When Linda Frhlich scored a routine driving layup in the first half of a game Sunday, the UNLV senior forward became the Lady Rebels’ all-time leading scorer with more than 1,900 career points.
But Frhlich’s milestone extends well past the UNLV campus. Frhlich’s achievements — and those of her Mountain West Conference counterparts — are letting the rest of the country know the 3-year-old league means business. Already this season, Mountain West teams have posted three wins over ranked opponents. Colorado State accounted for two of the wins, upsetting defending NCAA champion Notre Dame, which was ranked 15th at the time, and 11th-ranked Colorado. New Mexico added another notch with a win over then-No. 9 Texas Tech
And for the first time in league history, five of the league’s eight teams have either been ranked in the top 25 or at least received votes in the national polls.
Despite a couple of bad losses last week — No. 12 Colorado State suffered a 75-72 loss to Florida International while BYU fell to SMU — the Mountain West has come a long way for such a young conference, and it is definitely on the rise.
Right now, the conference is advertising itself as the “best of the West.” To back it up, the eight Mountain West teams have combined for a 5-4 record against Pac-10 opponents this season. The MWC also is 5-4 vs. WAC foes, 5-1 against Big Sky teams and 5-0 vs. the Big West. Overall, Mountain West teams have gone 31-26 against nonconference opponents this season. Some other young conferences out there might want to model themselves after the Mountain West, which features some really talented players.
Frhlich, a 6-foot-2 senior All-American candidate who is averaging a double-double (21.5 ppg, 10.8 rpg), headlines the list. The Oldendorf, Germany, native has led her conference in scoring each of the past three seasons, averaging 23.5 points to lead the WAC as a freshman, then leading the Mountain West in both her sophomore (21.6 ppg) and junior (19.2 ppg) seasons. Last season, she was voted an honorable mention Kodak All-American.
Frhlich is an incredible shooter who fits well into UNLV’s up-tempo system. She does so many good things for the Lady Rebels, and has been mature enough to maintain her focus as the chased the school’s all-time scoring record, which she set in just 89 games (Misty Thomas, the previous record-holder, scored 1,892 points over 114 games from 1982-86). Frhlich’s career stats stand at 1,912 points and 904 rebounds, and she could become the first Lady Rebel to accumulate 2,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds.
The league’s other top players include Utah senior Lauren Beckman, a 6-2 forward/center who is averaging 18.7 points and 10.0 rebounds after earning first-team all-conference honors last season. New Mexico’s Jordan Adams, a 6-3 junior center who was an All-MWC second-team pick in 2001, is averaging 19.8 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.67 blocks. Adams, the Lobos’ all-time leading shot-blocker, set a Preseason WNIT record this season with seven blocks against Pacific in the season opener on Nov. 9.
In addition to the individual accolades, the Mountain West has managed to build some postseason success, sending two teams to the NCAA Tournament in each of the past two seasons. Last season, five of the eight qualified for postseason play as Utah and Colorado State earned bids to the Big Dance, and New Mexico, BYU and UNLV competed in the WNIT.
While Colorado State was eliminated by perennial power Connecticut in the second round, Utah made the most postseason noise. The Utes, who received a No. 5 seed, earned their first trip to the Sweet 16 and notched a school-record 28 wins before losing to eventual NCAA champion Notre Dame in the Midwest Regional final.
New Mexico made waves in the WNIT, reaching the title game before losing a nail-biter to Ohio State, 62-61.
And after all five teams won their opening game of their respective postseason tournaments last March, the Mountain West was one of just two conferences — joining the Big East — to go unbeaten in the first round.
Others have taken notice. After ranking No. 12 in the conference RPI during the 1999-2000 season, the Mountain West was ranked seventh in last season’s final RPI.
With the two upset wins, Colorado State has made the most noise this season. The Rams were ranked as high as 15th last week, and stand at No. 16 in this week’s ESPN/USA Today rankings and No. 18 in the AP Top 25. By putting together challenging schedules for his team, fifth-year coach Tom Collen also has given the Rams a shot a few upsets. So far, they’ve delivered, and are playing tough defensively to complement their offensive firepower. This team also is very well-balanced.
By beating Pac-10 teams and top-10 teams like Texas Tech, the Mountain West is gaining ground rather quickly. These sorts of wins also give you tremendous confidence, and the Mountain West teams should head into every game knowing they can compete and beat some of these top schools.
These teams aren’t the caliber of UConn or Tennessee, but their building in the right direction.
In its short history, the Mountain West has some quality wins, some quality coaches and some postseason success. And by the time March rolls around, the Mountain West might even have its first All-American. Y