Knudson: CSU Making Hoops Matter in Colo. Again
FacebookBy Mark Knudson, The Mtn. Insider
January 19, 2011
It’s been awhile. Quite awhile.
Awhile since college basketball mattered in Colorado.
There was a nice run from Air Force a few years back, when first Joe Scott and then Jeff Bzdelik took the overachieving Falcons to the NCAA tournament in 2004 and 2006.
There were the occasional blips like Colorado and Colorado State both making the NCAA’s in 2003.
But not much since.
Welcome to 2010-11.
The University of Colorado is doing some big things in the last year of the Big 12 (the conference to be known henceforth as “The NSWC” or New South West Conference) and appears at this point to be pretty much of a lock to make it back to the NCAA tournament for the first time since that ’03 season.
The Buffs' new coach, Tad Boyle, moved over from the University of Northern Colorado, where he turned that program into a winner in four short years, going from a four-win team to a school record 25 wins last season. UNC (with Boyle’s recruits) is off to a fast start in Big Sky play this season and it’s very possible that the Bears will make the NCAA tournament this season as well.
Then there’s Colorado State. Woeful for much of the decade, Coach Tim Miles finally has his guys in place and the Rams are making noise in the Mountain West Conference. Going into Wednesday night’s game at UNLV, the Rams are 12-5, 2-1 in conference play and in third place in the MWC.
That may not sound like much until you consider that the MWC is currently ranked as the fourth best conference in the country. Last season, for the first time, the MWC got four teams into the NCAAs. This season, it will be an upset if they don’t get at least four in once again. Mountain West hoops may be performing better as a whole than Mountain West football did this past year, and that’s saying something.
It’s fair to all but concede the top two spots in the MWC to powerhouse Top 10 teams BYU and San Diego State. Between them, they’re an astonishing 37-1. We’re talking Elite Eight and maybe Final Four kind of teams here. When they play (next Wednesday, Jan. 26) it will be must-see TV.
After the Aztecs and Cougars, you have CSU, UNLV and New Mexico battling it out for the third and fourth slots. Could very well come down to how the MWC tournament plays out before we know who’s going dancing.
But just to have the Rams in that conversation right now is exciting to CSU fans everywhere. We aren’t that far removed from CSU having a winless conference season (2007-08). Miles has brought his team, yes, miles from that point (sorry). This year’s team took Colorado into overtime in Boulder and pushed Kansas hard well into the second half, also on the road. They get solid guard play from Jesse Carr and have a go-to big man in Andy Ogide, plus versatile forward Travis Franklin and a host of solid support players.
These Rams are for real even though it doesn’t feel real to write that.
Much like Tad Boyle, Tim Miles built a winner at a smaller school, North Dakota State, before moving to Fort Collins. While he was there, his Bison teams upset nationally ranked teams Wisconsin and Marquette. The North Dakota State team, made up of Miles’ recruits, made the NCAA tournament in 2009 - their first year of eligibility at the Division I level.
This season, Miles may make the Big Dance along with the kids he recruited. Wouldn’t it be something if a state where college basketball has been dormant for so many years ends up with three teams in the NCAA tournament?
Could happen.
ALL TIMES MOUNTAIN
