[ad_1]
LAS CRUCES – There are more pros than cons to adding four schools to the Western Athletic Conference, according to New Mexico men’s basketball coach Chris Jans.
The redesigned WAC, to which Abilene Christian University, Lamar, Sam Houston State and Stephen F. Austin of the Southland Conference have been added since the 2020/21 basketball season closed, now has 13 basketball members, although only 11 are eligible for the conference tournament in this season. Tarleton State and Dixie State are in their second year of transition from Division II to Division I and may qualify for the tournament starting next season. Southern Utah will join when the state of Chicago exits in 2022.
More:WAC basketball tournament with two play-in games 2021-22
Two of the new programs – ACU and Stephen F. Austin – have had significant successes in the regular season and the NCAA tournament in recent years. ACU holds a combined record of 44-16 for the past two seasons and has qualified for the last two NCAA tournaments. The Wildcats also beat seeded Texas Number 3 in the round of 64 last season to claim the program’s first March Madness win.
Stephen F. Austin hasn’t qualified for the big dance since 2018, but the Lumberjacks ended the 2019-20 season with a win over No. 1 Duke at the Cameron Indoor Stadium with 28: 3 and have suffered a total of four defeats at the conference in the last two seasons. And Sam Houston State hasn’t finished a season below .500 since 2012.
“I think the expansion of the WAC is a great thing for all of its members, both returnees and new members,” said Jans. “I can’t speak for them, of course, but I just know that there is more talk of our league this season than most years and I think our league will get more attention from a national perspective.”
WAC will also broadcast more games over ESPN’s linear networks after the conference announced a new television rights agreement with ESPN in late August, several months after the four former Southland Conference schools officially joined the conference.
The state of New Mexico was still selected to win the conference in the coach and media preseason polls, despite SFA being chosen second in the media poll. Abiline Christian finished fourth and Grand Canyon third. Sam Houston State and Lamar were selected as seventh and tenth, respectively.
“It’s a new challenge. I’m sure (the Southland schools) think the same,” said Jans. “If you play in a league for three, four or five years, you certainly get used to coaches and their style of play … There will be a new challenge for all of us, but in relation to a specific matchup (which most I’m not even close to thinking about such things. “
Jans previously said that last year’s WAC teams, including schools like Grand Canyon (which won the conference tournament for the first time last season), the Utah Valley and other programs are still challenging and that the conference will be without the new schools has a lot of firepower ‘complement.
He also sees that his team was selected as a discussion point for fans and media in both preseason polls to win the conference, even in the expanded conference. Being a paper champion doesn’t win banners and trophies, he said, especially at a conference that is as competitive as he expects the WAC to be.
“I’m sure we’ll bring it up at some point, but we were also selected first last year and were nowhere near first,” said Jans. “I’m not kidding that we don’t appreciate the fact that people respect this program in and around the WAC … and we’re certainly trying to write our own chapters while we are here.”
The Aggies will get a first foretaste of their new conference opponents on January 6th during their trip to Lamar. You will face ACU, Sam Houston State and Stephen F. Austin in three consecutive conference games between January 15th and January 22nd.
The season opener for the state of New Mexico is scheduled for November 9th against UC Irivine in Las Cruces.
Stephen Wagner is a sports reporter for Las Cruces Sun-News. He can be found on Twitter at @ stephenwag22 and can be reached at SWagner@lcsun-news.com.
[ad_2]
