2017–18 New Mexico Lobos men's basketball team

The 2017–18 New Mexico Lobos men's basketball team represented the University of New Mexico during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Lobos were led by first-year head coach Paul Weir. They played their home games at Dreamstyle Arena, more commonly known as The Pit, in Albuquerque, New Mexico as members of the Mountain West Conference. They finished the season 19–15, 12–6 in Mountain West play to finish in third place. They defeated Wyoming and Utah State to advance to the championship game of the Mountain West tournament where they lost to San Diego State.

2017–18 New Mexico Lobos men's basketball
Conference	Mountain West Conference
Record	19–15 (12–6 MW)
Head coach	Paul Weir (1st season)
Assistant coaches	Chris Harriman Brandon Mason Jerome Robinson
Home arena	Dreamstyle Arena
Seasons ← 2016–17 2018–19 →

2017–18 Mountain West Conference
men's basketball standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 24 Nevada	15	–	3		.833			29	–	8		.784
Boise State	13	–	5		.722			23	–	9		.719
New Mexico	12	–	6		.667			19	–	15		.559
Fresno State	11	–	7		.611			21	–	11		.656
San Diego State †	11	–	7		.611			22	–	11		.667
Wyoming	10	–	8		.556			20	–	13		.606
UNLV	8	–	10		.444			20	–	13		.606
Utah State	8	–	10		.444			17	–	17		.500
Air Force	6	–	12		.333			12	–	19		.387
Colorado State	4	–	14		.222			11	–	21		.344
San Jose State	1	–	17		.056			4	–	26		.133
† Conference tournament winner Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

The Lobos 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. On March 31, head coach Craig Neal was fired from the program.^[1]

Offseason

Departures

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for Departure
Adam Cumber	G	6'2"	185	RS So.	Albuquerque, NM	Walk-on; Left team.
Aher Uguak	G/F	6'7"	206	Fr.	Edmonton, Alberta	Transferred to Loyola–Chicago
Damien Jefferson	G/F	6'5"	190	Fr.	East Chicago, Indiana	Transferred to Creighton.^[2]
Elijah Brown	G	6'4"	200	RS Jr.	Orange County, California	Graduated; Transferred to Oregon.^[3]
Holt Shelley	F	6'9"	221	Fr.	Cliff, New Mexico	Walk-on; left team due to personal reasons.
Jalen Harris	G	6'2"	156	Fr.	Wilson, North Carolina	Transferred to Arkansas.
Jordan Hunter	G	5'11"	180	So.	Beaumont, Texas	Transferred to Lamar.
Obij Aget	C	7'1"	220	Sr.	Juba, South Sudan	Graduated.
Tim Williams	F	6'8"	240	RS Sr.	Flossmoor, Illinois	Graduated.
Xavier Adams	G	6'4"	205	Jr.	Flower Mound, Texas	Transferred to Pittsburg State.

Incoming transfers

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Antino Jackson	G	6'0"	170	Sr.	Houston, TX	Graduate transfer from Akron. Will be eligible to play immediately.^[4]
Chris McNeal	G	6'1"	185	Jr.	Jackson, TN	Junior college transfer from Indian Hills Community College. McNeal is eligible to play immediately.^[5]
Jachai Simmons	F	6'8"	190	Jr.	Plainfield, NJ	Junior college transfer from Midland College. Simmons is eligible to play immediately.^[6]
JaQuan Lyle	G	6'5"	210	Jr.	Evansville, IN	Transfer from Ohio State. Will have to redshirt for the 2017–18 season due to NCAA transfer rules, with 2 years of remaining eligibility.^[7]
Troy Simons	G	6'3"	195	Jr.	Pittsburgh, PA	Junior college transfer from Polk State College. Simons is eligible to play immediately.^[8]
Vance Jackson	F	6'9"	235	So.	Los Angeles, CA	Transfer from Connecticut. Will have to redshirt for the 2017–18 season due to NCAA transfer rules, with 3 years of remaining eligibility.^[9]

2017 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Makuach Maluach F	Sydney, Australia	Newington College	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Jul 20, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A   ESPN grade: N/A
Vladimir Pinchuk F	Hagen, Germany	Phoenix Hagen	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Aug 11, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN: N/A   ESPN grade: N/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 Basketball Commits". ESPN.com.

