Starting Wednesday in Las Vegas, the Mountain West men's basketball tournament features three first-round matchups at the Thomas & Mack Center. The tournament winner receives an automatic bid to March Madness.

This year's competition is exceptionally close, with minimal separation in title odds among top teams. Two bubble teams, No. 5 San Diego State and No. 4 Boise State, are currently projected among the last four teams in for March Madness.

The top five seeds - No. 1 New Mexico, No. 2 Colorado State (22-9, 16-4), No. 3 Utah State (25-6, 15-5), No. 4 San Diego State (21-8, 14-6), and No. 5 Boise State (22-9, 14-6) - all have first-round byes.

First Round Matchups (Wednesday):

No. 8 San Jose State vs. No. 9 Wyoming (11 a.m.)

• SJSU swept regular season meetings
• Winner faces No. 1 New Mexico

No. 7 Nevada vs. No. 10 Fresno State (1:30 p.m.)

• Nevada swept regular season series
• Winner faces No. 2 Colorado State

No. 6 UNLV vs. No. 11 Air Force (4 p.m.)

• UNLV won both regular season games by combined 44 points
• Winner faces No. 3 Utah State

Top-seeded New Mexico enters as defending champions and tournament favorites (+250). Junior guard Donovan Dent leads the Lobos, averaging 20.4 points and 6.5 assists per game.

Coach Richard Pitino earned Mountain West Coach of the Year honors after leading New Mexico to a 17-3 conference record.

Colorado State enters as the second favorite (+350), riding a seven-game winning streak led by senior Nique Clifford's all-around play (18.4 points, 9.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists).

Tournament Schedule:

• Quarterfinals: Thursday
• Semifinals: Friday (6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m.)
• Championship: Saturday (3 p.m. on CBS)

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