ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The Mountain West Conference announced Thursday that while the conference men’s and women’s basketball tournaments will remain at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nev., through 2019, fewer teams will actually be making the trip.
The league’s Board of Directors last weekend met and approved a proposal to allow only the top eight men’s and women’s basketball teams from the final standings. This is a change in format from the first 16 years the league has been in existence when all members were a part of the event.
Commissioner Craig Thompson said in a prepared statement the decision was to emphasize “performance basket competitive excellence.