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No stranger to change, the Big West Conference underwent yet another major face lift after the final buzzer sounded last season.
Gone is conference bully/icon Nevada Las Vegas, which left for the brighter lights--i.e., better competition, exposure, money--of the Western Athletic Conference. UNLV kept the neighborhood in line and in the national spotlight.
San Jose State joined the Rebels on the fastbreak to the WAC, but not before grabbing the Big West tournament title on its way out. This from the team seeded last in a six-team field.
With the Spartans' tournament championship also came the Big West's automatic NCAA tournament berth, meaning a sub.-500 team carried the conference flag. And Long Beach State, the conference regular-season champion, is still waiting for a call from the National Invitation Tournament selection committee.
Via expansion, Boise State, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Idaho and North Texas enter the mix. Only Long Beach State, Pacific and UC Santa Barbara remain from the conference's charter group of seven in 1969.
The conference now features two divisions, Western and Eastern, and the top four teams in each qualify for the Big West tournament.
A look at the teams in the Big West other than Cal...