Bracket breakthrough? National respect trickling in for MWC in form of seeding

It's taken a while, but national respect is finally flowing the Mountain West Conference's way.

Not only did Monday's Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN coaches Top 25 rankings feature two teams from the MWC — Air Force (No. 14 and No. 13) and newcomer BYU (No. 21 and No. 22) — but also, USA Today projected Monday both the Falcons and Cougars as No. 4 seeds in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.

"I hope they're right," MWC commissioner Craig Thompson said of the USA Today projections.

Considering that the highest seed an MWC team has ever earned was a No. 6, to have a pair of programs with seeds that lofty, in the same year, would be a major breakthrough for the conference.

With less than three weeks until Selection Sunday, the consensus among online Web sites devoted to "Bracketology" is that three MWC teams — BYU (20-6), Air Force (23-4), and UNLV (22-6) — are veritable locks for the field of 65.

The league received three bids to the NCAA Tournament in three consecutive years — 2002, 2003 and 2004 — though in two of those seasons it required an unexpected winner of the conference tournament. This year, a tournament upset could get an unprecedented four MWC teams in the NCAAs.

San Diego State (18-8), or another MWC team, could play their way in by claiming the league's automatic bid with a MWC tournament championship. The league tournament opens March 6 in Las Vegas.

Throughout the conference's eight-year history, the perennial question has been: Is the MWC a three-bid league? This year, the question has become, is the MWC a four-bid league?

"We'll get three teams in for sure and a fourth isn't outside the realm of possibility," said San Diego State coach Steve Fisher.

"Air Force, BYU and UNLV are in really good shape, obviously," Thompson said. "San Diego State has an opportunity (to be a fourth)."

Just as impressive are the favorable seeds the MWC is projected to earn.

Joe Lunardi, who runs ESPN.com's "Bracketology" site has Air Force as a No. 4 seed, BYU at No. 6, and UNLV at No. 7.

Bracketology101.com lists Air Force as a No. 4 seed, BYU at No. 7, and UNLV No. 8. Bracketography.com rates the Falcons at No. 4, BYU at No. 7 and UNLV at No. 7.

It's all wonderful news for the league, said Fisher, who would be glad to see the conference receive "legitimate" seeds in the NCAA Tournament. "It's a testament to the toughness of the league," he said.

"The higher seeds represents greater respect for the league," UNLV coach Lon Kruger said of USA Today's projections. "It gives you a better chance to win (NCAA) tournament games. Those two teams are deserving of that. It would be great to see."