AROUND THE MOUNTAIN WEST

  • For the fifth season in a row, the Mountain West has sent five or more teams to the postseason.
  • Utah State is representing the Conference in the NCAA tournament, while Colorado State, Nevada, New Mexico, UNLV and Wyoming are set to appear in the 2026 NIT.
  • With Utah State headed to the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship, the Mountain West has 70 NCAA appearances in league history.
  • The Aggies are making their fourth straight and 26th overall NCAA tournament appearance and sixth since joining the Mountain West in 2013.
  • With five bids to the 2026 NIT, the Mountain West has made 40 NIT appearances in Conference history.
  • This will be Colorado State’s 11th appearance in the NIT, first since 2021 when they finished in fourth place.
  • For the first time since 2012, Nevada has made the NIT field. This marks sixth time in program history the Wolf Pack have played in the NIT.
  • New Mexico is making its 21st all-time NIT appearance, its first since 2023. The Lobos were the NIT runner-up in 1964, reached the semifinals in 1990 and reached the quarterfinals six other times, most recently in 2001.
  • This will mark the 12th all-time appearance in the NIT for UNLV, which has a 10-12 record in the long-running postseason event. UNLV’s best showing in the event came during its first appearance in 1980, when it advanced to the semifinals in New York.
  • This is the ninth NIT appearance for Wyoming and first since 2003. The Cowboys are 7-8 all-time in the NIT and finished second in 1986.
  • The MW has the sixth-best strength of schedule among the 31 DI conferences, trailing the Big 12, Big Ten, ACC, Big East and SEC.
  • The Mountain West owns the sixth-best NET among the 31 DI Conferences, trailing the SEC, Big 12, Big Ten, ACC and Big East.
  • The MW has eight teams (Utah State, 26; New Mexico, 46; San Diego State, 47; Boise State, 60; Nevada, 70; Grand Canyon, 71; Colorado State, 87; Wyoming, 99) ranked among the top 100 of NET rankings as of March 11.
  • The Mountain West is one of six conferences (ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten and SEC) that have eight or more teams ranked in the top 100 of the NET rankings as of March 17.
  • The Mountain West has a combined 69 Quad 1 and Quad 2 wins in 2025-26 as of March 17.
  • Utah State is receiving votes in the Associated Press Top 25 and in the USA Today Coaches poll.
  • The Mountain West has sent four or more teams to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship in four of the last five years, including a league-record six in 2024.
  • The Mountain West has had two or more NCAA tournament bids on 22 occasions in Conference history.
  • The MW went 2-1 in the NCAA Round of 64 in 2025, marking the second straight season that multiple MW teams advanced to the Round of 32.