2018 Recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Drue Drinnon PG	Mableton, GA	University School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Oct 29, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN:    ESPN grade: 82
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:

Preseason

In a vote by conference media at the Mountain West media day, the Lobos were picked to finish in ninth place in the Mountain West.^[10]

Roster

2017–18 New Mexico Lobos men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Matt Vail (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 145 lb (66 kg) Fr Grants HS Grants, New Mexico G 1 Chris McNeal 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Indian Hills C.C. Jackson, Tennessee G/F 2 Sam Logwood 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr La Lumiere School Indianapolis, Indiana G 3 Antino Jackson 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Sr Akron Houston, Texas F 5 Joe Furstinger 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Sr Santa Margarita Catholic HS Rancho Santa Margarita, California G/F 10 Makuach Maluach 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Newington College Sydney, Australia G/F 11 Jachai Simmons 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Midland Plainfield, New Jersey G 13 JaQuan Lyle   6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Ohio State Evansville, Indiana G/F 14 Dane Kuiper 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr Corona del Sol HS Wasilla, Alaska F/C 15 Vladimir Pinchuk 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Fr Phoenix Hagen Hagen, Germany F 22 Vance Jackson   6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) So Connecticut Los Angeles, California G 31 Troy Simons 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Polk State Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania G 32 Anthony Mathis 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jr West Linn High HS West Linn, Oregon F 55 Connor MacDougall 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) RS Jr South Mountain C.C. Tempe, Arizona	Head coach Paul Weir (York) Assistant coach(es) Chris Harriman (Augusta State) Brandon Mason (New Mexico State) Jerome Robinson (Bradley) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
Oct 27, 2017* 7:00 pm		BYU Charity Exhibition for Hurricane Victims	L 73–79		Dreamstyle Arena (4,902) Albuquerque, NM
Non-conference regular season
Nov 11, 2017* 7:00 pm		Northern New Mexico	W 147–76	1–0	Dreamstyle Arena (10,695) Albuquerque, NM
Nov 14, 2017* 7:00 pm		Omaha Emerald Coast Classic campus-site game	W 103–71	2–0	Dreamstyle Arena (9,601) Albuquerque, NM
Nov 17, 2017* 7:00 pm		at New Mexico State Rio Grande Rivalry	L 56–75	2–1	Pan American Center (6,839) Las Cruces, NM
Nov 21, 2017* 7:00 pm		Tennessee Tech Emerald Coast Classic campus-site game	L 96-104	2–2	Dreamstyle Arena (9,703) Albuquerque, NM
Nov 24, 2017* 5:00 pm, CBSSN		vs. TCU Emerald Coast Classic semifinals	L 67–69	2–3	The Arena at NWFSC (1,000) Niceville, FL
Nov 25, 2017* 2:00 pm		vs. Maryland Emerald Coast Classic 3rd place game	L 65–80	2–4	The Arena at NWFSC (1,250) Niceville, FL
Nov 29, 2017* 7:00 pm, ATTSNRM		Evansville MW–MVC Challenge	W 78–59	3–4	Dreamstyle Arena (8,943) Albuquerque, NM
Dec 2, 2017* 7:00 pm		at UTEP	L 76–88	3–5	Don Haskins Center (6,394) El Paso, TX
Dec 6, 2017* 7:00 pm, P12N		at Colorado	L 57–75	3–6	Coors Events Center (6,610) Boulder, CO
Dec 9, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		New Mexico State Rio Grande Rivalry	L 62–65	3–7	Dreamstyle Arena (12,768) Albuquerque, NM
Dec 16, 2017* 6:00 pm, CBSSN		No. 23 Arizona	L 73–89	3–8	Dreamstyle Arena (13,207) Albuquerque, NM
Dec 19, 2017* 7:30 pm, ATTSNRM		Rice	W 78–69	4–8	Dreamstyle Arena (9,415) Albuquerque, NM
Dec 22, 2017* 7:00 pm, ATTSNRM		Prairie View A&M	W 87–78	5–8	Dreamstyle Arena (9,423) Albuquerque, NM
