This Aggies team built to make noise

I’m going to go as far as to say the Aggies could have gone down the street to the Thomas and Mack Center and given them Mountain West boys a game.

That’s how dominant NMSU was this week.

The Aggies won three games by an average of 17 points per game, and the one game that looked competitive in the final score (Hawaii) was only competitive for about 20 of the possible 40 minutes.

I think it was the result of a focused team all week that jumped on all three opponents and were never truly in danger of losing.



Marvin Menzies said in his postgame comments that players met on their own throughout the week. I asked Wendell McKines if he could share what was said in those meetings. His answer was a simple, “No” but whatever was said was effective.

“We would meet as a team and a staff over scouting reports and then kick us out,” Menzies said. “I don’t know what they were talking about but it must have been efficient and effective because we really jumped on those guys.”

McKines averaged 23 and 10.7 in three games for the Aggies who scored 78 points per game and allowed just 62 points per game on the other end and out rebounded its opponents by 16.7 per game.

“They really defend you,” Louisiana Tech coach Mike White said. “They are so long and athletic. They take it as a challenge to guard you. … They play with a lot of swagger and they have a lot of experience.”

It’s for these reasons — experience and style of play (defense, rebounding) — that I believe the Aggies have a better chance to win a NCAA game than they did in 2010, depending on the match up.

We will see that match up later today.

“Mid Major teams with upperclassmen are dangerous teams in the tournament,” Menzies said. “It’s been proven the past three years. There are teams that have had that recipe. I think we have a recipe. I don’t know if we can experience that much success but it will just depend on who we match up with and how well we play.”

Marvin Menzies

“We relied heavily on our juniors and seniors to carry us to the championship and they did. … I’m still in a surreal place. We have been dreaming about it and thinking about it for so long. … It will probably hit me tomorrow when we are on Selection Sunday.”

On not allowing La. Tech to get back in the game like Hawaii did

“I think we learned our lesson. Throwing the first punch the last couple of games was evident that the guys were really focused. The players came out with a workmanlike mentality. … I feel like the way they handled the lead tonight was much more surgeon like in terms of the execution.”

On the difference between Menzies two tournament teams

“I think we were little bit more guard oriented. We were more capable scorers from the perimeter. We could shoot the ball better and we had a couple more guys who could bounce it. Now what we have is a more balanced attack. We are maybe not shooting it as prolific as that team but we definaely have a stronger interior force. The X factor for us is Bandja, Tyrone, Daniel. We know what we are going to get from our seniors. It’s going to be those other guys who will determine if we will live to play another day.”

On winning his second WAC title in three years

“We had the paradigm set when we took over this job five years ago how we wanted to build it and go the developmental route. Whatever it took so when they leave the institution, they were complete. They good citizens, good academics and stellar basketball careers. I think we have shown that we have done that and this is really the tip of the iceberg of classes to come. This particular class is going to show them what it’s all about. They are going to set the bar and they set it pretty high.”

Wendell McKines

“Just the urgency behind it, not forgetting that it’s basketball. Having fun with it knowing that it’s three games and if we play our game we can play with anybody. Just play with that confidence and look where we are. … In 2010, it was like, ‘Oh my God, we are going to the Tournament.’ Now we know what to expect in the tournament and what to do to win. We know we can play with anybody. We are looking forward to the tournament and making noise.”

Tyrone Watson

“It’s a blessing. For me at least, I was kind of a spectator (in 2010). I was on the bench the first time. I got to play 35 minutes though. It felt good. We worked so hard the whole season for this. We came together as a unit right now at the later portion of the season. It was just us against the world. … I was just prepared this whole tournament. I had a different mentality, a different focus. I knew that I needed to just pick it up scoring wise and defensively. My teammates believed in me.”

WAC Champs

LAS VEGAS, Nev. — There would be no comeback this time.

New Mexico State jumped jumped on Louisiana Tech early and unlike Hawaii the previous night, the upset-minded Bulldogs never threatened.

