San Diego State’s 62–41 blowout of Air Force perfectly encapsulated the state of mid-major teams in college basketball.

On one hand, you had the delirious SDSU fans at Cox Arena storming the court after the win over their Mountain West rivals. That kind of display is usually reserved for elite opponents. But Air Force was 20–3 coming into the game, ranked no. 15 in the country — the Falcons certainly met the criteria for a top-tier opponent.

On the other hand, Air Force’s performance was a stink bomb for the ages. Twenty-nine minutes into the game, the Falcons were a wretched 0-for-13 from threepoint range, with just 22 points all told.

“This one was a clunker,” coach Jeff Bzdelik said after the game. “I can’t explain shooting airballs, missing opportunities around the basket, and turnovers.”

The result truly defied belief when you look at Air Force’s résumé heading into Tuesday ‘s game. According to Ken Pomeroy’s excellent statistical Web site kenpom.com, Air Force owned the nation’s most efficient offense. The Falcons use a precise attack that’s a spinoff of the Princeton offense. They screen, they cut, they make crisp passes, and they get wide-open looks for threes and layups. It’s rare to see Air Force play as poorly as they did against the Aztecs.

Last season, George Mason shocked the college basketball world, blowing past Connecticut and other juggernauts to make the Final Four. But Tuesday night’s Air Force game showed the ugly side of the battle for mid-major teams. The Falcons, like George Mason last season and teams such as Creighton, Kent State and others before them, have fielded their share of talented players. But that talent still falls well short of the levels shown by power schools such as this year’s North Carolina and Florida squads, and the Kentuckys and Dukes of years past. A huge number of factors have to fall into place for a mid-major to make another Final Four run.

Still, if it were to happen this year, a mid-major trip to Atlanta wouldn’t be as surprising. Although George Mason was a dangerous but unranked team last season, several mid-majors have held high rankings for much of this season, including Air Force. Here are nine other Mason wannabes, broken down by conference:

MOUNTAIN WEST
BYU, UNLV

Air Force’s loss to SDSU opened the door for a new leader in the Mountain West standings, BYU. The Cougars earned one of their most impressive wins of the season Saturday, crushing UNLV by 27. Mike Rose scored a career-high 27 points in that game, fueled by eight three-pointers. What makes those numbers more remarkable is that Rose averages just 14 minutes and six points a game. Like Air Force, BYU owns a highly efficient offense that features multiple weapons. Also like Air Force, BYU lacks the speed and athleticism to wreak havoc on defense, the way a loaded team like Kansas can. Meanwhile, UNLV will likely be the third MWC entrant into the NCAA tournament. Wendell White may be the conference’s second-most explosive player behind SDSU’s Brandon Heath. But the Rebels lack size, and don’t have the rebounding prowess that many top teams possess.

COLONIAL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION
Virginia Commonwealth, Hofstra

Few factors matter more to a team’s success in March than strong guard play. VCU and Hofstra, the CAA’s top two teams, own two of the top backcourts in the country. First-year coach Anthony Grant has built on predecessor Jeff Capel’s efforts at VCU, guiding the Rams to a 12–1 conference mark and a 20–4 overall record. Guards B.A. Walker, Eric Maynor, and Jesse Pellot-Rosa account for 55% of VCU’s scoring and dominate most other categories, too. Hofstra’s a similar team, with guards Loren Stokes, Antoine Agudio, and Carlos Rivera averaging a combined 52 points a game. As with any mid-major, the fate of VCU and Hofstra will rest largely on seeding: A 10 to 12 seed (and a first-round match-up with an iffy higher seed like Virginia or Oklahoma State) would allow them to avoid facing a top seed until the Sweet Sixteen or later.

