By Jeremy Brunner

Suddenly, the Mountain West Conference Basketball race isn't so cut-and-dry. Air Force doesn't look so invinceable, losing at the Huntsman Center to a Utah team that hadn't won a conference game all year. The Cougars won their 26th straight game at the Marriott Center, where BYU has always been nearly impossible to beat. BYU is now tied with the Falcons for first place in the MWC, while the Utes are still tied for last.

Now the future doesn't look so glum for Utah. Whether it was a job-saving win for Ray Giacolleti remains to be seen, but it sure has rejuvenated Ute fans who were mysteriously quiet for much of the pre-season. Let the smack talk resume for Utah's January 31st date with BYU in Salt Lake. Speaking of the Cougars, they have yet to show any sign of missing Rashaun Broadus on the court. Just like last year, BYU has a deep bench, but as the season wears on, we'll see how they fare without their co-starting point guard.

There are plenty of quality teams in the Mountain West, so there are more games for Air Force to lose. If BYU can win some of those road games, the Cougars could win or share the regular season crown, and that would almost certainly make them an NCAA tournament team. The Utes would have to win the rest of their games in order to share the league, and since Utah hasn't won a road game all year(their win over Virginia was neutral site), don't hold your breath. But if the Utes can win some games, and get better as the season goes along, they will have the kind of punchy squad that could go on a run and win the Mountain West Tournament(where Air Force always struggles).

However all this plays out, I'm just hoping that we have an NCAA tournament team this year. Last year, the Utah State Aggies were the only team from the Beehive state to go dancing. USU is solid again this year, just maybe not NCAA-solid. Watch out for Weber State and SUU. The Wildcats are near the top of the Big Sky once again, while the T-Birds beat Utah this season. The only other win for SUU over the Utes(2001), came from SUU's only other tournament team.

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