The No. 2 Aggies won their second Western Athletic Conference Tournament championship in three years, beating No. 5 Louisiana Tech 82-57 in Saturday’s tournament final at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nev.

“I think we learned our lesson,” said Aggies head coach Marvin Menzies, whose team improved to 26-9 on the season. “After throwing the first punch the last couple of games, it was evident that the guys were really focused. I thought the way they handled the lead tonight was much more surgical.”

The Aggies secured their 19^th NCAA Tournament appearance and sixth conference tournament championship by out muscling a smaller Bulldogs team that advanced to Saturday’s final with upset victories over defending champion Utah State and top-seeded Nevada.

“I think it means a lot to a lot of people,” Menzies said. “We have a fantastic support for such a small town. We had a lot of people come out. There were some people from Albuquerque. New Mexico sports supports New Mexico. The Lobos winning and us winning as well, it’s great for the state.”

The Aggies returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2010.

“In 2010, it was like, ‘Oh my God, we are going to the Tournament,’” said WAC Tournament Most Valuable Player Wendell McKines. “Now we know what to expect in the tournament and we know we can play with anybody. We are looking forward to the tournament now and making noise.”

This year’s tournament team is built differently.

“We were more capable scorers from the perimeter (in 2010),” Menzies said. “We could shoot the ball better I thought. Now, I think we have a more balanced attack. We have some guards who can bounce it. We maybe don’t shoot it as prolifically as that team but we definitely have a stronger interior force.”

Aggie junior Tyrone Watson scored 10 of his 12 points in the first half and freshman guard Daniel Mullings added 12 points.

“For me (in 2010), I was kind of a spectator so I got to play 35 minutes so it feels good,” said Watson, who landed on the All-Tournament team with McKines and senior point guard Hernst Laroche. “We came together as a unit right now. It’s just us. It’s us against the world.”

McKines secured a double-double in the first half and finished with 27 points and 14 rebounds on 12-for-16 shooting

“Night in and night out, there is not a more passionate player who I have ever coached,” Menzies said.

NMSU scored the first eight points of the game and led 38-20 at the half, doubling up the Bulldogs on the boards in the first half and limiting Louisiana Tech to 25 percent shooting in the first half.

The lead bloated to as many as 31 in the second half.

The Aggies led by as many as 20 in the first half after a 12-2 run to open a 36-16 lead with 1:53 left in the half.

NMSU finished 55.9 percent from the floor and out rebounded the Bulldogs 46-27 with 13 offensive rebounds and a 56-32 advantage in the paint.

The Aggies started the game 12-for-18 from the floor and led by 13 with 10:52 to play in the first half. The Bulldogs started 7-for-25 and 0-for-9 from 3-point range after shooting 52 percent from 3-point range in upset wins over Utah State and Nevada this week. Louisiana Tech missed its first 12 attempts from 3-point range and finished 3-for-18.

“I felt that off the bounce, I would be more effective,” Watson said. “We scouted them pretty hard. I just wanted to make sure that (Louisiana Tech guard Trevor Gaskins) didn’t get hot early.”

NMSU captured its third WAC Tournament title with a point differential of 17.3 points per game with wins over No. 7 Fresno State, No. 6 Hawaii and Louisiana Tech.

The Aggies will learn their NCAA Tournament destination and opponent along with the rest of the country on Sunday at 4 p.m.

Albuquerque is a first-round site this year.

“That would be our dream site,” Menzies said. “I don’t think it would make a difference as to how we play outside of the fact that we would have more support. But it would be nice.”

For McKines, Laroche and Aggies center Hamidu Rahman, their potential seed doesn’t seem to matter. NMSU hasn’t deviated much from their style of play this year.

Why should they, their 26 wins match the program’s most since Neil McCarthy’s team went 26-8 in 1992-93.

This week’s run through the WAC proved that the Aggies are built for postseason play.

“If we play our game, we can play with anybody,” McKines said. “Look where we are.”

Aggies take on WAC Cinderella

Perhaps the biggest challenge facing New Mexico State entering Saturday's final is that it has been more than a month since the Aggies played Louisiana Tech, the hottest team in the WAC right now. Although the Aggies swept the season series, this isn't the same team.

