has a significant affect on the success of a basketball program. Utah had good success in the past in the MWC and WAC while Oregon State had very little success in the Pac 10.
Gonzaga has had great success recently in the WCC while WSU has had very little in the Pac 10.
Utah sucks right now in the Pac 10. BYU is very good, independent from the conference affiliation.
It's who you are, not who you play (and in Utah's case, lose to).