UNLV Must Hope Selection Committee Remembers Louisville Road Win

ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi has been in love with the Mountain West Conference for most of the season, at one point believing that five teams could get into the NCAA tournament. That's not going to happen now. UNLV looked pathetic on its home court, losing a third game this season to San Diego State and greatly diminishing any hopes that the Rebels had of making a third consecutive NCAA appearance.

But the Rebels weren't the only team that struggled in the early rounds of the conference tournaments. Is there any hope that UNLV might sneak into this thing?

San Diego State 71 UNLV 57: Recap | Box Score | RPI | Scores

That's a tough one. I have to believe that the Rebels are a little bit closer than people are getting them credit for. And there are a couple of early-round loses that really benefit UNLV here.

For starters, Arizona lost to Arizona State. This game greatly helps the Rebels' cause. The Wildcats would be a feel-good story gunning for their 25th consecutive appearance in the dance. A decent run into the Pac-10 tournament would have put them in. But going one-and-done, puts Arizona behind UNLV, thanks to the Rebels' head-to-head victory.

The other big game was New Mexico's upset at the hands of Wyoming. The Cowboys likely sent the Lobos to the NIT with that one. UNLV and New Mexico are close in RPI, but the Rebels have that road win at Louisville. That is the difference.

Don't close the door on UNLV just yet. The good news for the Rebels is that unlike St. Mary's, this loss wasn't on national TV.

And not to diminish San Diego State's accomplishments. I know, it's not fair to harp on UNLV when the Aztecs did the winning. But that's because State is in the tournament. A win over BYU would certainly help cement that, but State should go on to win the Mountain West tournament. That story hasn't been written quite yet.