"Their personnel is the same, and they are not doing a lot differently offensively, but they are doing it better," Aggies coach Marvin Menzies said.

Louisiana Tech's run to Saturday's WAC Tourney final against New Mexico State has been quite impressive, although somewhat surprising.

The Bulldogs, under first-year coach Mike White, beat arguably the WAC's two top programs. After beating defending champion Utah State on Thursday, Louisiana Tech upended top seeded Nevada 78-73 in Friday's late semifinal. 

Yet Menzies wasn't surprised.

"I told people that if they continued to gel, they would be a force to be reckoned with in the tournament and here they are in the final," Menzies said. 

Louisiana Tech led by 15 in the first half, by 3 at the half after shooting 8-10 from 3-point range in the first half. White said the Bulldogs have increased their 3-point shooting selection as the season has progressed. They have certainly been hot this week, shooting 16-for-31 (52 percent) from 3-point range in Vegas. Louisiana Tech finished 8-14 from 3 point range for the game.

NMSU has been very good against the 3-point line this year, but La. Tech has a player in freshman guard Raheem Appleby, who hit the Aggies for 30 in Las Cruces. The matchup between the guards is exciting to me. Louisiana Tech point guard Kenneth Smith reminds me of Daniel Mullings as far as his speed and quickness. White called him Speedy in the press conference. NMSU will have to guard against penetration because Speedy, Trevor Gaskins can get to the paint and Hawaii's Shaquille Stokes had some success on penetration on Friday.

On paper, the Aggies' size is the most obvious advantage. It's formidable against the Top tier teams. Against a guard oriented team like La. Tech, it's magnified even more. Yet Louisiana Tech is one of five teams this year to outrebound the Aggies. La. Tech did it 44-42 in Ruston.

That makes NMSU's center play important again. I think Chili Nephawe had his best game of the season on Friday. And Menzies said it was good to see since Hamidu Rahman wasn't effective on Friday, but did have a good game on Thursday.

Turnovers are also a key against La. Tech. Louisiana Tech pressures full court. They did it to NMSu in Ruston and forced 20 turnovers.

"They have done it before, but they are more efficient," Menzies said. "They play effective man defense but the guard play has really improved."

It's not the final that myself, or many probably wanted to see. But perhaps the final features the two teams who are playing the best right now.

La. Tech ends Thursday session with second upset of the day

Fifth-seeded Louisiana Tech finished Thursday's WAC Tournament with the second upset of the day, knocking off fourth-seed and defending champion Utah State 72-70. Utah State guard Preston Medlin crossed halfcourt after a missed La. Tech free throw down by two. Medlin crossed halfcourt with about four seconds left, but he never got a shot up and actually looked like he was looking to pass. This after senior point guard Brockeith Pane missed the second free throw that could have pulled the game even on the prior possession after Utah State trailed by as many as 11 in the second half. The long ball kept La. Tech up (8-17) and the Aggies couldn't get the necessary stops.

The Bulldogs ended the day that began with No. 6 Hawaii beating No. 3 Idaho.

The first half of this game was brutal. SJSU led 14-13 at halftime. San Jose was 28 percent in the first half. Nevada was 21.7 percent. Nevada guards Deonte Burton and Malik Story combined to shoot 7-26 in the game and Nevada had 15 turnovers, but Burton made enough shots in the second half to finish with 16 points to lead the Wolf Pack. Nevada wasn't spectacular, but once again, they won with their defense. San Jose finished the game 32.8 percent from the floor, shooting 1-16 from 3-point range.

NMSU vs. Hawaii

I think New Mexico State beats Hawaii to reach the final. And it's not because the Aggies beat Hawaii by 42 points with Zane Johnson in the lineup. It's partially because I think NMSU is actually the more mature team, capable of keeping their heads in a heated environment. Hawaii is all over the place. Hawaii coach Gib Arnold and wing Joston Thomas got Td up and fouled out, just as he did before in Las Cruces. Hawaii either feeds off Arnold or the Warriors have looked tired, also likely because of Arnold.

