RENO, Nev. - The New Mexico State men's basketball team meets Nevada, Friday, March 12 at 10 p.m. on ESPN2, at the Lawlor Events Center in Reno, Nev. The game is available on KGRT 104 FM with the ‘Voice of the Aggies' Jack Nixon. With a win, the Aggies advance to the WAC Championship game to take on Utah State/Louisiana Tech, Saturday, March 13 at 8 p.m. on ESPN2 for a berth to the NCAA Tournament.

Hey, the regular season actually demonstrated something as each team at or near the top won yesterday.

Sam Wasson offers a WAC semifinals preview here.

Daniel Lyght covers the Paul George 'will he or won't he?' situation. Matt James comes real close to the 'lipstick on a pig' analogy here.

So how many Nevada fans are 'going Fields' in the barbershop today?

Nick Jezierny covers here Greg Graham stating his case for his program. One little cut-n-paste:
"Look at the program the last four years - we've been to the postseason twice and the NCAA Tournament," Graham said. "We've averaged 19 wins a season. We have good kids in the program. We're No. 1 in the conference in academics and No. 1 in the nation in APR this year at 100 percent.Juan López of the Nevada Sagebrush covered the quarterfinals here. (thanks to Sam Wasson for alerting us to this one)

Scott Reyburn of the Spartan Daily has his SJSU - NMSU game report here, along with a 2+ minute photo slideshow (ditto to Sam)

Dayton Morinaga reports here that Roderick Flemings will smartly participate in the Portsmouth Invitational.

Jeff Portnoy reports on a 'stealth candidate' for the UH head coach position here.

Boise State kept it close into the second half but Utah State then kicked it into another gear as Tony Jones reports. He reports here that Kyle Gibson is gutting it out but nowhere near his usual capacity. Per Tony, going Green was a wise choice by Stew Morrill.

Shawn Harrison offers his game report here. Wade Denniston joins the Brian Green fan club.

Jared Eborn was also in Reno and filed this take on the game. Again, Brian Green receives recognition for his contributions.

Here's Nick Jezierny with his report on the game.

Maybe this is an overstatement but does Green flourish on any other team/in any other offensive sustem in the WAC? PTW thinks not. Green is not one to create for himself or others on the dribble drive -- he is a catch-and-shoot offensive talent who needs space in order to get off his shot. His strengths dovetail well with Morrill's offensive schemes and the unselfishness of the other USU players. So a tip o' the hat is due to Morrill for forseeing this when probably every other coach was wondering about Green's signing by the longtime Aggie mentor.

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Chris Murray reports on the Nevada win over Idaho here.

Travis Mason-Bushman provides his Vandal Nation post along with a post-game press conference video of Coach Don Verlin.

Nick Jezierny also covered the game and filed this take.

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Hit the Bulletin in the Zone for reports on all the matchups.

Jason Groves recaps the convincing triumph for Coach Marvin Menzies' team here.

Sam Wasson has his take here. Sam and AggieVision also offer 3+ minutes of NMSU highlights from the game.

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Despite a less-than-healthy Kyle Gibson, Louisiana Tech handled Fresno State. Daniel Lyght is here with the Fresno State perspective.

CLEARWATER, Fla. - The New Mexico State softball team was scheduled to start the 2010 USF Under Armour Showcase, Friday, March 12 at 8:30 a.m., however, due to heavy rain, all games for day one of play are cancelled. The Aggies were slated to take on Long Island in their first game on the tournament and Florida Gulf Coast in the second game, but with the rains continuing to fall, all schedules have changed. A new tournament schedule will be released later Friday after noon. Fans can go to www.NMStateSports.com for updates on the 2010 USF Under Armour Showcase.

CLEARWATER, Fla. - The New Mexico State softball team was scheduled to start the 2010 USF Under Armour Showcase, Friday, March 12 at 8:30 a.m., however, due to heavy rain, all games have been pushed back to a 12:00 p.m. (MT) start. The Aggies were slated to take on Long Island in their first game on the tournament and Florida Gulf Coast in the second game, but with the rains continuing to fall, all schedules have changed. Fans can go to www.NMStateSports.com for updates on the 2010 USF Under Armour Showcase.

