I think this is the last of the Vegas tourneys to start? I know for a fact the MWC Tournament was the one I was looking forward to the most last year, hopefully more close games and drama this year. My only complaint is how late I’ll have to stay up to watch SDSU.

When is the MWC Tournament?

Wednesday, March 8th through Saturday, March 11th.

Where is the MWC Tournament played?

All games at Thomas & Mack Center in Paradise, Nevada. This is UNLV’s home court and also the home of NBA Summer League.

How to watch the MWC Tournament

First round action on Stadium & MWN. Quarters and semifinals on CBSSN with the final on CBS and available on Paramount+.

Who won the regular season title?

20th ranked San Diego State won the title with a 15-3 record.

Defending Champ

Boise State won its three games by a combined ten points to take the title as the top seed.

Who will participate

All 11 member schools will play in Vegas this week.

How Many teams will the MWC send to the tournament?

As many as four. SDSU in locked in, Boise is a near lock and Utah State and Nevada sit in bubble land for now. A win or two from either would likely secure a spot in the Big Dance.

MWC Tournament Bracket

MWC Tournament Odds

Ranked team being favored makes sense, Wyoming took a noticeable step back from last year.

MWC Tournament Preview

I don’t think it’s a secret that SDSU has been a good team this year and should be the favorite here. But on a neutral (for most) in a tournament that has only seen the top seed win it four times in the past ten years, I think the path here is to look for which teams have a sporting chance to take down the Aztecs and find some juicy prices on them. I don’t really buy in to the lack of motivation for teams that are guaranteed an at-large spot, but they certainly can’t have the sense of urgency that the bubble teams do.

Starting with your two-seed Utah State. They have a better offense than SDSU but, did fall both times they played this season. Great from deep, but the defense can be picked on, plus they don’t force many turnovers. Nice finish to the season but also had a couple of rough losses in the non-con part of the year.

Boise State is your defending champ, plays high level defense and usually gets enough out of the back court to be pretty dangerous this time of the year. Weren’t great at forcing turnovers defensively, but take care of the ball when they have possession. Played really well at home, winning every conference game in Boise, but did struggle sometimes when the traveled.

Nevada is a interesting case here as well. Lead by Steve Alford, a coach who’s taken plenty of teams to the tournament, they come in losers of three of the final five games. They have some nice size, a defense on par with the top teams in the league, have wins over the top three seeds already this year and should see a nice following from the fans who just need to pop up from Reno. They dummied SJSU both times they met this year, so you’d think the first game should be smooth sailing.

MWC Tournament Prediction

I’ll take the Wolfpack of Nevada at a nice price (seen as high as +650 if you shop). Think I’m getting a bit of a discount on a top team given the rough patch to end the regular season plus the draw.

My Bet: Nevada +600

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