provide depth in the backcourt. They can both hit the three and will be called upon to make shots off the bench. Freshman swingman Jonathan Tavenari also has a chance to compete for minutes. After playing under the radar last season, the spotlight will be on the Cougars to build on last season's T-2nd finish. With Plaisted, Cummard and Young leading the way, the Cougars should return to the NCAA Tournament this season.

3. Air Force: Jeff Bzdelik's squad surprisingly snuck into the NCAA Tournament a season ago. Once again, the Falcons will be right on the bubble come Selection Sunday. Nick Welch, a MWC First Team player two seasons ago, returns following a knee injury that caused him to miss last season. The 6'8 center has all the typical skills of a big man in the Princeton system. He possesses a nice shot from the perimeter, and can find the open man cutting to the basket. Joining him upfront will be two talented forwards, Jacob Burtschi and Dan Nwaelele. The 6'8 Burtschi averaged 12.4 points and 6 rebounds a game last season. He will enjoy having Welch back to take some of the scoring pressure of him, and he should have more room to operate this season. The athletic Burtschi also lead the Mountain West in steals last season. The 6'5 Nwaelele, who averaged just under 12 points a game last year, is a talented swingman who thrives cutting to the basket. The graduation of Antoine Hood makes an already thin backcourt a bigger question mark. 6'2 senior Matt McGraw should ably fill one of the spots. He averaged just under 11 points a game last season, and will need hit his open looks from the perimeter. The other backourt spot could be a potential weakness, with 6'3 Tim Anderson the likely starter. 6'1 Adam Hood, Antoine's little brother, will also compete for significant minutes. The Falcons should be a hellaciously tough match-up again this season, but their lack of backcourt depth will leave them just outside the Big Dance come Selection Sunday.

The arrival of talented shooting guard Kevin Kruger should make papa Lon's UNLV Rebels much better this season. Giddens arrival could lead to better things this season for Ritchie McKay's New Mexico Lobos. Jason Smith, a 7'0 junior center for Colorado State, is a potential first round draft pick after this season. The Mountain West should easily extend their streak of five straight years receiving multiple bids to the NCAA Tournament, and the Aztecs should spend extended time in the top 25.

All Conference Team:
G Brandon Heath, San Diego State
G Kevin Kruger, UNLV
F Mohamed Abukar, San Diego State
F/C Trent Plaisted, BYU
C Jason Smith, Colorado State

Player of the Year: Heath
Newcomer of the Year: Kruger