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I'm sure many of you are wondering about the Mountain West Conference's official tie-breaking procedures, so here's something to clip 'n save:
MWC TIE-BREAKING PROCEDURES
General Procedure:
All ties shall be broken in the order in which they occur, from top to bottom, in the standings. Tied teams in the higher position shall be considered as separate positions based upon their seeding (e.g., Team A and Team B are tied for first place in the standings. By using the established tie-breaking procedures, it is determined that Team B is the No. 1 seed and Team A is the No. 2 seed. Team C and Team D are tied for fifth place in the standings. When using the tie-breaking formula to break the tie, Teams C and D are compared separately against Team B first, then Team A). When comparing tied teams against positions lower in the standings that are also tied, those lower-tied positions shall be considered a single position for purposes of comparison.
Two-Way Tie:
If two teams tie for a position, and one holds a win-loss advantage during regular season play, that team receives the higher seed. If the two teams split their games during the regular season, each tied team's record shall be compared against the team occupying the highest position in the standings, continuing down through the standings until one team gains the advantage, thereby gaining the higher seed. If two teams remained tied, the tie shall be broken by a comparison of the two teams' NCAA RPI. The team with the better NCAA RPI will gain the advantage.
Ties Between Three or More Teams:
If three or more teams tie for a position, the combined record of each of the tied teams against the other teams involved in the tie shall be compared until an advantage is gained. If the multiple tie still exists, each of the tied teams' records against the team occupying the highest position in the standings shall be compared, continuing down through the standings until the tie is reduced to a two-team tie, at which time the procedure shall revert to the two-way tie breaking procedure, until the tie is broken. If teams remained tied, the tie shall be broken by a comparison of the two teams' NCAA RPI. The team with the better NCAA RPI will gain the advantage.
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One of the main factors in BYU's Saturday loss at UNLV was the disparity in bench production. Paced by Mo Rutledge's career-high 13 points and eight big points from Kendall Wallace, UNLV outscored BYU 21-6 off the bench. UNLV averaged 0.40 points per bench minute on Saturday, while the Cougars countered wih 0.14 points per bench minute.
In all four of BYU's conference losses, the bench has been outscored, by a total margin of 44 points. In BYU's eight league wins, BYU has played the opposition almost dead even off the bench, being outscored by one substitution point. Understandably, in conference games against some of the leagues lesser lights, bench players traditionally see a few more minutes and score a few more points, but in the more competitive contests, the starters are not getting a lot of help from their replacements.
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However, compared to last season's team, BYU is getting roughly the same kind of production from its reserves. In 2008's conference stats, the bench provided 19.5% of total points, while this season, the subs have provided 19% of the scoring. That's interesting, since last season Jimmer Fredette was coming off the bench, and the assumption might have been last year's bench was much more productive. Last year, the subs played 28% of conference minutes--this season, that number is 27%.
Having said that, the bench play this conference season has been a key indicator of success or failure. Although San Diego State's bench is a little shorter right now with the loss of Billy White, every Aztec reserve has started at least one game this season. In Provo, SDSU outscored BYU 30-20 off the bench--on a night Lamont Morgan scored a season-high 12 points off the pine.
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Something else to watch tonight: SDSU's ability to turn the ball over and crash the offensive glass. The Aztecs lead the MWC in steals and offensive rebounds, and by a sizable margin over their closest competitors. SDSU scored 20 of its 71 points off of BYU turnovers last month, but BYU held the Aztecs in check on the boards-- SDSU had two more offensive rebounds, but BYU outscored the Aztecs 11-9 in second-chance points.
Interesting note: BYU is first nationally relative to the number of missed opponent shots that are rebounded by that opponent, which indicates to me that BYU's opponents are so wary of the Cougars' transition game that they sacrifice offensive rebounding for numbers back on defense.
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BYU could use a big game from Jimmer Fredette. He is averaging only 13 points a game in his last three, after averaging 21 points a game his previous four. He has failed to make a three-pointer in consecutive games for the first time this season.
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Speaking of three-pointers, Jonathan Tavernari has hit a triple in 21 consecutive games, tying the school single-season record set by Terell Lyday. JT can tonight tie the alltime BYU record of 22 in a row, set by Mark Bigelow over two seasons.
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