2017–18 New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball team

The 2017–18 New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball team represented New Mexico State University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Aggies, led by first-year head coach Chris Jans, played their home games at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico as members of the Western Athletic Conference. They finished the season 28–6, 12–2 in WAC play to win the WAC regular season championship. In the WAC tournament, they defeated Chicago State, Seattle, and Grand Canyon to become WAC Tournament champions. They received the WAC's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost in the first round to Clemson.

2017–18 New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball
WAC regular season and tournament champions
NCAA tournament, First Round
ConferenceWestern Athletic Conference
Record28–6 (12–2 WAC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Lou Gudino
  • David Anwar
  • Jeff Mailhot
Home arenaPan American Center
Seasons
2017–18 WAC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
New Mexico State 12 2   .857 28 6   .824
Utah Valley 10 4   .714 23 11   .676
Grand Canyon 9 5   .643 22 12   .647
Seattle 8 6   .571 20 14   .588
Texas–Rio Grande Valley 6 8   .429 15 18   .455
Cal State Bakersfield 5 9   .357 12 18   .400
UMKC 5 9   .357 10 22   .313
Chicago State 1 13   .071 3 29   .094
2018 WAC tournament winner

Previous season

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The Aggies finished the 2016–17 season 28–6, 11–3 in WAC play to finish in a tie for second place. They defeated Chicago State, UMKC, and Cal State Bakersfield to win the WAC tournament. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost in the first round to Baylor.

On April 11, 2017, head coach Paul Weir resigned to become the head coach at New Mexico.[1] On April 17, the school hired Chris Jans as head coach.[2]

Offseason

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Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Travon Landry 0 G 6'1" 184 RS Junior San Antonio, TX Left the team for personal reasons
Jermaine Haley 1 G 6'7" 185 RS Freshman Burnaby, BC Transferred to Odessa College
Braxton Huggins 2 G 6'3" 184 Junior Bakersfield, CA Transferred to Fresno State
Chance Ellis 3 G 6'3" 217 Sophomore Queens, NY Transferred to Prairie View A&M
Ian Baker 4 G 6'0" 190 Senior Washington, D.C. Graduated
Matt Taylor 5 G 6'4" 173 Junior Toronto, ON Declare for 2017 NBA draft
Tanveer Bhullar 21 C 7'2" 285 RS Junior Toronto, ON Graduate transferred to Missouri State
Marlon Jones 23 F 6'9" 222 Junior Chicago, IL Left Program
Bollo Gnahore 34 C 6'10" 258 RS Freshman Abidjan, Ivory Coast Left Program
Jalyn Pennie 35 G 6'5" 185 Junior Toronto, ON Graduate transferred to Cal State Los Angeles

Incoming transfers

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Keyon Jones 0 G 6'2" 185 Junior Dorchester, MA Junior college transferred from Odessa College
Shunn Buchanan 1 G 6'0" 165 Sophomore Madison, MS Junior college transferred from NE Mississippi CC
Wayne Stewart 2 G 6'5" 170 Sophomore Philadelphia, PA Junior college transferred from Lamar CC
Zach Lofton 23 G 6'3" 180 RS Senior St. Paul, MN Graduate transferred from Texas Southern. Will be eligible to play immediately, graduated from Texas Southern.
Leston Gordon 24 C 6'7" 225 Junior Tunapuna, Trinidad and Tobago Junior college transferred from Lee College
C. J. Bobbitt F 6'7" 225 Junior Harker Heights, TX Transferred from Denver. Under NCAA transfer rules, Bobbitt will have to sit out in the 2017–18 season. Will have two years of eligibility left.
JoJo Zamora G 6'2" 170 Senior Oakland, CA Transferred from Utah. Under NCAA transfer rules, Zamora will have to sit out in the 2017–18 season. Will have one year of eligibility left.

2017 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Robert Brown
#52 PF
Dallas, TX Advanced Prep International 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: 78
Gabe Hadley
PG
Launceston, Australia Scotch College 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 177 lb (80 kg)  
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A
Jabari Rice
SG
Houston, TX Fort Bend Marshall 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jun 1, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A
Kortrijk Miles
SF
Dallas, TX Lincoln High School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Aug 16, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:    247SportsN/A
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:

  • "2017 New Mexico State Basketball Commits". ESPN.com.

