Aggies Win Preseason Tour Opener
SAINT LAMBERT, Quebec (Aug. 10) — The New Mexico State men’s basketball team opened its preseason foreign tour in Canada with a 80-76 win over McGill University on the Champlain campus in Saint Lambert, Quebec. Senior guard Gordo Castillo paced the Aggies with a team-high 21 points.
Las Cruces, N.M., native scored 16 second-half points to power a solid second half effort for the Aggies. NM State had four other players in double-figures with junior center Hamidu Rahman and sophomore forward Tyrone Watson contributing 12 points each. Freshman center Tshilidzi Nephawe added 11 while junior guard Hernst Laroche scored 10 in his homecoming.
“I thought it was a good effort by McGill,” head coach Marvin Menzies said. “They (McGill) had a couple of older professional players, and they really challenged our guys and did a great job of hitting open shots and handling the pressure at times. It was good experience for us to get out and see what our guys are going to be made of.
“It’s always good to have a close game with a lot of lessons and get the W. They (the Aggies) are feeling good right now, and they know they beat a pretty good team so I’m optimistic that this evening we can get another one.”
At halftime, the Aggies trailed, 39-37, behind seven points from Laroche. NM State’s offense was balanced with 10 players seeing the court in the first half. Rahman scored six points while Watson, Nephawe and Castillo, who hit the first 3-pointer of the game, had five points each.
For McGill, guard Dominico Mercario scored a game-high 24 points. Forward Will Archambault supplied 14 and center Max Boudreau added 12 points for the Redmen.
The Aggies continue their preseason trip with a match-up against Vanier, Laroche’s former school, later tonight at 6 p.m.
New Mexico State 1 2 Total Points
Christian Kabongo* 3 0 3
Hernst Laroche* 7 3 10
Hamidu Rahman* 6 6 12
Gordo Castillo* 5 16 21
Tyrone Watson* 5 7 12
Drew Herig 0 0 0
Bandja Sy 4 5 9
Tshilidzi Nephawe 5 6 11
B.J. West 2 0 2
Abdoulaye N’doye 0 0 0
Totals 37 43 80
McGill University 1 2 Total Points
Max Boudreau * 2 10 12
Dominico Mercario* 11 13 24
Tristan R-Tremblay* 2 0 2
Sebastian Gatti* 3 0 3
Will Archambault* 10 4 14
Oliver Bouchard 6 0 6
Simon Bibeau 2 8 10
Charles LaCroix 3 0 3
Totals 39 37 76
3 comments:
Harbinger to come? Close loss to a team the Aggies should have dominated? Ouchie!
Huh? The AGGIES won. Yes, a close game which I will agree is mildly disappointing until you factor in a couple things. First, the AGGIES are not playing with their two best players in Gillenwater (ankle injury) and McKinnes (passport issues). Second, this is a time for the coaching staff to tinker with lineups and see what works and what doesn't. My guess is that there were some interesting personel groups on the floor that we may never see this season.
GO AGGIES!!!!
First game. 10 guys played. Lineups were tinkered with. No Troy or Wen. Still won the game. Hardly a harbinger....it's called rust. No worries. Let's see how the rematch goes today...
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