I also like the Aggies because of seniors such as Wendell McKines. McKines, and the Aggies for that matter, got off to a terrible start from the field. Even against a sagging man or 1-2-2 zone, McKines put his head down, got into the paint and got to the line, where he was 8-10. NMSU shot 36 free throws on Thursday. The Aggies shot 43 free throws against Hawaii in Las Cruces.

NMSU's pressure was too much for Hawaii in Las Cruces as well, forcing 24 turnovers leading to 38 points.

I do like Hawaii's backcourt though with Jeremiah Ostrowski and freshman Shaquille Stokes. Stokes  had 17 points and Hauns Brereton had 17 and 11.

But Hawaii doesn't present a lineup that the Aggies can't counter.

Hawaii coach Gib Arnold said it has been a tough three weeks.

"We were a little wounded, a little down," Arnold said. "We finally got our heart back against Utah State. We knew we had a chance going in here. Losing Zane was a big deal but these guys rallied together. I felt like we earned it. As a team, and a university, I think we needed this."

Hawaii snapped a five game losing streak that included a 115-73 loss at NMSU on Feb. 23. the teams meet for the second time in the WAC Tournament in a 7 p.m., semifinal on Friday.

"It's a little bit of an understatement to say that it didn't go very well (against NMSU in Las Cruces)," Arnold said. "They smashed us. They absolutely smashed us. We did beat them in our place."

Hawaii senior guard Zane Johnson is not with the team this week, making Thursday's upset seem like a surprise. Yet Hauns Brereton knocked donw the game winner with 3 seconds left.

"We definitely miss Zane Johnson," Brereton said. "But we knew we had to step up because of it."

"Zane spreads the court. We could use him, but it brings on different roles and kind of changes our style," Ostrowski said. "I feel like guys adjusted well. Guys stepped up and were ready to play. We had guys who hardly had minutes in the season."

Like he did against the Aggies, Joston Thomas fouled out and was Td up with about 12 minutes to play. Hawaii center Vander Joaquim and Davis Rozitis closed the game out, playing together at times. Joaquim had 20 and 13.

"Whatever they put on the floor, we will just have make adjustments," Aggies coach Marvin Menzies said. "It's March Madness. It's not March mediocre. You are going to see lineups maybe you haven't seen. We have everything in our system to attack anything any team in the tournament throws at us. When you take care of the ball and rebound, you have a chance to win a game.

Also.....
With one steal on Thursday, Aggies guard Hernst Laroche pulled even with William Benjamin with 209 career steals.

Daniel Mullings landed hard on his shoulder after a highlight dunk in the second half. He closed out the game but he looked like he had to keep it loose.

"It might be a little bruised but he will be alright. He didn't complain that much. right now he's good."

McKines on his shooting night
"I forced some. Just trying to attack the game. It's my last WAC Tournament. Once I settled down, it was still kind of tough for me to get into a rhythm. I felt like I was helping my teammates and in the flow of the game."

Menzies on Sy's defense of Olekaibe
"He's just a fantastic defensive player. He was charged with the job of shutting down Olekaibe. Anytime you can guard one guy, it frees up other guys who don't have to trap and help as much."

No. 6 Hawaii 72, No. 3 Idaho 70

Hawaii ended a five-game losing streak on Thursday, starting the WAC Tournament with an upset of Idaho without Zane Johnson (illness)

Idaho started 4-21 from the field and shot 10-29 (34 percent) in the first half, trailing 35-28. Hawaii pushed the lead to 11 early in the second half but Idaho opened the second half 5-7, pulling two within two on a Deremy Geiger 3 (Idaho was 6-16 from 3-point range, 5-8 in the second half). Stephen Madison hit another triple to put Idaho up 42-41 with just under 15 minutes to play. Idaho led by five with 7:59 to play.