Roster

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2017–18 New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Keyon Jones 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 207 lb (94 kg) Jr Milton HS
Odessa JC
Dorchester, MA
G 1 Shunn Buchanan 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Madison Central HS
Northeast Mississippi CC
Durant, MS
G 2 Wayne Stewart 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Philadelphia Military Academy
Lamar CC
Philadelphia, PA
G 3 Gabe Hadley 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr Templestowe College Melbourne, Australia
G 5 Kortrijk Miles 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Lincoln HS Dallas, TX
G 10 Jemerrio Jones 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr Melrose HS
Hill JC
Memphis, TN
F 11 Johnathon Wilkins 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) RS Sr La Lumiere HS Lille, France
G 12 A. J. Harris 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) RS So Dunbar HS
Ohio State
Dayton, OH
G 13 Sidy N'Dir 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Jr West Oaks Academy Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire, France
G 15 Joe Garza (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Las Cruces HS Las Cruces, NM
F 22 Eli Chuha 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) RS Jr Redlands East Valley HS Redlands, CA
G/F 23 Zach Lofton 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) RS Sr Columbia Heights HS
Texas Southern
Saint Paul, MN
C 24 Leston Gordon 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr Tunapuna Secondary
Lee CC
Tunapuna, Trinidad and Tobago
F 35 Johnny McCants 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Fr Oñate HS Las Cruces, NM
F C. J. Bobbitt (I) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Harker Heights HS
Denver
Killeen, TX
F Robert Brown   6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 238 lb (108 kg) Fr Advanced Preparatory International Dallas, TX
G Jabari Rice   6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr Marshall HS Houston, TX
G JoJo Zamora (I) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Sr Newark Memorial HS
Utah
Oakland, CA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

