The New Mexico State University men’s basketball team has been taking care of business so far this season and the scary thing is the players think they can be even better than their 11-2 record shows.
“I think we are in a good spot,” said redshirt senior Clayton Henry. “It’s even better; we all know that we aren’t close to being how good we can be.”
The Aggies finished nonconference play with a six-game winning streak, including four straight road wins. Those road wins consisted of close victories over archrivals UTEP and University of New Mexico, a win over Loyola Marymount despite making 26 turnovers and overcoming an 18-point deficit to beat Pac-12 opponent Washington State.
“There have been multiple times where we’ve seen stats like 26 turnovers and all that, and we are still winning,” said Henry, from Calgary, Canada.
“We just know that if we get a complete game, it’s going to be really scary (for opponents),” Henry added. “That is where we are trying to get to.”
The Aggies wrapped up nonconference play with a pair of home victories – 93-60 over Northern New Mexico Dec. 18 and 84-59 over UT Permian Basin Dec. 20, in a contest that was closer than that through much of it.
“Like coach (Chris Jans) always says, we are not a finished product,” said graduate student Yuat Alok. “We still have areas we can improve on and get better.”
Alok, who is from New Zealand, is in his first year with the Aggies after having played for Coppin State and Texas Christian previously.
“We just have to listen to coach; he’s got a plan,” Alok said. “All of us have a part to play. We just have to grab the scripture, play and play the best you can. The outcome will be better than we all thought.”
Alok, like many of his teammates, brings a businesslike attitude to the court, but he also brings something else – a briefcase he takes to each game.
It’s a reminder that he has a job to do. He also carries his Bible inside and some things that remind of him of back home.
“It’s (the brief case) in our team color, so that’s a plus,” he said with a chuckle.
Jans said the team has shown some resolve and gained some valuable experience that can help it during Western Athletic Conference play.
“We were down by 18 against Washington State. They stuck together in the huddle and on the floor and found a way to keep competing,” Jans said.
“We have talked about it since then,” he added. “It was really their defensive presence and their ability to get consecutive stops. “We have proven we can win on the road. That will be huge for us the rest of the year, because we have been there and done that.”
Jans said the team has been able to win in tough environments and has been able to overcome adversity.
“Those experiences are going to help this particular team going forward,” Jans said.
The team was able to take a long break over the winter holidays, something they weren’t able to do last year because they were cooped up in a hotel in Phoenix during the pandemic.
“So we made darn sure that this year, we were going to have a significant break to make sure everybody had the opportunity to do that (spend time with friends and loved ones),” Jans said.
But now it is back to business.
New Mexico State was scheduled to open WAC play Thursday, Dec. 30 at Seattle U but the game was postponed because of
Covid protocols within the Redhawk program. Next, the Aggies are slated to host Chicago State at 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 1 at the Pan Am Center.
“You just try to get better every day and prepare your team,” Jans said.
The Aggies hope that businesslike approach continues to spell success and bring prosperity in the new year.
