Game 2

Aggies Coast to 88-57 Win over Vanier

MONTREAL, Quebec (Aug. 10)-The New Mexico State men’s basketball team concluded the first day of action on its preseason tour in Canada with an 88-57 victory over Vanier College at Dawson College in Montreal, Quebec. 

Sophomore guard Bandja Sy scored a game-high 21 points for the Aggies. Sophomore forward/center B.J. West contributed 16 while senior guard Gordo Castillo had 15 points. Sophomore forward Tyrone Watson and junior center Hamidu Rahman were both in double-digits with 13 and 10, respectively. Playing in his hometown for the first time in an Aggie uniform, junior guard Hernst Laroche scored eight points against his former team. Guard Damon Buckley led Vanier with 13 points while forward Kazadi Gauthier scored 11. 

“Game two was a very up and down game,” head coach Marvin Menzies said. “We got a chance to see some pressing that we didn’t expect to see, and that was good for us because we had to think on our feet a little bit. 

“Between that and the defense pressure that we put on, I think we made a step in the right direction with the defensive emphasis. We got a lot of deflections and we had a couple of guys put in some extra baskets that didn’t play as well this morning. It was a good team effort in the sense that we had some guys contribute a little higher in the first game and some different guys contribute tonight. So that was good to see.”

In the first half, the Aggies raced to an 18-5 lead in the first seven minutes of action. Sy and Watson combined for the first 16 points. Both the Aggie zone and man-to-man defenses were effective for a 50-25 halftime advantage. At the break, Sy led all scorers with 17 points including three 3-pointers while Watson added nine. Offensively, the Aggies controlled the paint with Rahman and West both providing eight points. 

The Aggies have two games, Wednesday, Aug. 11, a rematch with McGill at 11 a.m. and Dawson College at 6 p.m.

New Mexico State       1          2          Total Points

Bandja Sy*                  17        4          21

Hernst Laroche*           2          6          8

Gordo Castillo*            3          12        15

Tyrone Watson*           9          4          13

Abdoulaye N’doye*       0          2          2

Christian Kabongo        2          0          2

Drew Herig                  0          0          0

Tshilidzi Nephawe        1          0          1

Makhtar Diop               0          0          0

Hamidu Rahman           8          2          10

B.J. West                     8          8          16

Totals                           50        38        88

Vanier College              1          2          Total Points

Damon Buckley*          3          10        13

Dewayne Buckley*       4          1          5

Oliver Dupiton*            0          1          1

Lenny Austin*              0          2          2

Kazadi Gauthier*          7          4          11

Quaid George               1          0          1

Danny Charlery             7          2          9

Jerry Saidybah              3          5          8

Michael Fosu                0          3          3

Nathan Grant                0          4          4

Totals                           25        32        57