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

Roster
Last update: November 9, 2017

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Nov 1, 2017*
7:00 pm
Southeastern Oklahoma State W 90–83 
                  Pan American Center 
Las Cruces, NM
Nov 5, 2017*
12:00 pm
vs. Texas Tech
Charity exhibition benefiting
Greater Houston Community Foundation
L 54–84 
                  Chaparral Center 
Midland, TX
Regular season
Nov 10, 2017*
7:00 pm
East Central W 81–55  1–0
 25  Lofton   19  J. Jones   6  Harris  Pan American Center (3,920)
Las Cruces, NM
Nov 13, 2017*
8:00 pm, CHN
at No. 21 Saint Mary's L 74–93  1–1
 18  Lofton   10  J. Jones   4  Harris  McKeon Pavilion (2,811)
Moraga, CA
Nov 17, 2017*
7:00 pm
New Mexico
Rio Grande Rivalry
W 75–56  2–1
 28  Lofton   16  J. Jones   2  6 tied  Pan American Center (6,839)
Las Cruces, NM
Nov 22, 2017*
7:00 pm
Colorado State W 89–76  3–1
 30  Lofton   8  Lofton   5  Harris  Pan American Center (3,883)
Las Cruces, NM
Nov 25, 2017*
7:00 pm
UTEP
Battle of I-10
W 72–63  4–1
 21  Lofton   8  Lofton   4  J. Jones  Pan American Center (6,069)
Las Cruces, NM
Nov 30, 2017*
8:00 pm, Stadium
at UTEP
Battle of I-10
W 80–60  5–1
 18  Harris   13  J. Jones   3  N'Dir  Don Haskins Center (7,078)
El Paso, TX
Dec 3, 2017*
4:00 pm
Prairie View A&M W 69–57  6–1
 18  J. Jones   12  J. Jones   4  Harris  Pan American Center (3,591)
Las Cruces, NM
Dec 6, 2017*
7:00 pm
San Diego L 60–65  6–2
 16  N'Dir   11  J. Jones   3  Tied  Pan American Center (3,798)
Las Cruces, NM
Dec 9, 2017*
7:00 pm, ESPN3
at New Mexico
Rio Grande Rivalry
W 65–62  7–2
 22  Lofton   10  Tied   3  Harris  Dreamstyle Arena (12,768)
Albuquerque, NM
Dec 12, 2017*
7:00 pm
Eastern New Mexico W 84–62  8–2
 29  Lofton   11  J. Jones   11  J. Jones  Pan American Center (3,431)
Las Cruces, NM
Dec 16, 2017*
6:00 pm, BTN
vs. Illinois
Lou Henson Classic
W 74–69  9–2
 23  Lofton   13  J. Jones   3  Chuha  United Center (5,695)
Chicago, IL
Dec 22, 2017*
9:00 pm, ESPNU
vs. Davidson
Diamond Head Classic quarterfinals
W 69–68  10–2
 13  Tied   8  Tied   3  Chuha  Stan Sheriff Center (7,669)
Honolulu, HI
Dec 23, 2017*
8:00 pm, ESPN2
vs. No. 6 Miami (FL)
Diamond Head Classic semifinals
W 63–54  11–2
 15  Lofton   9  Lofton   3  Lofton  Stan Sheriff Center (5,946)
Honolulu, HI
Dec 25, 2017*
4:00 pm, ESPN2
vs. USC
Diamond Head Classic championship game
L 72–77  11–3
 28  Lofton   11  J. Jones   8  J. Jones  Stan Sheriff Center (6,062)
Honolulu, HI
Dec 28, 2017*
8:00 pm
at UC Irvine W 65–60  12–3
 17  Lofton   14  J. Jones   4  J. Jones  Bren Events Center (2,036)
Irvine, CA
Jan 6, 2018
1:00 pm
at Chicago State W 97–60  13–3
(1–0)
 18  J. Jones   16  J. Jones   8  Harris  Jones Convocation Center (563)
Chicago, IL
Jan 11, 2018
7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Grand Canyon W 70–59  14–3
(2–0)
 29  Lofton   15  J. Jones   3  J. Jones  GCU Arena (7,521)
Phoenix, AZ
Jan 13, 2018
8:00 pm, ESPN3
at Cal State Bakersfield W 66–53  15–3
(3–0)
 28  Lofton   8  J. Jones   6  Harris  Icardo Center (3,326)
Bakersfield, CA
Jan 18, 2018
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Seattle W 75–62  16–3
(4–0)
 15  Lofton   11  J. Jones   5  Harris  Pan American Center (5,035)
Las Cruces, NM
Jan 20, 2018
4:00 pm, ESPN3
Utah Valley W 86–59  17–3
(5–0)
 24  Lofton   10  J. Jones   6  J. Jones  Pan American Center (6,046)
Las Cruces, NM
Jan 27, 2018
6:00 pm
at UMKC W 73–48  18–3
(6–0)
 19  Lofton   15  J. Jones   3  J. Jones  Municipal Auditorium (1,410)
Kansas City, MO
Jan 30, 2018*
7:00 pm
Northern New Mexico W 71–45  19–3
 14  J. Jones   16  J. Jones   6  Buchanan  Pan American Center (4,094)
Las Cruces, NM
Feb 3, 2018
4:00 pm
Texas–Rio Grande Valley W 90–67  20–3
(7–0)
 34  Lofton   20  J. Jones   6  Lofton  Pan American Center (5,115)
Las Cruces, NM
Feb 8, 2018
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Cal State Bakersfield W 69–43  21–3
(8–0)
 14  Lofton   20  J. Jones   3  Tied  Pan American Center (4,206)
Las Cruces, NM
Feb 10, 2018
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Grand Canyon W 74–70  22–3
(9–0)
 27  J. Jones   20  J. Jones   2  Harris  Pan American Center (12,989)
Las Cruces, NM
Feb 15, 2018
7:00 pm
at Utah Valley L 79–86  22–4
(9–1)
 19  Lofton   6  J. Jones   6  N'Dir  UCCU Center (4,271)
Orem, UT
Feb 17, 2018
2:00 pm
at Seattle L 63–73 OT 22–5
(9–2)
 26  Lofton   12  Lofton   5  Lofton  KeyArena (2,270)
Seattle, WA
Feb 22, 2018
7:00 pm
Chicago State W 78–67  23–5
(10–2)
 15  N'Dir   11  J. Jones   4  J. Jones  Pan American Center (4,404)
Las Cruces, NM
Feb 24, 2018
7:00 pm
UMKC W 82–58  24–5
(11–2)
 15  Tied   23  J. Jones   7  J. Jones  Pan American Center (5,989)
Las Cruces, NM
Mar 3, 2018
6:00 pm
at Texas–Rio Grande Valley W 86–71  25–5
(12–2)
 18  J. Jones   13  J. Jones   7  Harris  UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,203)
Edinburg, TX
WAC tournament
Mar 8, 2018
7:00 pm, ESPN3
(1) vs. (8) Chicago State
Quarterfinals
W 97–70  26–5
 21  Lofton   15  J. Jones   8  Buchanan  Orleans Arena (1,521)
Paradise, NV
Mar 9, 2018
9:30 pm, ESPN3
(1) vs. (4) Seattle
Semifinals
W 84–79  27–5
 31  Lofton   22  J. Jones   3  Harris  Orleans Arena (2,739)
Paradise, NV
Mar 10, 2018
8:00 pm, ESPNU
(1) vs. (3) Grand Canyon
Championship
W 72–58  28–5
 21  Lofton   18  J. Jones   2  Harris  Orleans Arena (3,065)
Paradise, NV
NCAA tournament
Mar 16, 2018*
7:57 pm, truTV
(12 MW) vs. (5 MW) No. 20 Clemson
First Round
L 68–79  28–6
 29  Lofton   14  Jones   4  Jones  Viejas Arena (10,092)
San Diego, CA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
MW=Midwest Region.
All times are in Mountain Time Source[3].

References

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  1. ^ Glen Rosales, The Associated Press (April 11, 2017). "College basketball: New Mexico hires NMSU's Paul Weir as head coach". NCAA.com. Retrieved December 11, 2017.
  2. ^ "New Mexico State hires Wichita State assistant Chris Jans to replace Paul Weir". CBSSports.com. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  3. ^ "New Mexico State Athletics - 2017-18 Men's Basketball Schedule". Nmstatesports.com. Retrieved December 11, 2017.