Fresno State Athletics
Four weekend MW home games on the slate for the ’Dogs in 2019
6/11/2018 11:04:00 AM | Men's Basketball
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The Fresno State men's basketball team will open and close its 2019 Mountain West schedule with San Jose State – starting at SJSU on Jan. 2 and finishing the regular season with the Spartans on March 9, the league office announced Monday. The 'Dogs will also host Colorado State (Jan. 5), Nevada (Jan. 12) and New Mexico (Feb. 2) for a total of four MW home games played on the weekend at the Save Mart Center.
The Bulldogs will be led by first-year head coach Justin Hutson, who has returned home to the Valley as an elite recruiter and well-rounded coach. In his first two months on the job, Hutson, a native of Bakersfield, Calif., has also made it a point to get out in the community and ask the Red Wave to return.
"We have to get the old Red Wave back and we also need to build some new Red Wave and get some excitement there," Hutson said during his introductory press conference. "It starts with me and I'm excited to do it. I have to get out there. We need a home court advantage here. I want to make sure we are playing an exciting style of basketball and exciting teams in the Save Mart Center – that is part of getting the Red Wave back. There are a lot of home court advantages in the Mountain West and there is not going to be any better than the Red Wave. I remember those red cars going up and down the 99 freeway, so let's go!"
Fresno State, who had two players earn All-Mountain West honors this past season in Deshon Taylor and Bryson Williams, has established itself as a consistent and regular Mountain West contender – earning four consecutive first-round byes and three straight top four seeds for the conference tournament. Fresno State is one of two MW teams (Boise State) to have earned a first round bye in each of the past four seasons (including this season).
Fresno State is one of three MW teams to have finished .500 or better in league play in each of the past five seasons, including this past season. Fresno State, Boise State and San Diego State have won at least nine conference games in each of the last five seasons. During the past half-decade, Fresno State has averaged 10.8 conference wins per season, with at least 10 MW wins for four straight seasons, including a 13-5 mark in 2015-16.
A quick snapshot of Fresno State's 2019 MW Men's Basketball Schedule
After hosting the Rams and Wolf Pack in their first two MW home games, the 'Dogs will later host San Diego State (Jan. 23), New Mexico (Feb. 2), Boise State (Feb. 13), Air Force (Feb. 20), Wyoming (Feb. 27) and San Jose State (March 9).
As for road games, Fresno State will play that MW opener at SJSU (Jan. 2) and then compete at Utah State (Jan. 9), Boise State (Jan. 19), Colorado State (Jan. 26), Wyoming (Jan. 30), UNLV (Feb. 9), New Mexico (Feb. 16), Nevada (Feb. 23) and San Diego State (March 6).
All game dates are subject to a possible move from the designated Wednesday to Tuesday, or the designated Saturday to Sunday, pending the completion of the conference's television selections for the 2018-19 season.
Due to the MW's 18-game conference schedule, Fresno State will not host UNLV or play at Air Force.
Fresno State to play in 2018 Wooden Legacy
While Fresno State's non-conference schedule is still being finalized, the Bulldogs will notably play in the 2018 Wooden Legacy (Nov. 22, 23 & 25), which also features Grand Canyon (Western Athletic), Hawai'i (Big West) LaSalle (Atlantic 10), Miami (Atlantic Coast), Northwestern (Big Ten), Utah (Pacific-12) and Seton Hall (Big East).
Fresno State (21-11), Grand Canyon (22-12), Miami (22-10), Seton Hall (21-12) and Utah (23-12) won 20 or more games in 2017-2018. Overall, the eight schools in the 2018 Wooden Legacy combined for a 155-106 record (59.4 percent).
The Wooden Legacy was formed in June 2013 when the John R. Wooden Classic was merged with the Anaheim Classic, which was an eight-school bracketed event played for six years (2007-2012) at the Anaheim Convention Center. Past Anaheim Classic/Wooden Legacy winners were USC (2007), Wake Forest (2008), West Virginia (2009), UNLV (2010), Saint Louis (2011), Cal (2012), San Diego State (2013), Washington (2014), Michigan State (2015), UCLA (2016) and Washington State (2017).
The Wooden Legacy is one of several in-season bracketed college basketball tournaments owned and operated by ESPN Events, a division of ESPN.
Additional non-conference contests, including dates, will be announced in the near future.
2018-19 Mountain West Men's Basketball Television and Championship Schedule Notes
The release today is the first phase in the 2018-19 men's basketball schedule process. Mountain West national television partners CBS Sports Network and ESPN will initiate a selection procedure which will include the shifting of select Wednesday games to Tuesday and Saturday games to Sunday.
The national television selections are expected to be completed by the middle of August. Regional partner AT&T SportsNet and the Mountain West Network on STADIUM will begin their picks after the national television lineup has been announced. Game times will be set once all broadcast networks finalize their selections.
Additionally, the MW announced the format and game times for the 2019 MW Men's Basketball Championship. The 10-game tournament begins on Wednesday, March 13 with three first-round games. The men's quarterfinals are set for Thursday, March 14 with semifinal play on Friday, March 15. The tournament will conclude with the men's championship game on Saturday, March 16 at 3 p.m. PT. All games will be played at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas with the quarterfinals and semifinals once again airing on CBS Sports Network and the championship game will be broadcast on CBS.
"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.
The Bulldogs will be led by first-year head coach Justin Hutson, who has returned home to the Valley as an elite recruiter and well-rounded coach. In his first two months on the job, Hutson, a native of Bakersfield, Calif., has also made it a point to get out in the community and ask the Red Wave to return.
