Tuesday night's result helps Utes. Or does it?

So did tonight’s BYU victory over San Diego State help or hurt the Utes’ title hopes?
I ran into a longtime Ute fan at the grocery store earlier today and he said he didn’t know who to root for in the game later in the evening. A lot of Ute fans probably felt the same way, except the ones who always root against BYU.
A BYU loss would have virtually eliminated the Cougars from championship contention, just like the Aztecs are now out of it with five losses. But the Utes can eliminate the Cougars with a victory Saturday afternoon in Provo and they can’t do anything about SDSU, which could run the table with a road game at TCU and home games against Colorado State and UNLV. From that standpoint, it was probably better than BYU won.
On the other hand, a Cougar win Saturday could mean trouble for the Utes if they lose Wednesday against UNLV or Tuesday at New Mexico or both. Two more losses would give the Utes four in MWC play, which is what the Cougars will end up with if they run the table. Three losses would be disaster for the Utes, who also have a home game against TCU to finish the regular season.
For now, the Utes must worry about Wednesday night’s big game with UNLV at 8 p.m. in the Huntsman Center. If they win this game, they’ll just need one victory to claim a share of the MWC title.