Hawaii was whistled for two technicals in the second half, one on head coach Gib Arnold and one on Joston Thomas, where he fouled out with nine points. Playing without Zane Johnson, Hawaii freshman guard Shaquille Stokes stepped in with 17 points, pulling Hawaii level at 64-64 with 258 to play. Hauns Brereton scored three straight points to put Hawaii up 3 with 1:43 to play, but Geiger tied it at 68 with 50 seconds left. Brereton turned out to be the hero, scooping up a Stokes pass for a 13-foot baseline jumper with 3.2 seconds left that proved to be the game' winner. Brereton finished with 17 points on 6-8 shooting.

Prediction time (What say you?)

Marvin Menzies said earlier this week he’s going to rely on his seniors and enjoy the ride.

I’m joining in.

I’m picking New Mexico State to win this week’s WAC Tournament in Las Vegas, avenging two league losses to top-seeded Nevada in Saturday’s final.

The Aggies have three seniors who have done it before.

Nevada has two seniors who lost to NMSU in the WAC quarterfinals last year.

There is no doubt that Nevada has enough talent to march through this week’s tournament like the Wolf Pack marched to a 13-1 mark and the regular season title. You could argue that Nevada has four of the Top 5 players in the league. There is not much there after those four guys, however. The question with Nevada remains, will they have enough left to win three games in three days?

But NMSU’s superior depth is not why I like NMSU to advance to the Big Dance.

In defeat, I believe the Aggies have shown glimpses of what a Game 3 could look like if it comes to pass on Saturday.

Turnovers were costly in both games against the Wolf Pack. In the second game, a lack of patience on offense in the first half and a lack of offensive production for much of the second half dug a hole the Aggies still nearly overcame.

Outside of WAC Player of the Year Deonte Burton, the Wolf Pack supporting cast cannot handle the Aggies’ pressure on the perimeter. If Saturday’s final is close, the Aggies will likely take every opportunity to get the ball out of Burton’s hands late.

Offensively, the Aggies need to do a better job converting offensive rebounds into points against the Wolf Pack. NMSU collected 17 and 18 offensive boards in the two meetings against Nevada yet they weren’t converted to points on either occasion with just 11 second-chance points in the second game.

Everyone wants to see Nevada and NMSU play for a championship on Saturday, but neither team has a guaranteed road to the final.

Although NMSU’s first-round opponent, Fresno State, gave the Aggies a scare on Saturday, I think Thursday’s quarterfinal will be a more decisive NMSU victory. From a talent standpoint, Fresno State has one player who could play at NMSU — maybe. Also, the Aggies proved they could come from behind and win, yet the Fresno game provided a wake up call that although talented, the Aggies aren’t good enough to do it time after time. 

Look for a more focused team this week, due to senior leadership.

Hawaii guard Zane Johnson is reportedly not traveling (illness), making Idaho’s first-round game slightly easier for the Vandals. 

NMSU should advance past the Vandals for two reasons. 

First, it’s Idaho. 

The Aggies are 9-2 against Idaho under Menzies, including a 2008 first-round victory. 

Regarding this year’s Idaho team, a quality opponent to be sure, the Vandals’ outstanding balance offensively could play against them. Unlike the other Top 4 teams in the bracket, Idaho doesn’t have that player who can get hot and score 20-25 points to carry the Vandals. Idaho’s strengths is size and 3-point shooting. NMSU’s strengths are size and 3-point defense.

Nevada will likely face No. 4 Utah State in the other semifinal. 

On paper, I like Nevada.

But Nevada fans had to cringe when Stew Morrill’s club wrapped up the No. 4 seed. Utah State is not as talented as past years, but they still have the WAC’s best coach in a neutral court game. Not to mention one of the hottest offensive players in the league in guard Preston Medlin.

Last year, I wrote that the Aggies were not ready to win  the title, mostly due to the absence of NMSU senior Wendell McKines.

McKines was on the bench as the Aggies were bounced in last year’s semifinals.

“It was a free trip to Vegas,” McKines said. “Just being in the environment and being able to suit up with my teammates, I’m just thankful for the opportunity.”

Jason Groves can be reached at (575) 541-5459. Follow him on Twitter @jpgroves.