Busting Brackets
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Nevada Basketball: 2019-20 season preview for Wolf Pack

By Jacob Shames

RENO, NEVADA - NOVEMBER 19: Jalen Harris #1 of the Nevada Wolf Pack comes off the court during the game against the California Baptist Lancers at Lawlor Events Center on November 19, 2018 in Reno, Nevada. (Photo by Jonathan Devich/Getty Images)
RENO, NEVADA - NOVEMBER 19: Jalen Harris #1 of the Nevada Wolf Pack comes off the court during the game against the California Baptist Lancers at Lawlor Events Center on November 19, 2018 in Reno, Nevada. (Photo by Jonathan Devich/Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 15: The Nevada Wolf Pack walk onto the court during a semifinal game of the Mountain West Conference basketball tournament against the San Diego State Aztecs at the Thomas & Mack Center on March 15, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. San Diego State Aztecs won 65-56. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 15: The Nevada Wolf Pack walk onto the court during a semifinal game of the Mountain West Conference basketball tournament against the San Diego State Aztecs at the Thomas & Mack Center on March 15, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. San Diego State Aztecs won 65-56. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images) /

Season Outlook

There’s a new top dog in the Mountain West. Utah State, which returns star guard Sam Merrill and potential first-round pick Neemias Queta, is poised to dominate the league like Nevada last season.

The battle for second, however (and maybe a spot in the NCAA Tournament to go with it) is totally up for grabs.

The hopes of some of these contenders, including Nevada, might come down to transfers. New Mexico, despite losing grad transfer Anthony Mathis to Oregon, should improve on its 14-18 record thanks to adding JaQuan Lyle and Zane Martin into the fold. San Diego State replaces its two leading scorers with Malachi Flynn and K.J. Feagin. But on the other side of things, Boise State returns its top four scorers from last season and Air Force returns its top…well, everybody.

All of these teams should view second place as attainable. Nevada, in particular, rests its hopes on the quartet of Johnson, Drew, Harris and Parrish — very likely the best backcourt in the conference. Despite losing so much talent from last year, Alford has put his new team in a very solid position entering 2019-20. The Pack should run inferior teams out of the gym, score a ton of points and be pretty dang fun to watch, even if expectations aren’t as high.

Next. Breakout stars for 2019-20. dark

It seems unlikely that the Mountain West will be more than a two-bid league next season, but Nevada’s tough non-conference schedule, with the opportunity to at least score a couple of top-50 wins, gives it a leg up on its contenders for that second bid.

No one will hold it against the Wolf Pack if they fail to make the postseason in Alford’s first year. No one should be surprised if they get there anyway.