Steve Carp: WAC teams feeling the NCAA’s pinch

Thursday, Oct. 31, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

THE WINDOW OF opportunity is a short one, and Joby Wright knows it.

Wright, who has attempted to rebuild Wyoming's basketball program, is in his fourth year at Laramie. He has an experienced, talented team coming back, one that is capable of beating anyone in the Western Athletic Conference on a given night.

He thinks he can be successful a lot of those nights. But he's not sure how many nights it's going to take to reach the ultimate goal -- a spot in the field of 64 and a chance to go to the NCAA Tournament.

The Cowboys are going to be good. But so will Fresno State and Utah, New Mexico and Tulsa. And perhaps UNLV and Texas Christian.

And therein lies Wright's dilemma, and his colleagues' for that matter. How good is good enough come March 9, when the NCAA's selection committee huddles in Kansas City and decides who from the WAC dances?

For Wyoming, there's a definite sense of urgency.

"Damn straight I want to get to the postseason," Wright said. "This year has to be the year."

That's a lot of pressure for a coach to be laying on himself and his program. But it's also reality. Just because the WAC has grown to 16 teams doesn't mean the NCAA is going to open up additional slots for the conference. The Big 12 can make the same claim. So can the Big East and the Southeastern Conference.

And it begs an important question: Does December become more important now in a team's attempt to keep playing come March?

Is the need to win those nonconference games greater? More important, is there a necessity to schedule and beat higher-quality opponents? Does a seven-point loss to Cincinnati mean more than a 20-point win over Southern Utah?

Some coaches say both are important. But that's Marie Antoinette thinking. Chances are you're not going to have your cake and eat it, too.

So do you use preseason as a time to get ready for conference play and hope you're good enough to be a top seed in the WAC tourney, and roll the dice then? Or do you try to build up brownie points by Christmas so if you lose a key player to injury and falter down the stretch, you still have something to show the committee?

Normally, you'd opt for the former, because everyone believes it's crucial to be playing your best at the end of the year. But there's something to be said for the latter, because strength of schedule is important.

However, in the WAC's case, it's an unfair criterion because many WAC schools can't get quality opponents to come to their gyms. It's usually a 2-for-1 deal where you play two at the other guy's place and one at your house, which isn't equitable. Or you have to book home games with Division I teams that don't have a strong Ratings Percentage Index, which won't help you come Selection Sunday.

"Not many people want to come to Laramie," Wright said. "It's hard to convince them it's a nice place to visit."

And that ultimately may make it hard to convince the selection committee to give the WAC more consideration come March.