2016–17 New Mexico Lobos men's basketball team

The 2016–17 New Mexico Lobos men's basketball team represented the University of New Mexico during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as a member of the Mountain West Conference. They played their home games at The Pit in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Lobos were led by fourth-year head coach Craig Neal. They finished the season 17–14, 10–8 in Mountain West play to finish in fifth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West tournament to Fresno State.

2016–17 New Mexico Lobos men's basketball
ConferenceMountain West Conference
Record17–14 (10–8 MW)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaThe Pit
Seasons
2016–17 Mountain West Conference
men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Nevada 14 4   .778 28 7   .800
Colorado State 13 5   .722 24 12   .667
Boise State 12 6   .667 20 12   .625
Fresno State 11 7   .611 20 13   .606
New Mexico 10 8   .556 17 14   .548
San Diego State 9 9   .500 19 14   .576
Wyoming 8 10   .444 23 15   .605
San Jose State 7 11   .389 14 16   .467
Utah State 7 11   .389 14 17   .452
Air Force 4 14   .222 12 21   .364
UNLV 4 14   .222 11 21   .344
Conference tournament winner

On March 31, 2017, head coach Craig Neal was fired after 4 seasons with the Lobos,[1] 3 weeks after New Mexico Athletic Director Paul Krebs had stated that Neal would return next season.[2] The school then hired Paul Weir from their in-state rival New Mexico State as the new head coach on April 11.[3]

Previous season

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The Lobos finished the 2015–16 season 17–15, 10–8 in Mountain West play to finish in a tie for fourth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West tournament to Nevada.

Offseason

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Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
J. J. N'Ganga 0 F 6'10" 240 Senior Aubervilliers, France Graduate transferred to Mercer
Cullen Neal 1 G 6'5" 195 RS Sophomore Albuquerque, NM Graduated. Transferred to Ole Miss
Devon Williams 12 G/F 6'8" 210 RS Junior Dallas, TX Career ending spinal injury. Became a graduate assistant
Tim Jacobs 25 G 6'0" 200 Senior Las Cruces, NM Graduated
Nikola Scekic 33 C 7'1" 255 Freshman Belgrade, Serbia Transferred to Hutchinson CC
Michael Nesbitt 34 F 6'7" 220 RS Senior Evansville, IN Graduated. Became graduate assistant.

Incoming transfers

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Connor MacDougall 55 F 6'9" 240 Junior Phoenix, AZ Junior college transferred from South Mountain Community College

2016 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Damien Jefferson
#40 SF
East Chicago, IN East Chicago Central High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sep 19, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN:    ESPN grade: 76
Jalen Harris
PG
Wilson, NC Word of God Christian Academy 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Apr 10, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPNN/A   ESPN grade: NR
Aher Uguak
SF
Edmonton, AB Harry Ainlay High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) N/A Oct 21, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPNN/A   ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2016 New Mexico Basketball Commits". ESPN.com.

