Monson: Could all of Utah's college basketball teams miss the March Madness?

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

College basketball fans may already have the likelihood shoved somewhere in the back of their brains that only one team, and maybe none, from the state of Utah will qualify for the NCAA Tournament this season.

Utah's out. No way can the Utes climb out of their hole for any sort of late run to become a threat. The Utes (5-16, 11th in the Pac-12) rank 338th nationally in points per game, 337th in rebounds, 326th in assists, and 277th in field-goal percentage.

Barring some cosmic disruption, Utah State (12-10, 4-3 in the WAC), normally a reliable participant in postseason play, won't make the field. The Aggies, winners of two in a row after four losses in five games, could find some momentum in the last weeks of the season, but nothing in their track record has indicated that kind of turnaround. They next travel to face Nevada (18-3, 7-0), a team that already beat them in Logan.

Even BYU, playing now in the West Coast Conference, is seriously in doubt. The Cougars are 18-6, but only 6-3 in league, having lost to St. Mary's twice, and now playing second-place Gonzaga this week at the Marriott Center. The Cougars must travel to Gonzaga later in the schedule. If BYU can't win the WCC tournament, it's hard to imagine it getting in, because the NCAA committee is not likely to invite three teams from that league.

If the Cougars don't relearn to shoot straight, they have no shot.

Which brings us to the team with the best shot: Weber State (16-4, 8-1 in the Big Sky). The Weebs, coming off a loss at 7-14 Idaho State, currently stand first in their conference. The major blow to their credibility this season was that 94-66 crushing at BYU.

Things could yet change, but it's a better bet that it will be a bleak March around here.

GORDON MONSON hosts "The Gordon Monson Show" weekdays from 2-6 p.m. on 97.5 FM/1280 AM The Zone. Twitter: @GordonMonson.