Mountain West regular season
Dec 27, 2017 7:00 pm, ATTSNRM		Air Force	W 87–58	6–8 (1–0)	Dreamstyle Arena (10,514) Albuquerque, NM
Dec 30, 2017 3:00 pm, ATTSNRM		at Nevada	L 74–77	6–9 (1–1)	Lawlor Events Center (9,530) Reno, NV
Jan 3, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		at Boise State	L 62–90	6–10 (1–2)	Taco Bell Arena (7,557) Boise, ID
Jan 6, 2018 7:00 pm		San Jose State	W 80–47	7–10 (2–2)	Dreamstyle Arena (10,799) Albuquerque, NM
Jan 10, 2018 7:00 pm, Stadium		Wyoming	W 75–66	8–10 (3–2)	Dreamstyle Arena (9,846) Albuquerque, NM
Jan 13, 2018 5:00 pm, ESPN3		at Fresno State	L 80–89	8–11 (3–3)	Save Mart Center (6,244) Fresno, CA
Jan 17, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN3		at UNLV	W 85–81	9–11 (4–3)	Thomas & Mack Center (10,546) Paradise, NV
Jan 20, 2018 5:00 pm, CBSSN		San Diego State	W 79–75	10–11 (5–3)	Dreamstyle Arena (11,418) Albuquerque, NM
Jan 27, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Colorado State	W 80–65	11–11 (6–3)	Dreamstyle Arena (12,438) Albuquerque, NM
Jan 31, 2018 7:00 pm		at Utah State	L 80–89	11–12 (6–4)	Smith Spectrum (6,345) Logan, UT
Feb 3, 2018 4:00 pm, ATTSNRM		at San Jose State	W 71–68	12–12 (7–4)	Event Center Arena (2,151) San Jose, CA
Feb 6, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPNU		Boise State	L 71–73	12–13 (7–5)	Dreamstyle Arena (11,357) Albuquerque, NM
Feb 10, 2018 2:00 pm, ESPN3		at Air Force	L 92–100	12–14 (7–6)	Clune Arena (2,851) Colorado Springs, CO
Feb 14, 2018 7:00 pm		Utah State	W 78–63	13–14 (8–6)	Dreamstyle Arena (9,737) Albuquerque, NM
Feb 21, 2018 7:00 pm, ATTSNRM		at Wyoming	W 119–114	14–14 (9–6)	Arena-Auditorium (4,321) Laramie, WY
Feb 24, 2018 12:00 pm, CBSSN		UNLV	W 91–90	15–14 (10–6)	Dreamstyle Arena (12,080) Albuquerque, NM
Feb 28, 2018 7:00 pm, ATTSNRM		at Colorado State	W 108–87	16–14 (11–6)	Moby Arena (2,917) Fort Collins, CO
Mar 3, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Fresno State	W 95–86	17–14 (12–6)	Dreamstyle Arena (13,069) Albuquerque, NM
Mountain West tournament
Mar 8, 2018 8:30 pm, CBSSN	(3)	vs. (6) Wyoming Quarterfinals	W 85–75	18–14	Thomas & Mack Center (6,753) Paradise, NV
Mar 9, 2018 8:30 pm, CBSSN	(3)	vs. (7) Utah State Semifinals	W 83–68	19–14	Thomas & Mack Center (8,224) Paradise, NV
Mar 10, 2018 4:00 pm, CBS	(3)	vs. (5) San Diego State Championship Game	L 75–82	19–15	Thomas & Mack Center (8,456) Paradise, NV
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Mountain Time.

References

1. "Craig Neal fired as New Mexico head coach after 17-14 season". ESPN. April 1, 2017. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
2. Grammer, Geoff (June 11, 2017). "Damien Jefferson sixth to transfer from Lobo hoops". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
3. Tate, Van (March 20, 2017). "Elijah Brown to transfer from New Mexico". KRQE. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
4. Grammer, Geoff (April 26, 2017). "Akron graduate transfer point guard commits to Lobo hoops". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
5. Grammer, Geoff (May 1, 2017). "Lobo men's hoops signs another point guard". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
6. Grammer, Geoff (May 6, 2017). "Lobos sign forward who was previously signed with NMSU". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
7. Chester, Jared (August 4, 2017). "Lobo Basketball picks up another transfer, JaQuan Lyle". KRQE. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
8. Grammer, Geoff (April 17, 2017). "Lobos sign high-scoring JC guard Simons". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
9. Grammer, Geoff (June 26, 2017). "UConn transfer Vance Jackson signs with Lobo basketball". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
10. "Nevada Predicted to Win 2017-18 Mountain West Men's Basketball Regular-Season Title". Mountain West. October 18, 2017. Retrieved October 26, 2017.