With the MWC basketball season fast approaching, here's a team-by-team look at MWC squads:

Air Force

Coach Jeff Reynolds says he took a lot of heat last year from a local newspaper reporter for using now-senior Andrew Henke as a sixth man. The 6-foot-6 swingman, who represented the Falcons at MWC media day above three returning starters, was the second-leading scorer (11.3 ppg) and leading rebounder (4.5). But the second-year coach says that strategy was in part due to Henke's selflessness. In a meeting that included eventual starter Matt Holland before last season, Henke bit on the coach's message that he needed one of them to come off the bench.

The academy has 19 players on the roster. The school raised its enrollment 10 percent this year, to 4,400 students. Henke was pleased to report that means more coeds, especially as the school has skewed the ratio from about 80-20 to 75-25 men-to-women.

One guy Henke would like to see is promising 6-7 center Phillip Brown. The sophomore is academically ineligible for at least the first semester.

Reynolds is hoping the academy will let him have the year back, though it doesn't redshirt athletes. Otherwise, there is a chance Brown could play in MWC games. The coach said most players take three or four classes, and Brown is taking six while not practicing.

BYU

It's a real battle at the guard spots, of which both are open after starters Sam Burgess and Ben Murdock graduated.

"It's very competitive, but I don't believe it's to the detriment of our team," senior Lee Cummard said. "When we play, they play hard."

The Cougars, the two-time defending MWC regular-season champions, will be looking at options like sophomores Jimmer Fredette and Mike Loyd, who each showed flashes last year but also a lot of inconsistency. Lamont Morgan, who redshirted last year as a junior-college transfer, has improved and is in the mix. Cummard said to watch out for the LDS mission return of Jackson Emery.

The 6-3 sophomore, who averaged 2.8 points in 2005-06 when he was mostly a defensive presence, has been on fire in pickup games lately, according to Cummard.

Colorado State

Second-year coach Tim Miles has to hope 2008-09 is better. He went 7-25 last season (1-17 in MWC games) during what he called "a real numbing experience toward the end."

The Rams return high-scoring guard Marcus Walker and Miles believes more talent around him will help.

"We more closely resemble a Mountain West Conference team," Miles said. "We're not where we want to be, but at the end of the day we have more athletes."

Andy Ogide was successful in the team's summer trip to Canada. The 6-8 sophomore forward is a transfer from Ole Miss. A few teams, like Wyoming and the Rams, are hoping transfers from BCS-level schools will help produce better results this year.

"Andy looks like he can play in our league, too" Miles said.

New Mexico

Former standout Danny Granger contributed a half-million dollars to the school's $60 million renovation of The Pit during the next two years.

As for remodeling the product on the floor, second-year coach Steve Alford concedes he has a project replacing MWC co-player of the year J.R. Giddens, who steadied an erratic college career to be a presence at both ends of the floor.

But UNM does return four starters, including sophomore guard Jonathan Wills. Alford points out the Lobos were 14-3 with him in the starting five. Also, the team will get back 6-5 senior forward Tony Danridge, who broke his leg before last season started.

San Diego State

The Aztecs return all five starters, which includes a player booted from the team last year.

Kyle Spain, a 6-5 senior forward, was reinstated a few weeks ago. He stayed in school, on scholarship, and proved to coach Steve Fisher he was a changed man.

"A belief that he is who I think he is," Fisher said when he asked why he stuck with Spain. "He's a good person that made more than one huge mistake. And it wasn't automatic. He had a lot on his plate that needed to have an opportunity...we watched and listened and saw what we saw was an added sense of maturity."

Senior forward Lorrenzo Wade (14.8 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.6 apg) is also back as one of the MWC's top five players.

TCU

New coach Jim Christian spent the last six years as head coach at Kent State in Ohio. He compiled a 138-58 record and went to the NCAA tournament two of his last three years.

He'll need to get some Texas twang to go with his noticeable Long Island, New York accent. Picked to finish last of nine MWC teams, he said the way to achieve in Fort Worth is the same as anywhere else.

"You have to go out and talk to people, let them get to know you," Christian said of building connections with fans and recruits. "That's been effective everywhere I've been. I like it. But I'm from New York. New Yorkers can talk to anyone."

UNLV

"We've overachieved," said guard Wink Adams, who was voted alongside BYU's Lee Cummard as the MWC's top returning player. "We were small, never had an inside presence. But we did whatever coach said and he came up with some crazy plans for us to win games."

The Rebels have won an NCAA tournament game the past two years.

Lon Kruger has built an admirable program, defying skeptics that said he wouldn't stay in Las Vegas very long. His returning players are as good as any outfit in the MWC and some new talent will allow him to play more conventionally.

Joe Darger, who admirably played an undersized center, can move back outside. The Rebels will introduce 7-footer Beas Hamga, a redshirt freshman who sat out last year with NCAA-restricted status.

Utah

Second-year coach Jim Boylen has spent a lot of time convincing senior center Luke Nevill of his talent and importance.

"What I've done with Luke is very upfront," Boylen said. "There's things that he does -- or doesn't -- do that I think affect him becoming who he can become. And I address those things every opportunity that I get, within the rules. That's a sense of urgency, caring for his teammates, letting him know they need him to be successful."

Critics have often criticized Nevill's passion for the game. But not his talent. The 7-2 Australian senior was picked among the MWC's top five returning players. Boylen said he needs him to become a better rebounder.

Nevill, meanwhile, says he has spent more time over the summer with teammates than in the past -- getting to know them, letting them get to know him.

"I knew what I was doing in the past wasn't as strong as I needed it to be to be a leader on the team," he said.

Boylen proudly notes that Nevill had a 3.3 grade point average during summer courses, higher than any other semester. Nevill has been known to focus incredibly well against BYU, but struggle against teams he should more likely dominate.

He concedes there's "a switch" that goes off against the Cougars.

"I need to treat every game like a rivalry," he says.

There will be a lot of big games this year. Boylen is at the forefront of tough MWC schedules. The Utes will play Oregon, Cal and Gonzaga at home along with a game at Oklahoma.

"I don't want our first tough game of the year to be one in conference," Boylen said.

Wyoming

Yes, Brandon Ewing is back. The 6-2 senior will be one of the MWC's best players, as usual. But the real key to the Pokes' success could be 10 newcomers.

That includes Sean Ogirri, a 6-foot-2 redshirt senior transfer from Wichita State. The Denver-area native was a top scorer on the Wichita State team that went to the Sweet 16 two years ago. He left when coach Mark Turgeon took the job at Texas A&M.

The Cowboys, picked to finish sixth in the MWC, have four new players who were at another D-I school previously: Ogirri, JayDee Luster (New Mexico State), Djibril Thiam (Baylor) and Boubacar Sylla (Auburn).

Thiam, a 6-9 sophomore, will be eligible in December.