Jonathan Gibson scored 22 points to lead New Mexico State past San Jose State 90-69 Thursday night and into the semifinals of the Western Athletic Conference tournament against Nevada.

RENO, Nev.-The New Mexico State men's basketball team defeated the No. 6 seed San Jose State, 90-69, Thursday, March 11, in the first round of the WAC Tournament, in the Lawlor Events Center in Reno, Nev. The No. 3 seed Aggies improve to 20-11 and meet No. 2 seed Nevada, Friday, March 12 at 10 p.m. on ESPN2. With the victory, NM State has recorded the 24th 20-win season in school history.

It isn't decided until his name remains on the early draftee list after the NBA deadline but Paul Paul George sure is having some fun right now.

On his Twitter acount -- King24George -- a pair of entries state:
"Testing the waters my tweets but I'm leanin towards leavin to the draft."and
"Q: You staying for another year of college? A: Um it depends I'm gonna test the waters and go."
Interesting. Is he a first-rounder at this point? Most likely not but all it takes is one team to see something. Plus, even second-rounders can get guaranteed money although that bargain is very tough to finagle. What will be critical is how his studies play out in the remainder of the academic year -- does he keep up or turn his focus to skill and body development?

2010 WAC Men and Women's Basketball Tournament Presented by Verizon Wireless

Utah State did away with Boise State 84-60, Louisiana Tech just handled Fresno State 74-66 and each will meet up tomorrow.

It was 35-30 in favor of the Aggies at the half. For the game, USU out-rebounded the Broncos 47-27. Both squads attempted 61 shots but Stew Morrill's bunch made nine more.

A less-than-healthy Kyle Gibson managed just seven points in 33 minutes and committed six turnovers but Tech's Jamel Guyton exploded for a team-leading 31 points in the victory for the southern Bulldogs. Guyton grabbed 11 boards -- also tops on the team -- for a tourney double-double.

Fresno State was minus Mychal Ladd and went 4-18 from three-point range while gathering 11 less free throw attempts than LT. Paul George put up a double-double of 22 points and 11 rebounds for Steve Cleveland's squad.

A big thumbs up to Fresno State Coach Steve Cleveland for not putting up with any wayward actions -- despite the fact that this will hurt the Bulldogs' chances. Matt James has the scoop:
Ladd news is bad news
Matt James
resno Bee
March 11, 2010

RENO -- Fresno State athletic director is about to hold a press conference announcing the fact that Mike Ladd has been sent home from the Western Athletic Conference Tournament. I'm guessing he isn't going to say why...Go here for the remainder.

How does a player let down his teammates at this critical time?

Kraig Williams will be live-blogging a number of the WAC tourney games: Fresno -LA Tech plus the SJSU - NMSU matchups today and more than likely both games tomorrow as well as the championship game on Saturday. We'll keep you updated.

You'll find him at Rush The Court. Check out the RTC Live box in the upper left corner of the site.

PTW doesn't endorse the following (although we are thoroughly charmed) and thereby not responsible for any consequences (including missed free throws, loss of games and buffet restaurants with nary a crumb remaining) so have at it at your own risk:

The official Wild Bill Sproat web site

We do wish to alert Stew Morrill that Bill has quite the vertical as one of the pictures demonstrates. As for the other photos, Sproat-ville is living large, so to speak.

The best NBA draft site around is Draft Express. Nothing else is as comprehensive or worldwide in scope, plus the player evaluations are done after lengthy viewing of each talent. The following is the latest on Fresno State's Paul George:
Paul George 6-7, Sophomore, Small Forward, Fresno State
16.6 points, 7.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2.2 steals, 3.1 turnovers, 43 FG%, 36 3P%, 91 FT%

Scott Nadler, Assistant Director of Scouting
Draft Express
March 10, 2010

Fresno State’s Paul George has steadily been climbing NBA draft boards since he broke out onto the national scene as a freshman last season. We were high on him a year ago and he’s certainly made improvements to his game – living up to the preseason hype that surrounded him in the beginning of the year. His versatility, athleticism and scoring ability are all part of the package of this highly talented small forward, and in a draft class limited with skilled wing players; George could be one of the best options at that position come June.

