Stage is set for key matchup — New Mexico's Giddens, BYU's Cummard

ALBUQUERQUE — Who's the best player in the Mountain West? It's debatable.

If you ask New Mexico coach Steve Alford, it's his man, J.R. Giddens. If one polled BYU coach Dave Rose, he likes his utility player Lee Cummard. Both clearly stand out in the league for consistency and durability.

Both will be on stage tonight when the Lobos (22-6, 9-4) host the No. 25 ranked Cougars (21-6, 10-2) in The Pit. Tipoff is 8 p.m. The game will be televised live on The mtn.

Both Giddens and Cummard are averaging 15 points a game and are not a threat to the league's scoring title, chased by players at Wyoming and CSU whose teams are out of the league title race.

BYU coach Dave Rose told reporters Monday it is important for teams to have balance, that balance forces opponents to have to worry about more than a scoring machine to defend.

"I believe game plans are so efficient and complicated now that you have to have a lot of balance. You need to be consistent over the course of the season. That causes teams the most problems and allows you to be more consistent and diverse throughout a conference schedule."

That's why Giddens is a worry for BYU, but so are his teammates.

Rose said Giddens is a talented scorer outside who can drive and finish, yet knows where his teammates are. "They have four other very talented outside shooters and that is what makes them so tough to defend."

The Lobos are on a tear of late, with the exception of a win at San Diego State after the suspension of Aztec Kyle Spain, the six-game winning streak has come primarily over the lower tier of the Mountain West. Nonetheless, the Lobos are on fire with wins at Utah and Air Force and victories over TCU, Wyoming and Colorado State at home. That 6-0 run is currently the best in the league. The Cougars had it going 9-0 before losing to the Aztecs on the road last Saturday.

After getting the Cougars in The Pit tonight, the Lobos will also get No. 2 UNLV in Albuquerque — a prime setting to have a Lobo say on how the MWC race ends up. The last loss by the Lobos came at UNLV on Feb. 2, a 19-point setback, 79-60.

The Lobos are an outstanding 3-point shooting team. On the year, they've made 240 of 549 shots from beyond the arc for an impressive .437 rate.

As a comparison, the Cougars are a decent shooting team from beyond the arc but are making .367 (220 our of 600) from that range.