When my now 17 year-old son was a wee little lad, we dealt with the trials and tribulations of potty training just like every other exasperated parent. For weeks nothing worked, until one day a stroke of genius fired in the cranium — the pooping shark.
Knowing our son was obsessed with a book about the meat-eating sea killers, we purchased a soft rubber-coated Great White at the local toy store. When introduced to it, he naturally went nuts. But there was a catch. He had to do his business properly. It took two weeks. Achievement unlocked. And a little boy, in the greatest way possible, lost his damn mind.
With conference tournaments among high-major teams about to get underway, a number of notable schools are vying for not No. 2 — but No. 1.
Mountain West Tournament pick: Nevada Wolf Pack (+500, DraftKings)
Nevada has exhibited a road toughness like few others. A group of Mad Maxes away from Reno, they’re 8-3 straight-up with notable wins at Boise State, at Colorado State and at Utah State. Name the time and place, and Steve Alford’s group will show up wearing a hard hat.
Since Feb. 1, the Wolf Pack have performed a level above Mountain West competition, ranking No. 14 in BartTorvik’s overall predictive analytics. Ranking top-25 in offensive and defensive efficiency during that stretch, they define balance.
On offense, Nevada features an often deadly 1-2 punch at guard in Kenan Blackshear and Jarod Lucas. The former is one of the best distributors left of the Continental Divide. The latter is a wired-to-score bucket-getter who shoots 40.1% from distance.
[ Bracket Big Board: Brad Evans’ NCAA Tournament projections ]
The backcourt is complemented by multidimensional forwards Tre Coleman and Nick Davidson, and both are a load whether working in the pivot or along the perimeter. Also, the Wolf Pack have converted over 41% from three over the past 30 days.
Defensively, Nevada is relatively unbending. Over the last 11 games, it is a respectable No. 75 in effective field-goal percentage D, yielding 50.4% from two and 29.4% from three. Excellent on the defensive glass, the Wolf Pack limit often crippling second chances.
Remarkably, over 23% of Nevada’s points come at the charity stripe. That, combined with the Wolf Pack’s comfort level away from Lawler Events Center and their plus defense, encourages a future investment. Keep in mind, the tourney’s No. 2 seed has defeated fellow top-five MWC clubs at least once.
At +500? Take my money.