POTENTIAL CONFLICT CREATES NEED FOR ALTDEV ALT EXCURSION.

Narrative

ACR MLG ENRTE FROM DEN TO RNO. AROUND EKR; ZDV CLRED US DIRECT TO FMG. AS WE NEARED THE WESTERN EDGE OF THEIR AIRSPACE AT FL310; ZLC ISSUED A L TURN TO 180 DEGS; VECTORS FOR TFC. THIS WAS NEARLY 90 DEGS OFF OF OUR PRESENT COURSE. OBSERVED TCASII TARGET ON EHSI; OPPOSITE DIRECTION FL310 20 NM OR MORE TO OUR W. THE VECTOR TOOK THAT TFC WELL TO OUR R. IN ROLLING OUT ON OUR SOUTHERLY HDG; ANOTHER TCASII TARGET WAS OBSERVED AT 12 O'CLOCK; 10 NM; AT FL303. TCASII ALERTED 'TFC -- TFC' AND I COMMENTED TO THE CAPT THAT WE NEEDED HIGHER. AS HE WAS XMITTING; RA 'CLB -- CLB' WAS ISSUED. I DISCONNECTED AUTOPLT AND AUTOTHROTTLE AND PITCHED UP AND ADDED PWR. WE RECEIVED CLRNC TO CLB TO FL350 AS WE WERE CLBING THROUGH FL314. RA WENT TO 'MONITOR VERT SPD.' WE BOTH OBSERVED THE TFC PASSING CLOSE IN ON THE R AND 1000 FT LOWER. THE RED AND GREEN POS LIGHTS WERE CLRLY VISIBLE. CTLR INDICATED THAT THE CONFLICT WAS CAUSED BY 'SPILL-OUT' TFC FROM A MOA. HE SAID THAT THE ACFT WAS 8 NM OUTSIDE HIS MOA BOUNDARY. WE WERE SWITCHED TO ZOA; WHO SUBSEQUENTLY VECTORED US AROUND THE S SIDE OF THE MOA. LANDED AT RNO UNEVENTFULLY 5 MINS BEHIND SCHEDULE. THE TCASII WORKED GREAT WITH PROPER EVASIVE COMMANDS. ALT BUS WAS TECHNICALLY ONLY 400 FT OUT OF ASSIGNED ALT AND ZLC INDICATED IT WAS NO PROBLEM. RECOMMENDATION: ALTHOUGH ZDV THOUGHT THEY WERE DOING US A FAVOR BY CLRING US DIRECT MUSTANG; THEY PUT US RIGHT IN AN MOA. MORE COORD BTWN CTRS IS NECESSARY BEFORE CLRING ACFT DIRECT. THIS INCIDENT MIGHT HAVE BEEN AVERTED HAD WE BEEN ON THE AIRWAYS. NO MOAS SHOW ON OUR HIGH ALT CHARTS; ONLY ON THE LOW ALT CHART. EVEN THEN; AIRSPACE ONLY GOES TO FL180. IF MTRS ARE GETTING UP TO FL303; THE ACRS NEED TO BE KEPT CLR. AIRSPACE NEEDS RE-EVALUATION AND TRAINING ACTIVITY NEEDS BETTER MONITORING.