New Mexico State Basketball Practice Begins Friday
LAS CRUCES, N.M. (Oct. 12)-The New Mexico State men’s basketball team hits the hardwood for the first official practice of the 2011-12 season, Friday, Oct. 14. The Aggies have a veteran squad with nine returning players.
“I’m really excited about the potential of this team,” head coach Marvin Menzies said. “You’re always cautiously optimistic going into a season, but at the end of the day, we have to go out there and produce. That’s the challenge, putting all the pieces together to realize our expectations.”
The Aggies look to contend for another WAC title after an injury-plagued 2010-11 campaign. NM State has three seniors including guard Hernst Laroche, center Hamidu Rahman and forward Wendell McKines, who redshirted last year due to an injury, that have played major roles in the Aggies’ success. Laroche has started in every game in his tenure at NM State (99) and averaged 11.5 points and 4.6 assists per game last season. Rahman also missed a portion of last year with injuries and averaged 7.2 points and 5.0 rebounds per contest in a shorten season. In 2009-10, McKines posted nearly a double-double with 10.7 points and 9.8 rebounds per game.
“We have the big three in Hamidu, Wendell and Hernst,” Menzies said. “All of those guys have come a long way from their freshmen years. It’s since kind of eerie to look at them as seniors. It seems like they just got here. We’re excited about their contribution this year.”
Menzies said he was thrilled with the possibility to accomplish so many things in the early days and weeks of practice with nine players returning with 20 games experience or more.
“Since we have so many kids back, we can probably speed through things a little bit and probably get a little more in sooner, so we can be more prepared for our earlier games,” he said. “That’s one of the advantages when you have a lot of retention and continuity in a program. We are strategically trying to program our practices, where we can be more ready earlier in the season.”
NM State has to replace guard Gordo Castillo and All-WAC selection forward Troy Gillenwater from a year ago, but junior forward Tyrone Watson, junior forward Bandja Sy and junior forward/center B.J. West made appearances in a combined 90 games with 53 games started last season.
“Tyrone and Bandja logged significant minutes last year, which is a big plus obviously,” he said. “That experience should bode well for us, especially early in the season. B.J. had a chance to log minutes at the end of the season, which was good for him and a springboard coming into this year.”
A benefit to the injuries a season ago is the game experience the Aggie sophomores now enjoy. Both guard Christian Kabongo and center Tshilidzi Nephawe played in all 33 games, with 14 and 17 games started respectively, while forward Renaldo Dixon saw action in 20 games.
“CK (Kabongo), Chili (Nephawe) and Renaldo are guys that are athletic and the future of the program. I think they are learning a lot from the juniors and seniors in terms of work ethic, and things they need to do to carry the torch.”
The Aggies have nine newcomers this season with freshmen guards Daniel Mullings, Terrel de Rouen, D.J. Lewis, freshmen forwards Eric Weary, Remi Barry, freshman center Sim Bhullar and sophomore guard K.C. Ross-Miller, while freshman guard Emery Coleman and freshman forward Temjae Singleton are slated to redshirt.
“When we look at the freshmen that will have the opportunity to play, they are guys that are super athletic and gym rats, and guys that are going to be recipients of the leadership that already exist in the program,” Menzies said. “I think they will get some valuable lessons early in the season.”
The Aggies open the 2011-12 season on the road at Northern Colorado, Nov. 12 in Greeley, Colo.
Source: NMSU Athletics