George has made huge strides from last season to this season, which is extremely encouraging considering the fact that he’s the go-to-guy on a struggling Bulldogs team and the focal point of every opposing defense. Despite all the attention, he’s averaging an impressive 20.3 points per 40 pace adjusted – getting the bulk of his points in transition and in spot up situations.

With a long and wiry frame, George runs the floor well and is good for a highlight reel dunk or strong finish at least once a game – which is one of his biggest improvements from last season. In ’08-’09, George converted a measly 39.3% of his shots around the basket. This year however, he’s finishing at a much higher rate, shooting a fantastic 55.8% at the rim, which dispels some of the questions regarding his lack of toughness...Go here for the remainder.

Here's an article about how Bob Nash broke the news to his players.

Dayton Morinaga has more here.

ESPN's Andy Katz threw another name into the Hawaii coaching pool with this tweet:
"Thought of another great name for the Hawaii gig. Gonzaga ast. Ray Giacoletti, ex-HC at Utah/ E.Wash. Giacoletti can recruit Aussies well."Here is his bio from the Gonzaga athletics site.

PTW is pilfering from Dave Reardon who has a column about the rise of the Gib Arnold For Hawaii Basketball Coach Marching and Chowder Society. Arnold was just let go -- as expected, because it was too late for Kevin O'Neill to do so last year when he was hired to run the USC basketball program -- at USC:
Former UH coach's son emerges as trendy choice
Dave Reardon
Honolulu Star Bulletin
March 10, 2010

About a month ago, I received from a friend an unsolicited and gushing endorsement of Gib Arnold for University of Hawaii basketball coach.

Interesting, because the job wasn't open ... not yet, anyway.

Also interesting, because (until yesterday) Arnold was an assistant at USC ... which had been embroiled in a recruiting controversy from the previous regime of Tim Floyd, and Arnold was a holdover from that staff.

And in the last day or so, Arnold's name has replaced that of Reggie Theus as most mentioned to replace Bob Nash.

In Hawaii, Gib Arnold is trending...Go here for the remainder.

Chris Murray has a preview of the Nevada - Idaho matchup here.

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Sam Wasson offers multiple features. Here is a preview featuring a Marvin Menzies video interview. Sam also breaks down each tournament game today and that can be found here.

Jason Groves interviews departing Aggie senior Jonathan Gibson here.

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Jimmy Watson features Kyle Gibson in a Les Stroud/Bear Grylls reference here. It's been a tough tenure for the LA TECH star but he's going out on a high, competing for the WAC championship and, no, he doesn't enjoy grubs and other creepy crawlies as snack food. Let's hope KG is back to full health and feeling no aftereffects from his ankle sprain.

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So you think you can dance? Paul George answers in the affirmative in Daniel Lyght's feature here.

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Nick Jezierny offers his game breakdown here. There's Billyball, small ball and also long ball -- Nick says here that Boise State is counting on the latter to take down USU.

Jared Eborn says tyhe Aggies are looking to roll a trey in the next few days here. Shawn Harrison offers that Utah State is all Buster Poindexter at the moment (hot hot hot) here. Tony Jones is here with his pre-game coverage.

The Utah State Aggies conclude their regular season schedule at home Saturday night against the WACa TMs other Aggies from New Mexico State.

Fresno State junior hurler Morgan Melloh became just the second WAC pitcher ever to record 1,000 career strikeouts in the nightcap of a doubleheader vs. East Carolina Wednesday.

We're not talking womens shoes here. Instead, it's the powerbroker brothers Dana and David who will apparently also have influence on UH's choice for a new coach:
It's complicated
Stephen Tsai
The Warrior Beat
March 10, 2010

In the real world, a person sees a job posting, sends in an application, goes through the interview process, and then waits for an answer.

But job-hunting in college basketball, in Facebook-status parlance, is "complicated..."Go here for the remainder.

For more on the brothers, go here and here and here.