As a bored college student at home for Spring Break, I decided to watch three of the Aggies games on ESPN3. Since New Mexico State's second leading scorer Christian Kobango left the team following the Aggies game on Dec. 28, I chose three conference games to watch. Obviously, this took away from some of the more marquee game that NMSU played in the non-conference but I wanted to watch the players that IU will be seeing on Thursday evening.
Follow the jump for some of my very amateur thoughts on NMSU:
Wendell McKines, 6'6", 230 lb-It doesn't take long to watch NMSU to see how valuable McKines is to his team's success. I am shocked he was not the WAC Player of the Year after leading the conference in scoring (18.8 PPG) and rebounds (10.8 RPG). He is similar to a former IU opponent in Dominique Sutton from North Carolina Central. McKines might not be as athletic as Sutton but does shoot it better from the perimeter (35 percent from three-point range). Despite their height, both hit the boards at will and have some muscle to them. In the conference championship game against Louisiana Tech, McKines had 12 rebounds in the game's first 15 minutes.
Hernst Laroche, 6' 1", 170 lb-Along with McKines, Laroche is the most consistent three-point shooter out of the Aggies starters. Laroche was one of three starters who saw action in the last tournament appearance for NMSU in 2010. Since Kabongo left the program, Laroche has seen his minutes increase and sat just a total of eight minutes during the Aggies three wins at the WAC Tournament, even though each game was decided by double digits. Laroche was a second-team All-Wac member.
Hamidu Rahman, 6' 11", 245 lb-Unlike most mid-major teams, the Aggies have the size that would frankly make most 'major' teams look small. Rahman has scored in double figures in 17 games this season but has averaged just under six points over the Aggies last five games. The big man does all of his damage immediately around the basket and as the game wore on, he did seem to tire which would play right into the hands of Cody Zeller's ability to run the floor.
Daniel Mullings, 6' 2", 170 lb-The beneficiary of Kabongo's departure has been Mullings. The athletic freshman guard has started every game since Dec. 28 and has scored in double figures in eight of the past nine games. Mullings doesn't shoot the three-pointer at the same rate as most backcourt guards. He has attempted just seven in conference play without making any of them.
Tyrone Watson, 6' 5", 225 lb-Watson looks like a man out on the court and similar to McKines, he does almost all of his damage near the rim. NMSU saw a lot of zone defenses from the games that I watched, with teams daring Watson to shoot it. He does a wonderful job of finding creases in the zone and uses his body to finish at the rim. McKines and Watson aren't overly athletic but they use their strength to make a living in the paint.
Bench:
Bandja Sy, 6' 8", 214 lb-It is hard to believe Sy isn't in the stating lineup, but with players like McKines and Watson there just isn't room for him at the small or power forward spot. He is a three-point threat and isn't afraid to come in and take shots from distance. Sy is a long-armed defender and it wouldn't surprise me to see him guarding Christian Watford if the Aggies starters can't get the job done on the IU junior.
Tshilidzi Nephawe, 6' 10", 260 lb-The two-headed monster at center includes Nephawe. Along with Michigan State, I can't think of a team that IU has seen this season with a pair of centers that play over 15 minutes a game and have such size. Nephawe has a nice touch from the foul line (shooting 74 percent) and just like Rahman, he does most of his damage around the rim. The two of them virtually split playing time at the center spot and although both move pretty well in the paint, they do bite for pump fakes very frequently.
My thoughts: From the first look this is definitely not your typical mid-major team from a size standpoint. NMSU is long and has some major strength. Teams tended to pack the zone in against NMSU and dared them to shoot the 3-pointer. I would expect IU to play some zone and the Hoosiers MUST find offensive rebounders out of the zone defense. You can't really fault the Aggies for not playing a loaded schedule considering most teams wouldn't want to risk losing to a 'mid-major.' Looking at Butler and VCU last year and those teams lived by the three-point shot and their guards carried them to the Final four. NMSU is the exact opposite and will look to implore their strength against the Hoosiers. Expect a high-scoring game and the interesting matchup for me will be how the Hoosiers guard McKines. If they don't go zone than will Tom Crean go with Watford on McKiens? Or will he keep Watford on the other team's point guard and elect with Sheeladipo to guard the WAC's leading scorer and rebounder.
