La. Tech: Three keys and a prediction

Marvin Menzies said all the right things after a season-low 47 point effort against Arlington last week. He then said the players met privately. We will see if any of it makes a difference tonight against a program Menzies is 10-1 against.

Seniors step up: NMSU seniors Bandja Sy and Tyrone Watson do a lot for the Aggies. Watson does a little bit of everything and that includes responsibilities that should be left to the point guard this year. Despite a poor start offensively this year, Sy has remained steady defensively and he leads the team with 6.6 rebounds per game. But both players have a way of disappearing on the offensive end. This team doesn't have a go to scorer, and although Bhullar looks the part, he is only out there for 20-25 minutes per game. Sy and Watson are best served as complimentary players throughout their careers. It's not their game, but they have to be better offensively.

Turnovers: Louisiana Tech forced Denver, a Princeton style offense, into 16 turnovers on Saturday. The Bulldogs force 17 turnovers per game and NMSU commits 16 TOs per game. Against Southern Miss, another team that pressed for the entire 40 minutes, NMSU turned the ball over 19 times, but they got the win at home.

Transition defense: NMSU tries to get to the offensive glass. The Aggies could have a size advantage against La Tech but if the Aggies don't score or get the offensive rebound, the Bulldogs are running. Kenneth Smith pushes the tempo and has a Daniel Mullings  like motor at the point guard spot. The Bulldogs play four guards and their biggest player is 6-9 Michale Kyser. NMSU has to get back in transition and try to limit the easy baskets or transition 3s. La. Tech only shoots 31 percent from 3, but they have five players who shoot around 30 percent.

I was ready to give the Aggies the win tonight, but they are clearly out of sorts offensively and they aren't good at taking care of the ball, which is something La. Tech thrives on. Final Score, La. Tech 67, NMSU 60