WAC PREVIEW : Wyoming Is 11-0 as WAC Play Opens

After six weeks in one of the most pressure-filled jobs in college basketball this season, Benny Dees, the first-year Wyoming coach, has lost neither his sense of humor nor a game.

The Cowboys are 11-0, are ranked No. 5 by the Associated Press and are off to the school’s best start since the 1950-51 team won its first 12 games.

“We’re still having a good time,” Dees said. “I’ve never seen a team that was so loose. They don’t worry about going undefeated; they don’t worry about the polls. They just play.”

Except for a four-point scare at Boise State and a come-from-behind victory at Alabama Birmingham, the Cowboys have hardly been tested. But that could change this week when Wyoming joins San Diego State and six other schools in the start of the Western Athletic Conference schedule.

The Cowboys might have the most difficulty with games Friday at five-time defending champion Texas El Paso and Saturday at New Mexico, which is fresh off a victory over previous No. 1-ranked Arizona.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if they swept those games, I wouldn’t be surprised if they split and I wouldn’t be surprised if they lost them both,” said Jim Brandenburg, who left Wyoming to take over at San Diego State this season. “I’m not trying to be evasive. It’s just that close.”

Brandenburg said this season might be the most competitive and talent-laden of his 10 seasons coaching in the conference. The consensus among the conference coaches is that Wyoming, Brigham Young, Texas El Paso and New Mexico should challenge for the league title. Utah is close behind, and an improved Colorado State team under Boyd Grant should frustrate some teams with its slowdown game.

“This league is deep,” Brandenburg said, “and it goes with quality.”

Which might be great for the teams bidding for the NCAA tournament, but where does that leave his Aztecs? Probably fighting with Air Force and Hawaii to make the most of the nine-team league’s lower tier.

“I knew this was going to be a brass-knuckles year,” Brandenburg said. “Our young club is facing tremendous adversity.”

That begins with a schedule that has the Aztecs opening conference play tonight at Utah at 6:30 p.m. (PST) and then facing undefeated Brigham Young Saturday night in Provo, Utah. Seven of SDSU’s first 10 conference games are on the road. Not an inviting prospect for a team that has lost its past 14 road games in three seasons.

“If we want to be competitive in this league, we have to become a tough road team,” Brandenburg said. “We can’t back down.”

The game against Utah comes 10 days after the Aztecs defeated Texas Tech for the championship of the Holiday Bowl tournament. The layoff came at a time when the Aztecs seemed to building some momentum. They had won three of their last four games in a six-game home stand. And the only loss was by a point in overtime to Rhode Island.

“Hopefully, we’ll pick up right where we left off,” said Bryan Williams, a junior point guard. “But we were a little sluggish coming back to practice. We know we’re going to have to play better in the second part of the season. We’ve come a long way since the start of the season, but we still have a long ways to go.”

That journey starts tonight in Salt Lake City and ends with the conference tournament March 9-12 at Brigham Young.

What follows is an alphabetical look at the conference:

Air Force

Record: 6-4

Last season’s record: 12-15, 5-11

Finish: Seventh

Coach: Reggie Minton (Fourth season)

Top returners: Raymond Dudley (6-0, sophomore, 14.7-point average this season), Rob Marr (6-5, senior, 16.2), Mike Hammond (6-2, senior, 13.6).

Top newcomer: Sean Giles (6-2, freshman, 6.8).

Outlook: Air Force returns most of its team from last season, but it might have trouble moving up in the standings because the rest of the league is just as experienced. The Falcons have lost junior forward Eric Kojome--the team’s second-leading rebounder last season at 4.7 per game--and reserve guard Jeff Bowling because of a disciplinary suspension. Reserve forward Chad Kimble has returned for the past five games after a similar suspension. The Falcons have won four of their past five games, but a fast start in league play might be difficult, because their first three games are on the road against New Mexico, Texas El Paso and Wyoming.

Brigham Young

Record: 9-0

Last season’s record: 21-11, 12-4

Finish: Second

Coach: Ladell Anderson (Fifth season)

Top returnees: Michael Smith (6-10, junior, 24.0), Jeff Chatman (6-6, senior, 22.6), Jim Usevitch (6-9, senior, 15.1), Marty Haws (6-2, sophomore, 9.0).

Top newcomer: Gary Trost (6-9, freshman, 2.2).

Outlook: Brigham Young is off to its best start since the 1940-41 team started 13-0. The Cougars are playing their usual up-tempo game, averaging 94.8 points. Michael Smith might be the conference’s best all-around big man. He leads the conference in scoring (24.0) and is near the top in rebounding (7.6 per game) and free-throw percentage (84.5%). Smith combines with Jim Usevitch and Jeff Chatman to give the Cougars one of the league’s most dominant front lines. Andy Toolson has returned to take over at off-guard after missing two seasons while on a church mission. Only weakness might be a lack of depth in the front court.

Colorado State

Record: 8-2

Last season’s record: 13-16, 7-9

Finish: Sixth

Coach: Boyd Grant (First season)

Top returnees: Dave Turcotte (6-3, senior, 17.2), Pat Durham (6-8, junior, 16.3), Barry Bailey (6-6, senior, 8.6).

Top newcomer: Trent Schippen (6-1, junior, 9.2).

Outlook: After a retirement of one season, Boyd Grant has returned to his alma mater and quickly established the style of play that characterized his teams during nine seasons at Fresno State. The Rams’ deliberate style is in contrast to the freestyle play of some of the league’s top teams. Colorado State is allowing a league-low 54.6 points per game, second in the nation. The Rams have won six of their past seven games and have had their best opening 10 games since the 1971-72 team started 9-1.