Roster

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2016–17 New Mexico Lobos men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G/F 1 Aher Uguak 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 206 lb (93 kg) Fr Harry Ainlay High School Edmonton, Canada
G 3 Jordan Hunter 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Clifton J. Ozen High School Beaumont, Texas
G 4 Elijah Brown 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS Jr Butler Orange County, California
G 5 Jalen Harris 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 156 lb (71 kg) Fr Word of God Christian Academy Wilson, North Carolina
C 11 Obij Aget 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr La Lumiere School Juba, South Sudan
G/F 14 Dane Kuiper 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Corona del Sol High School Wasilla, Alaska
G/F 20 Sam Logwood 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr La Lumiere School Indianapolis, Indiana
G 21 Xavier Adams 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Edward S. Marcus High School Flower Mound, Texas
F 22 Holt Shelley (W) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 221 lb (100 kg) Fr Cliff High School Cliff, New Mexico
F 23 Joe Furstinger 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr Santa Margarita Catholic High School Rancho Santa Margarita, California
G/F 24 Damien Jefferson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Central High School East Chicago, Indiana
G 30 Adam Cumber (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS So Sandia High School Albuquerque, New Mexico
G 31 Anthony Mathis 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So West Linn High School West Linn, Oregon
F 32 Tim Williams 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) RS Sr Samford Flossmoor, Illinois
F 55 Connor MacDougall 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) RS So South Mountain Community College Tempe, Arizona
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Nov 2*
7:00 pm
Western New Mexico W 113–57 
The Pit (9,587)
Albuquerque, NM
Nov 4*
7:00 pm
Eastern New Mexico W 88–66 
The Pit (10,283)
Albuquerque, NM
Non-conference regular season
Nov 11*
8:00 pm, RTRM
Idaho State W 81–70  1–0
The Pit (11,293)
Albuquerque, NM
Nov 14*
7:00 pm, RTRM
Houston Baptist W 95–79  2–0
The Pit (11,666)
Albuquerque, NM
Nov 18*
7:00 pm, ESPN3
New Mexico State
Rio Grande Rivalry
W 72–59  3–0
The Pit (13,892)
Albuquerque, NM
Nov 24*
2:30 pm, ESPN
vs. Virginia Tech
Wooden Legacy quarterfinals
L 72–92  3–1
Titan Gym 
Fullerton, CA
Nov 25*
1:00 pm, ESPNU
vs. Cal State Northridge
Wooden Legacy 2nd round consolation
W 105–89  4–1
Titan Gym 
Fullerton, CA
Nov 27*
12:00 pm, ESPNU
vs. Dayton
Wooden Legacy 5th place game
L 57–64  4–2
Honda Center 
Anaheim, CA
Nov 30*
7:00 pm, RTRM
Abilene Christian W 64–55  5–2
The Pit (11,154)
Albuquerque, NM
Dec 3*
6:00 pm, ESPN3
at Illinois State
MWC–MVC Challenge
L 74–79  5–3
Redbird Arena (6,056)
Normal, IL
Dec 7*
7:00 pm, RTRM
UTEP W 78–77  6–3
The Pit (11,838)
Albuquerque, NM
Dec 10*
7:30 pm, ESPN3
at New Mexico State
Rio Grande Rivalry
L 71–84  6–4
Pan American Center (6,298)
Las Cruces, NM
Dec 17*
6:00 pm, RTRM
Arkansas–Pine Bluff W 83–43  7–4
The Pit (10,404)
Albuquerque, NM
Dec 20*
7:00 pm, P12N
at No. 18 Arizona L 46–77  7–5
McKale Center (14,008)
Tucson, AZ
Mountain West regular season
Dec 28
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Fresno State W 78–73  8–5
(2–0)
The Pit (11,844)
Albuquerque, NM
Jan 1
3:00 pm, CBSSN
at San Diego State W 68–62  9–5
(2–0)
Viejas Arena (12,414)
San Diego, CA
Jan 4
9:00 pm, ESPNU
at Utah State L 75–79  9–6
(2–1)
Smith Spectrum (3,897)
Logan, UT
Jan 7
9:15 pm, ESPN2
Nevada L 104–105 OT 9–7
(2–2)
The Pit (11,235)
Albuquerque, NM
Jan 10
7:00 pm, ESPN3
UNLV L 66–71  9–8
(2–3)
The Pit (11,379)
Albuquerque, NM
Jan 14
12:00 pm, RTRM
at Colorado State W 84–71  10–8
(3–3)
Moby Arena (3,418)
Fort Collins, CO
Jan 17
9:00 pm, ESPNU
at Boise State W 81–70  11–8
(4–3)
Taco Bell Arena (3,752)
Boise, ID
Jan 21
6:00 pm, CBSSN
Wyoming W 78–71  12–8
(5–3)
The Pit (12,501)
Albuquerque, NM
Jan 24
9:00 pm, ESPNU
Utah State W 74–61  13–8
(6–3)
The Pit (10,698)
Albuquerque, NM
Jan 28
2:00 pm, CBSSN
at Nevada L 65–82  13–9
(6–4)
Lawlor Events Center (10,727)
Reno, NV
Feb 1
9:00 pm, CBSSN
at UNLV W 80–77  14–9
(7–4)
Thomas & Mack Center (12,001)
Paradise, NV
Feb 4
4:00 pm, RTRM
San Jose State L 68–78  14–10
(7–5)
The Pit (12,731)
Albuquerque, NM
Feb 8
7:00 pm, RTRM
at Air Force W 74–67  15–10
(8–5)
Clune Arena (2,125)
Colorado Springs, CO
Feb 14
8:00 pm, CBSSN
Boise State W 78–73  16–10
(9–5)
The Pit (11,071)
Albuquerque, NM
Feb 18
4:00 pm, CBSSN
at Fresno State L 61–71  16–11
(9–6)
Save Mart Center (8,807)
Fresno, CA
Feb 21
8:00 pm, CBSSN
Colorado State L 56–68  16–12
(9–7)
The Pit (12,078)
Albuquerque, NM
Feb 25
4:00 pm, CBSSN
at Wyoming L 71–82  16–13
(9–8)
Arena-Auditorium (5,354)
Laramie, WY
Mar 4
8:00 pm, CBSSN
San Diego State W 64–59  17–13
(10–8)
The Pit (13,958)
Albuquerque, NM
Mountain West tournament
Mar 9
3:30 pm, CBSSN
(5) vs. (4) Fresno State
Quarterfinals
L 60–65  17–14
Thomas & Mack Center (5,866)
Paradise, NV
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Mountain Time.

References

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  1. ^ "Craig Neal fired as New Mexico men's basketball head coach". ESPN. April 1, 2017. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  2. ^ Grammer, Geoff (March 10, 2017). "UNM AD: Craig Neal will return to coach Lobos next season". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  3. ^ Rudi, Mark (April 11, 2017). "Paul Weir hired to coach UNM hoops". Las Cruces Sun-News. New Mexico. Retrieved July 18, 2017.