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Bracketology Losers: Temple, Utah State and Virginia Tech falls this week

By Tristan Freeman

BLACKSBURG, VA - DECEMBER 05: Virginia Tech Hokies head coach Buzz Williams reacts in the first half of the game against the VMI Keydets at Cassell Coliseum on December 5, 2018 in Blacksburg, Virginia. (Photo by Lauren Rakes/Getty Images)
BLACKSBURG, VA - DECEMBER 05: Virginia Tech Hokies head coach Buzz Williams reacts in the first half of the game against the VMI Keydets at Cassell Coliseum on December 5, 2018 in Blacksburg, Virginia. (Photo by Lauren Rakes/Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 09: Koby McEwen
LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 09: Koby McEwen /

Utah State Aggies

Nevada has been the class of the Mountain West all season and is looking to lock up a top-4 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The question is whether or not the league can get a second team as an at-large candidate. And there’s only one other program with a shot – Utah State.

Coming into this past weekend, the Aggies were riding a seven-game winning streak, including a huge road win at Fresno State for second place in the Mountain West. Then came another road game at San Diego State, arguably the second-most talented roster in the league but has been the model of inconsistency. Unfortunately for Utah State, the Aztecs chose to show their good side, winning by five points despite Sam Merrill going for 35 points.

San Diego State is not a bad team and the loss itself isn’t disqualifying, yet the Aggies took a big blow to their respective resume. Bracketologists all-around at best had them at one of the last teams in, with no margin for error. And with the exception of a return home game versus the Wolf Pack, Utah State can’t do much to move up the ladder, unless they win out.

It’s an overall weak resume, with their best wins being against UC-Irvine, Saint Mary’s and Fresno State. Another bad loss in the Mountain West will all but doom them, with the March 2 date versus Nevada being their last hope. They lost by 23 points the last time out, so it’ll have to be a much better performance this time around.

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