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December 15 Sheet

New Mexico State (-1) at New Mexico - 6:30pm Pacific
We lost going against the Aggies early in the season as I felt they would struggle playing their first 6 games without their two best inside players. They have really caught my attention since then starting the season 5-1 with the only blemish a 10 point loss to Tulsa in second game of the season. They beat Colorado and this same New Mexico team at home and also won on the road at UTEP.

Junior forward James Moore (leading returning scorer, 2nd leading rebounder) & 6-10 senior center Chris Jackson (4th in scoring, first in rebounding last season) are now eligible and will see action for the first time tonight. They are by far the teams best inside scorers, rebounders, and shotblockers. Both were starters last year and have practiced all season with the team so it will not take long for the them to get acclimated. Now at full strength, the Aggies appear poised for a big year.

NMSU has been primarily a perimeter team as guards Jason Fontenot and Brandon Mason have been superb in the early going. Fontenot (10.2ppg, 4.5apg) is giving the Aggies their best point guard play in years and Mason (13.2ppg) has found time to dish out 4.5 assists per game himself while leading the team in scoring. Both players have great assist to turnover ratios. Naturally, the team has been able to develop depth while Jackson and Moore were sitting out. Nine players average double figure minutes heading into this game. With the two frontcourt starters back, the team will not have to rely on the perimeter game as much and will have even more depth.

One of the reasons I liked New Mexico early in the year was because of their senior guard tandem of Ruben Douglass & Senque Carey. Unfortunately, Carey is sidelined indefinitely with partial paralysis. Carey only played one full game (vs Cal), playing 36 minutes, scoring 7 points, grabbing 4 boards, and dishing a team high 6 assists. He was clearly the teams second best player next to Douglass. The drop-off from Douglass to the rest of the supporting cast is now very large. The team is down to just 7 players who were actually recruited out of high-school, three of which are not significant contributors. Four walk-ons are averaging double digit minutes. Touted JC transfer guard Javin Tindall has been forced to play point guard and has struggled (8.2ppg, .325 FG%). Starting center Chad Bell (14.0 minutes per game, 2.4ppg, 1.4rpg) has been a major disappointment. Head coach Ritchie McKay has used a different starting lineup in every game this season. New Mexico (with Carey) blew a double digit lead vs Cal in the season opener part in due to questionable 3-point shot selection. Without Carey, they have had to work to get home wins over an 0-6 Northwestern State team (4 point game) and a 2-4 Northeastern team (2 point game). This team is a mess.

New Mexico's best performance of the season came in a one point loss at New Mexico State. They led for most of the 2nd half before collapsing in the final minutes. It took some time for the Aggies to adjust to all of UNM's new personnel as well as their new style under new head coach. There will be no surprises tonight and there will be no mistake who the better team is. Lobo forward Jamal Williams had a huge game in the first meeting scoring 15 big points in a low scoring game. However, tonight he will be guarded by a bigger and more experienced James Moore (6-8) as opposed to an inexperienced and undersized Kelsey Crooks (6-6) in first meeting. Very big difference. NMSU has won 5 of the last 8 in this series and would love nothing more than to sweep the season series from their instate rival just as the Lobos did last season.

New Mexico State  1 UNIT

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