MISSOURI VALLEY
Southern Illinois, Creighton

Parity has been the buzzword in the Missouri Valley this year, with the league’s cellar-dwellers inflicting plenty of damage on the leaders. Missouri State, Northern Iowa, and other clubs will have a case for NCAA berths of their own. But Southern and Creighton are the only two that look primed to string together a bunch of postseason wins. SIU may own the smallest roster of any dangerous mid-major team, with 6-foot-7-inch Randal Falker the only true threat attacking the rim on offense and defending it on defense. But the Salukis’ suffocating perimeter D allows very little penetration in the first place. SIU sometimes struggles on offense, especially when they settle for too many outside shots. But if the shots fall come March, the Salukis’ D could make them a real threat to win three games or more in the tourney. Creighton can’t quite match the Salukis’ defensive intensity. But the Blue Jays own something SIU doesn’t: a go-to guy who can score against anyone. Nate Funk is a 6-foot-3-inch wiry bundle of nerves, capable of drilling shots from anywhere on the court, or blowing by unsuspecting defenders with deceptive quickness. If Creighton gets a late lead in a tournament game, forget about it — the Blue Jays as a team shoot a scorching 75.4% from the charity stripe.

OTHER BIG SHOTS
Butler, Memphis, Nevada

ESPN Bracketology guru Joe Lunardi projects Butler and Memphis to nab no. 3 seeds in the NCAA tournament, with Nevada scoring a no. 4. Though Memphis plays in the weak Conference USA, it’s also a perennial power. But Butler and Nevada both landing protected seeds (so named because the 1 through 4 seeds are assured of not playing near an opponent’s hometown for the first two rounds) would be a huge coup for mid-majordom.

Butler’s résumé speaks volumes, even beyond the Bulldogs’ 10–1 record in Horizon League play. Butler staged an incredible run in nonconference play, knocking off Notre Dame, Indiana, Illinois, Tennessee, and Gonzaga, all away from home. That early-season slate bodes well for Butler to retain a high seed, assuming they don’t falter in conference play. Butler has some similarities to Creighton, with 6-foot-1-inch, 160-pound guard A.J. Graves playing the role of feared assassin in lieu of Nate Funk. Butler ranks in the top 30 in both Offensive and Defensive Efficiency, one of only 10 clubs that can make that claim. The other nine? Florida, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, North Carolina, Indiana, Wisconsin, UCLA, Memphis, and Kentucky. Butler is for real. Strong inside play from Brandon Crone and company could make them contenders for the Elite Eight and beyond.

When Kevin Durant, Greg Oden, Alando Tucker, Joakim Noah, and Aaron Brooks are putting up monster numbers and grabbing headlines every day, it’s easy to forget about Nevada’s own Player of the Year candidate, Nick Fazekas. In much the same way, Fazekas’s dominance makes it easy to forget the Wolf Pack’s supporting cast — which would be just as egregious an oversight. Marcellus Kemp’s 18.8 points per game makes him one of the top scorers in the WAC and a big reason that Nevada sits atop the conference at 9–1, with a 21–2 overall record and a no. 12 ranking. Wait, there’s more. Ramon Sessions is a dynamic point guard who’d be a household name if he wore Carolina blue. Kyle Shiloh is the consummate glue guy, a defensive stopper who allows the Pack to match up against premier scorers. And oh by the way, Fazekas averages a doubledouble with 20.2 points and 11.5 rebounds a game, numbers that compare favorably to just about anyone in the country. Definite Final Four potential here.

Finally, what to make of Memphis? Every year, Coach John Calipari recruits a wave of all-world athletes, only to see several leave. Yet Memphis keeps reloading, keeps assembling killer non-conference schedules, and keeps giving themselves a shot at a deep tournament run. The Tigers are the biggest X-factor of any non-BCS conference team, because of their lack of exposure against weak rivals in Conference USA play. It’s a young team, with five of its seven top scorers underclassmen. But Memphis also owns the kind of talent that more closely resembles the sport’s elite teams. Chris Douglas-Roberts is the kind of go-to guy who could make more than one winning shot in March. Close your eyes and you can see it both ways for the Tigers: They could cut down a lot of nets next month … or their inexperience and light-speed pace could lead to an early exit.

Mr. Keri is a writer for ESPN.com’s Page 2 and a contributor to YESNetwork.com.