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MWC Sends Five Men's Basketball Teams to Postseason BYU, UNLV move on to NCAA tournament; New Mexico and San Diego State receive NIT bids; Utah in College Basketball Invitational
March 16, 2008 COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The 2007-08 men's basketball season continues for five Mountain West Conference teams as BYU, UNLV, New Mexico, San Diego State and Utah have received invitations to the postseason. For the second straight year, BYU (27-7) and UNLV (26-7) are included in the field of 65 for the NCAA Tournament, marking the seventh consecutive year the Mountain West has had at least one at-large qualifier on selection Sunday. In nine years, the MWC has had 20 NCAA bids, including 11 at-large berths. New Mexico (24-8) and San Diego State (20-12) are also headed to the postseason after receiving berths in the 32-team 2008 MasterCard National Invitation Tournament. In the nine-year history of the Mountain West, all of the league's 20-win squads have advanced to postseason play. Utah (17-14), meanwhile, will take place in the inaugural 16-team College Basketball Invitational. Number eight seed and MWC tournament champion UNLV (26-7) earned the league's automatic bid and will face off for the first time against No. 9 Kent State (28-6), the Mid-American Conference East Division champion, in the Midwest Regional at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb. The Runnin' Rebels, coming off a Sweet 16 appearance last season, have received their first back-to-back NCAA tournament berths since winning the national championship in 1990 and returning to the Final Four one season later. Overall, the Rebels boast an all-time record of 32-14 (.696) in the Big Dance, which ranks fifth all-time for the highest NCAA Tournament winning percentage. UNLV has made four Final Four appearances (1977, 1987, 1990 and 1991) and comes into the 2008 NCAA tournament with a 12-2 all-time record in first-round match-ups. The first-round contest between the Rebels and Golden Flashes will take place Thursday, March 20 at approximately 2 p.m. CT. The winner of the UNLV-Kent State contest would face the winner of No. 1 seed Kansas (31-3) vs. No. 16 seed Portland State (23-9) in second-round action on Saturday, March 22. Mountain West regular-season champion BYU (27-7) earned a No. 8 seed in the West Regional and will face No. 9 seed Texas A&M (24-10) at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The Cougars earned an at-large bid and will be making their 23rd trip to the NCAA Tournament, including the fifth in the last eight years (2001, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008). BYU is 11-25 in NCAA Tournament contests overall. The Cougars and Aggies tip off Thursday, March 20 at 4:25 p.m. PT. The winner between BYU and Texas A&M would face the winner of No. 1 seed UCLA (31-3) and 16 seed Mississippi Valley State (17-15) in second-round action on Saturday, March 22. BYU won its only other meeting with Texas A&M, an 83-81 decision on Dec. 28, 1972. The No. 8 seeds for BYU and UNLV mark the two highest seeds the Mountain West Conference has ever received in the same NCAA Tournament. In the 2008 MasterCard NIT, New Mexico will visit No. 4 California (16-15) for a 9 p.m. MT contest televised on ESPN2. The winner of the New Mexico-California game will play the winner of the No. 1 Ohio State (19-13) vs. No. 8 UNC Asheville (23-9) contest during the week of March 20-24. The Lobos have made 16 previous trips to the NIT, including seven straight from 1984-90, and hold a 16-17 record overall. New Mexico's last NIT appearance was in 2002 when the Lobos lost at Minnesota in the first round, 96-62. California won the previous two meetings with New Mexico in 2001 and 2002, and is 3-1 vs. the Lobos in the series. Also in NIT action, San Diego State travels to No. 2 Florida (21-11) in its second straight NIT appearance and fourth overall. The game will be televised on ESPN2, with tip time set for 9 p.m. ET. The winner of the San Diego State-Florida match-up will play the winner of the No. 3 Creighton (21-10) vs. No. 6 Rhode Island (21-11) contest during the week of March 20-24. The Aztecs and Gators have only squared off once before, with San Diego State claiming a 63-62 victory on Dec. 21, 1985. In the 2008 College Basketball Invitational, Utah is the No. 4 seed in the South Regional and will travel to No. 1 UTEP (19-13) on Wednesday, March 19. Game time has yet to be determined.
The Utes are making their first postseason appearance since advancing to the Sweet 16 of the 2005 NCAA Tournament. Coincidentally, the last time Utah played UTEP was during that NCAA run, when the Utes defeated the Miners, 60-54, in first-round action. Overall, Utah holds a 34-31 lead in its series with UTEP.
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