Hawaii

Record: 1-10

Last season’s record: 7-21, 2-14

Finish: Eighth (tie)

Coach: Riley Wallace (First season)

Top returnees: Chris Gaines (6-3, sophomore, 16.4), Bill Holcomb (6-10, senior, 10.4).

Top newcomer: Reggie Cross (6-7, junior, 13.1).

Outlook: Hawaii has eight eligible scholarship players to start league play after it began the season with only six. Riley Wallace, a former Hawaii assistant under Larry Little, returns after three seasons at Seminole Junior College in Oklahoma. Chris Gaines was one of the league’s top freshmen last season. Two of the recently eligible players, guard David Hallums and center Bill Holcomb, have become starters. Three of Hawaii’s 10 losses have been in overtime.

New Mexico

Record: 12-3

Last season’s record: 25-10, 11-5

Finish: Third (tie)

Coach: Gary Colson (Eighth season)

Top returnees: Hunter Greene (6-7, senior, 19.5), Rob Loeffel (7-0, junior, 10.9).

Top newcomers: Charlie Thomas (6-7, junior, 16.7), Jimmy Rogers (6-2, junior, 5.8).

Outlook: New Mexico is coming off its biggest victory in years, a 61-59 win over Arizona at The Pit. The Lobos figure to be one of the teams battling for first place. They return two of the league’s best big players in Hunter Greene, who led the league in scoring last season at 21.1 points per game, and Rob Loeffel, who has shown increasing maturity since the midway point of last season. Loeffel combines at times with Luc Longley, a 7-1 freshman, to give the Lobos a twin-tower combination. Charlie Thomas, a transfer from Wake Forest, has stepped in at power forward, and Jimmy Rogers, a community college transfer, has given the Lobos depth at guard.

San Diego State

Record: 6-5

Last season’s record: 5-25, 2-14

Finish: Eighth (tie)

Coach: Jim Brandenburg (First season)

Top returnees: Tony Ross (6-3, sophomore, 17.0), Rodney Hawkins (6-8, senior, 13.7).

Top newcomer: Bryan Williams (5-10, junior, 12.5).

Outlook: The Aztecs are another team that might be vastly improved since last season but will have a difficult time moving up because of the strength of other teams. The Aztecs are not a deep team, especially at guard, where only three scholarship players are eligible. Bryan Williams, a transfer from Cerritos College, is the only true point guard. The Aztecs have shown some improvement, especially on defense, where they are holding opponents to a league-low 40.7% from the field. Rodney Hawkins has developed into the team’s best all-around player. The Aztecs must develop a stronger game at center, where undersized Sam Johnson (6-8) has started while Brandenburg waits for 6-10 Mitch McMullen to develop.

Texas El Paso

Record: 11-2

Last season’s record: 25-7, 13-3

Finish: First

Coach: Don Haskins (27th season)

Top returnees: Chris Sandle (6-6, senior, 17.0), Tim Hardaway (5-11, junior, 16.2), Chris Blocker (6-5, senior, 13.5).

Top newcomer: Eddie Williams (6-4, sophomore, 4.8).

Outlook: The Miners lost three starters from last season’s conference championship team, including the late Jeep Jackson--who died of heart failure after the end of last season--but they still appear capable of contending for a sixth consecutive title. Texas El Paso might have found its solution at center in Antonio Davis, a seldom-used reserve last season, who is averaging 11.9 points per game. The Miners have been helped by the return of Chris Sandle, who missed most of the first month of the season because of disciplinary action stemming from an off-season fight in a bar. Point guard Tim Hardaway leads the conference in assists (6.9 per game) and steals (3.4 per game).

Utah

Record: 8-3

Last season’s record: 17-13, 9-7

Finish: Fifth

Coach: Lynn Archibald (Fifth season)

Top returnees: Mitch Smith (6-8, junior, 15.7), Gale Gondrezick (6-4, senior, 13.0), Tommy Connor (5-11, junior, 7.6)

Top newcomer: Watkins Singletary (6-7, junior, 16.5).

Outlook: Utah returns four starters from its National Invitation Tournament team of a season ago. The only new starter is forward Watkins Singletary, a community college transfer from New York, who quickly has become the Utes’ leading scorer. He’s also second in the conference in rebounding at 9.3 per game behind teammate Mitch Smith (9.4 per game). The Utes are playing a slower tempo game than most of the rest of the league, but in a conference that includes Brigham Young, Texas El Paso and Wyoming, that hardly means Utah is crawling up the floor.

Wyoming

Record: 11-0

Last season’s record: 24-10, 11-5

Finish: Third (tie)

Coach: Benny Dees (First season)

Top returnees: Fennis Dembo (6-5, senior, 21.6), Eric Leckner (6-11, senior, 12.8), Reggie Fox (6-3, sophomore, 11.9), Sean Dent (6-0, senior, 3.0)

Top newcomer: Robyn Davis (6-4, junior, 11.0).

Outlook: Wyoming returns almost everyone except Coach Jim Brandenburg, who after leading the Cowboys to the final 16 of the NCAA tournament, left to take over at San Diego State. All five starters are back for Benny Dees, who has returned to coach at his alma mater after leading New Orleans to its first NCAA appearance. Dees favors an up-tempo offense and pressure man-to-man defense. That has meant a reduced role for center Eric Leckner. Fennis Dembo is one of college basketball’s most exciting and colorful players. The addition of Robyn Davis, a community college transfer, and the improved outside shooting of Reggie Fox have given the Cowboys needed depth at guard.