"We have to get the old Red Wave back and we also need to build some new Red Wave and get some excitement there," Hutson said during his introductory press conference. "It starts with me and I'm excited to do it. I have to get out there. We need a home court advantage here. I want to make sure we are playing an exciting style of basketball and exciting teams in the Save Mart Center – that is part of getting the Red Wave back. There are a lot of home court advantages in the Mountain West and there is not going to be any better than the Red Wave. I remember those red cars going up and down the 99 freeway, so let's go!"
Fresno State, who had two players earn All-Mountain West honors this past season in Deshon Taylor and Bryson Williams, has established itself as a consistent and regular Mountain West contender – earning four consecutive first-round byes and three straight top four seeds for the conference tournament. Fresno State is one of two MW teams (Boise State) to have earned a first round bye in each of the past four seasons (including this season).
Fresno State is one of three MW teams to have finished .500 or better in league play in each of the past five seasons, including this past season. Fresno State, Boise State and San Diego State have won at least nine conference games in each of the last five seasons. During the past half-decade, Fresno State has averaged 10.8 conference wins per season, with at least 10 MW wins for four straight seasons, including a 13-5 mark in 2015-16.
A quick snapshot of Fresno State's 2019 MW Men's Basketball Schedule
After hosting the Rams and Wolf Pack in their first two MW home games, the 'Dogs will later host San Diego State (Jan. 23), New Mexico (Feb. 2), Boise State (Feb. 13), Air Force (Feb. 20), Wyoming (Feb. 27) and San Jose State (March 9).
As for road games, Fresno State will play that MW opener at SJSU (Jan. 2) and then compete at Utah State (Jan. 9), Boise State (Jan. 19), Colorado State (Jan. 26), Wyoming (Jan. 30), UNLV (Feb. 9), New Mexico (Feb. 16), Nevada (Feb. 23) and San Diego State (March 6).
All game dates are subject to a possible move from the designated Wednesday to Tuesday, or the designated Saturday to Sunday, pending the completion of the conference's television selections for the 2018-19 season.
Due to the MW's 18-game conference schedule, Fresno State will not host UNLV or play at Air Force.
Fresno State to play in 2018 Wooden Legacy
While Fresno State's non-conference schedule is still being finalized, the Bulldogs will notably play in the 2018 Wooden Legacy (Nov. 22, 23 & 25), which also features Grand Canyon (Western Athletic), Hawai'i (Big West) LaSalle (Atlantic 10), Miami (Atlantic Coast), Northwestern (Big Ten), Utah (Pacific-12) and Seton Hall (Big East).
Fresno State (21-11), Grand Canyon (22-12), Miami (22-10), Seton Hall (21-12) and Utah (23-12) won 20 or more games in 2017-2018. Overall, the eight schools in the 2018 Wooden Legacy combined for a 155-106 record (59.4 percent).
The Wooden Legacy was formed in June 2013 when the John R. Wooden Classic was merged with the Anaheim Classic, which was an eight-school bracketed event played for six years (2007-2012) at the Anaheim Convention Center. Past Anaheim Classic/Wooden Legacy winners were USC (2007), Wake Forest (2008), West Virginia (2009), UNLV (2010), Saint Louis (2011), Cal (2012), San Diego State (2013), Washington (2014), Michigan State (2015), UCLA (2016) and Washington State (2017).
The Wooden Legacy is one of several in-season bracketed college basketball tournaments owned and operated by ESPN Events, a division of ESPN.
Additional non-conference contests, including dates, will be announced in the near future.
2018-19 Mountain West Men's Basketball Television and Championship Schedule Notes
The release today is the first phase in the 2018-19 men's basketball schedule process. Mountain West national television partners CBS Sports Network and ESPN will initiate a selection procedure which will include the shifting of select Wednesday games to Tuesday and Saturday games to Sunday.
The national television selections are expected to be completed by the middle of August. Regional partner AT&T SportsNet and the Mountain West Network on STADIUM will begin their picks after the national television lineup has been announced. Game times will be set once all broadcast networks finalize their selections.
- CBS Sports Network, ESPN Networks, AT&T SportsNet/ROOT Sports and the Mountain West Network on STADIUM have yet to select games from the overall composite schedule. Therefore, this schedule is not "final".
- CBSSN, ESPN and AT&T SportsNet/ROOT Sports will shift games from Wednesday to Tuesday and from Saturday to Sunday for broadcast purposes.
- CBSSN must complete its first 12 picks by July 1.
- CBSSN and ESPN will then work through their remaining selections between July 1 and August 1 until CBSSN gets to a total of 31 games.
- Between August 1 and August 15, ESPN will select its final 12 games to get it to a total of 31 games.
- Once ESPN finalizes its 31 selections, CBS Sports Network will then have 38 days to sublicense an allotment of games.
- After the sublicense process, AT&T SportsNet/ROOT Sports and the Mountain West Network on STADIUM will work through their selection process, which will then finalize the schedule.
Additionally, the MW announced the format and game times for the 2019 MW Men's Basketball Championship. The 10-game tournament begins on Wednesday, March 13 with three first-round games. The men's quarterfinals are set for Thursday, March 14 with semifinal play on Friday, March 15. The tournament will conclude with the men's championship game on Saturday, March 16 at 3 p.m. PT. All games will be played at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas with the quarterfinals and semifinals once again airing on CBS Sports Network and the championship game will be broadcast on CBS.
"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.
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