Las Vegas – Brandon Heath occupies seven pages of the San Diego State media guide. He also owns a significant portion of the Mountain West Conference scoring record book, as well as all of Colorado State coach Dale Layer’s attention this week.
“Any night, he can explode for 30 points,” Layer said of the three-time all-MWC selection.
There’s nothing like a 23-year-old explosives expert in a basketball jersey to distract a coach’s attention from an imminent meeting with an athletic director who could detonate Layer’s career.
The Rams (16-12) take their No. 6 seed against the third-seeded Aztecs (21-9) tonight in the MWC Tournament. It could be the final game of Layer’s seven-year stint at CSU. Or it could be a repeat of CSU’s 2003 visit to Las Vegas as a No. 6 seed when the Rams won the tournament and the conference’s automatic bid for the NCAA Tournament.
The contract extension signed after that run concludes after next season. First-year athletic director Paul Kowalczyk repeatedly has said he sits down with all his coaches after each season.
“I’ve got enough to worry about,” Layer said of the Aztecs. “There are things you can control and things you can’t. We trying to maximize the things we can control and that’s San Diego State.”
Layer hasn’t campaigned in the media to save his job.
“We’ve improved this year,” Layer said. “We’re better than we were a year ago. Our league probably hasn’t allowed us to demonstrate that. We’re not as good as we have to be. We probably lost a couple of games we should have won.”
CSU might have won a few more games had forward Michael Harrison stayed in school. He brought the athleticism up front CSU desperately needed to combat the league’s quicker teams. Layer has not used Harrison’s absence as an excuse.
While the MWC was grateful for two NCAA bids a year ago, three are anticipated this season, with San Diego State looming as a fourth.
Already, New Mexico and Utah have anted up a combined $1.5 million to fire their coaches before their contracts ended. Layer wasn’t sure of his exact contract numbers given the additions for radio and camps, but knew his $200,000 ballpark package was easily the lowest figure in the MWC – yet he never has uttered a complaint.
He posted winning records in four of seven seasons, but is 31-67 in the conference. The Utah and New Mexico coaches were two years removed from NCAA bids when they were sent packing, in part because of dwindling crowds. CSU’s attendance average increased from 4,303 last season to 4,620 this season.
It’s all relative. Ray Giacoletti’s time at Utah was cut short after three seasons when 5,000 turned out for some Huntsman Center games.
Unlike fairly young teams at New Mexico and Utah, CSU returns four of five starters next season.
The only question is: Will Layer return with the senior-dominated team?
CSU men vs. San Diego State
What: Quarterfinal game in the Mountain West Conference Tournament
When: 9:30 p.m.
Where: Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas
Records: CSU (16-12, 6-10); San Diego State (21-9, 10-6)
TV/radio: The Mtn. (Comcast 411)/KLZ 560 AM
Notes: Comparisons to 2003, when CSU went in as the No. 6 seed, aren’t entirely realistic. The Rams finished strong that season but won only two of the last 10 this time. In 2003, CSU opened against a slumping Wyoming team. The Aztecs won five straight in the middle of the conference stretch but only three of the last five and struggled against TCU and New Mexico, the bottom two seeds.
Natalie Meisler can be reached at 303-954-1295 or nmeisler@denverpost.com.
