Week 2 MWC Basketball Power Rankings

After a week (and a weekend) of college basketball, we have seen the likes of Kansas, Kentucky, NC State, Baylor and Wisconsin all fall, which will result in mayhem in the top 25. As far as the MWC goes, New Mexico has stood out among the rest, narrowly sneaking past quality opponents on prime time TV in the thick of the night. Without further ado, here is my week 2 MWC Basketball Power Rankings.

1. New Mexico: I think it is safe to say New Mexico has found it's scoring presence. G Kendall Williams has averaged 20 PPG, 5 RPG, and 4 APG thus far and leads one of the MWC threatening backcourts along with G Tony Snell (16 PPG-3 RGP) and G Demetrius Walker (11.5 PPG-2.5 RPG). Wins over Davidson and George Mason, who both had over 20 wins last season, will play UConn in the finals of the Paradise Jam. If New Mexico doesn't crack the top 25 this week, with the loss of No. 22 Wisconsin, the Lobos should definitely be in it next week if they can pull the upset over the Huskies

2. UNLV: Freshmen F Anthony Bennett (17 PPG-8 RPG) is as good as advertised and is joined in the backcourt F Mike Moser who has averaged a double-double as of late with 10.5 PPG-10.5 RPG. While wins against Jacksonville State and Northern Arizona aren't exactly resume boosting, the Rebels face a stiff test in week 2 against the Oregon Ducks.

3. San Diego State: The Aztecs have bounced back after their early season setback against Syracuse by beating San Diego Christian and Missouri State in the MWC-MVC Challenge. G Jamaal Franklin has proven to be go to scorer with his 20.3 PPG and 10.7 RPG. Next Sunday SDSU goes to Los Angeles to play a USC team who will be returning from the Maui Invitational in what will be a battle for the bay.

4. Colorado State: Minnesota transfer C Colton Iverson has been a key addition to the Rams roster as he leads the rams with 18 PPG and 8.5 RPG. G Wes Eikmeier has gotten of to a slow start, only averaging 6 PPG and 1 APG, hopefully he can get out his funk with the continuation of the season. Their season opening win against Big Sky favorites Montana was impressive, though if they can remain undefeated this week after the travel to Denver and Washington their NCAA tournament bid becomes a lot more feasible.

5. Air Force Academy: Head Coach Dave Piplovich has the Falcons heading in the right direction by getting Air Force its first 4-0 start since the 07-08 season. Even though 2 of those victories were against non Div. 1 schools, the start is impressive nonetheless. G Michael Lyons is having a great start to the season by contributing 22.3 PPG and grabbing 3.7 RPG, though hopefully the Falcons dependence on his scoring presence won't be the Achilles Heal of this team. Next Sunday when the Falcons travel to Colorado, we will see if the Falcons are for real.

6. Wyoming: Much like the Air Force Falcons the Cowboys to are also enjoying early season success, as they are currently 4-0. Senior F Leonard Washington is inches away from averaging a double-double with 16.8 PPG and 9 RPG. Wyoming goes to Northern Colorado in their season first road game, which should be an indicator to how good the Cowboys really are.

7. Boise State: The Broncos are undefeated at 3-0, and this time it's not football. G Anthony Drmic (18 PPG-7 RPG-4.5 APG) and G Derrick Marks (17 PPG-5.5 RPG-4.5 APG) lead the Broncos backcourt along with Guards Jeff Elorriaga (11 PPG) and Igor Hadziomerovic (11 PP-3 APG). The Broncos travel to Michigan State this week, their 2^nd time this year (football 8/31), and as a native Kansan, I would have no problem with the Broncos beating the Spartans.

8. Nevada: I feel as if No. 8 is too low a ranking for the Wolf Pack, though with after their season opening 14 point loss to UC Irving, you can help but question the Wolf Pack. Nevada has rebounded after the loss enroute to 3 straight wins and travels to a rowdy Marshall team this week. To the surprise of no one, guard tandem Denote Burton and Malik Story lead the team in scoring with 15.3 PPG and 10.3 PPG respectively.

9. Fresno State: The Bulldogs were only 3 points away from setting off the biggest upset in Fresno State Basketball history against Texas! OK, so maybe that is a little overdramatized, the win still would have been nice. The lack of scoring presence has landed the Bulldogs in the #9 slot on this list as Fresno State has averaged only 52 points through 3 games. G Kevin Olekiabe has gotten off to a slow start, averaging only 7.7 PPG and 3 RPG. The Bulldogs look to increase their socring efforts against the Cal Poly Mustangs and Long Beach State 49ers this week.