March 5, 2001

LARAMIE, Wyo. -

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The Wyoming Cowboys (19-8,
10-4 in the Mountain West)

Game No. 28: Thu., March 8,
2001, Las Vegas, Nev.., 7:00 p.m., M.T.
vs. The San Diego State Aztecs
(14-13, 4-10 in the Mountain West)
To Be Televised on ESPN Regional TV,
KWYF-TV in Cheyenne, Wyo., and
KLWY-TV in Casper, Wyo.

Cowboys Capture Share of First Regular-Season Conference Basketball Title Since 1985-86 Season: The Wyoming Cowboys captured a share of the 2001 Mountain West Conference Basketball title this past Thursday with a 69-62 road win at San Diego State.

It is the first men's basketball regular-season title for Wyoming since the 1985-86 season -- 15 seasons ago.

In postseason conference tournament play, Wyoming is looking for its first conference tournament title since the 1988 Western Athletic Conference Tournament won by Wyoming 79-75 over UTEP in Provo, Utah.

Cowboys Will Face San Diego State in First Round of 2001 Mountain West Conference Tournament, Pokes Seeded Third: Here is the schedule for the 2001 Mountain West Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, beginning Thursday, March 8 and running through Saturday, March 10 in Las Vegas, Nev., at the Thomas & Mack Center.

MWC Tri-Champions Wyoming, Utah and BYU all split head-to-head series against each other this season, which was the first tiebreaker for seedings in the MWC Tournament. The second tiebreaker was a comparison of how those three teams fared against the fourth-place team UNLV. Utah swept its season series vs. UNLV, and so is the No. 1 seed. BYU split its two games against UNLV, and so the Cougars are the second seed. Wyoming lost its two games vs. the Runnin' Rebels, and so UW is the No. 3 seed.

Josh Davis Named ESPN.com's Mountain West Conference Player of the Year: Wyoming junior Josh Davis has been named Mountain West Conference Player of the Year by ESPN.com. The 6-8, 235-pound junior from Salem, Ore., led the Mountain West in rebounding, averaging 9.3 rebounds per game. He also is ranked No. 11 in scoring at 13.1 points per game.

During his junior season, Davis reached the 1,000-point plateau for his career (he currently has scored 1,026 points), and he has also broken into the Top 10 in career rebounding in UW history (he enters today's game with 682 to rank No. 10.

Davis was a First Team All-Mountain West Conference selection as a sophomore a year ago, in voting by MWC head coaches.

The 2000-01 MWC All-Conference team is to be announced this coming Monday, March 5.

CollegeInsider.com Names Wyoming's Josh Davis MWC Player of the Year and Steve McClain MWC Coach of the Year: Wyoming has also had two individuals honored by CollegeInsider.com. Wyoming head coach Steve McClain was named the 2000-01 Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year by CollegeInsider.com, and Josh Davis was named the MWC Player of the Year.

In Case You Missed It:
*Wyoming captured its first conference championship in 15 seasons when it tied Utah and BYU for the 2001 title this past week. The last time Wyoming won a share of a conference basketball title was the 1985-86 season.

*The last time Wyoming has won a postseason conference tournament title was the 1987-88 season.
*Marcus Bailey captured the MWC scoring title as only a sophomore this season, averaging 17.9 points per game. For the season, he scored 30 or more points on two occasions, 20 or more points in 12 games and scored in double figures in 22 of 27 games. He has led the conference scoring race almost from start to finish, and he has ranked in seven different statistical categories in the MWC throughout the season.
*Josh Davis captured the conference rebounding title with a 9.3 average this season. Davis also broke into Wyoming's Top 10 career rebounders this past week, he will enter the MWC Tournament with 682 career rebounds, ranking him 10th on the UW all-time list.
*Josh Davis was named First Team All-District 13 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) this past week. His teammate, sophomore Marcus Bailey, was named to the Second Team.
*Josh Davis reached the 1,000-point plateau for his career this past week. Davis enters the Mountain West Conference Tournament with 1,026 career points. He became only the 26th player in the 96-year history of Wyoming Basketball to reach the 1,000-point milestone.
*Chris McMillian moved into third place on Wyoming's career assist list last Saturday versus UNLV. McMillian will enter the MWC Tournament with 358 career assists. He passed former Cowboy great Mike Jackson, who handed out 357 assists from 1980-83.
*Josh Davis recorded his seventh double-double of the season against San Diego State on Thursday, March 1. Davis had 10 points and 13 rebounds. It also marked the 23rd double-double of his career.
*Ronell Mingo blocked a career high six shots vs. the Aztecs last Thursday. Mingo's six blocked shots also tied for the team high this season. Josh Davis blocked six shots vs. Colorado State on Feb. 20, 2001.

Wyoming Cowboys' Season Capsule
Wyoming's 2000-01 Record:       19-8 (.704)
Wyoming's 2000-01 MWC Record:   10-4 (.714) in the MWC
Last Time Out for Wyoming:
        Wyoming lost to UNLV 102-106 on March 3, 2001,
        in Las Vegas, Nev.
Current Win/Loss Streak:        Lost 1
UW Head Coach (Alma Mater):     Steve McClain(Chadron St.'84)
McClain's Overall Record:       56-30 (.651), 3rd season
McClain's Record at Wyoming:    Same
Letterwinners Returning/Lost:   5/9
Starters Returning/Lost:        4/2 (Including one from 98-99)
1999-00 Record:                 19-12, 8-6 T4th in MWC
1999-00 Postseason:
        Defeated Colorado State 74-68 in the MWC Tournament
        Lost at UNLV 92-97 in the MWC Tournament

UW Series Record vs. San Diego St.:     Wyoming leads 28-18
UW Record versus in Laramie:            Wyoming leads 19-2
UW Record versus on the Road:           Wyoming trails 8-13
UW Record versus at Neutral Sites:      Wyoming trails 1-3
Last Meeting versus:
Wyoming defeated San Diego State 69-62 in San Diego, Calif.,
on March 1, 2001

San Diego State Aztecs' Season Capsule
2000-01 Record:                 14-13 (.519)
2000-01 Conference Record:      4-10 (.286) in the MWC
Last Time Out:
        San Diego State defeated CSU 78-73 in San Diego, Calif.,
        on March 3, 2001
University Location:            San Diego, Calif.
Current Win/Loss Streak:        Won 1
Head Coach (Alma Mater):        Steve Fischer (Illinois St '67)
Coach's Overall Record:         203-118 (.632), 10th season
Coach's Record at School:       19-36 (.345), 2nd season
Lettermen Returning/Lost:       4/6
Starters Returning/Lost:        2/3
1999-00 Record:                 5-23, 0-14 8th in the MWC
1999-00 Postseason:
        Lost to UNLV 72-77 in the MWC Tournament

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