5 things to know about New Mexico State
Arkansas survived a scare from 13-seed Vermont on Thursday, but UConn can't say the same about its first-round matchup.
The Huskies were knocked off by New Mexico State in a classic 12-5 matchup. That means the Razorbacks will face the Aggies with a spot in the Sweet 16 on the line.
Tip off is scheduled for 7:20 p.m. CT Saturday and the game will be televised on TNT, but before we get to that, HawgBeat thought it'd be a good idea to take a closer look at Arkansas' next opponent...
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WAC Player of the Year
First things first, Arkansas fans should become familiar with Teddy Allen, a 6-foot-6 wing for the Aggies. If the name sounded familiar yesterday in New Mexico State’s upset win over UConn, that’s because he was a hot commodity in the transfer portal last season.
Allen has bounced around a good amount in his collegiate career, beginning at West Virginia before ultimately taking the JUCO route and then getting back into high major college basketball at Nebraska. After just one year at Nebraska, the Mesa, Ariz., native entered the portal again, this time landing at New Mexico State.
Arkansas was one of the schools that reached out to Allen last offseason, but nothing ever materialized. Now, Allen is the WAC Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year in his first season with the Aggies.
His stat line paints a clear reason as to why he’s received so many accolades: 19.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists and pretty solid shooting splits at 44/34/88. In New Mexico State's opening round victory, Allen scored 37 points and was the only Aggie in double figures. You will hear his name on television Saturday very regularly, so be prepared.
Slow Ride
The Aggies play a slightly faster brand of basketball than Vermont, but still prefer a slow pace, coming into Saturday’s matchup ranked 242nd in adjusted tempo on KenPom. The Catamounts’ pace of play from the regular season didn’t seem to matter Thursday, though, as both teams pushed the ball from the jump.
It is to be determined whether that will be the case for Arkansas and New Mexico State, but against Connecticut, there was a point halfway through the first period where the game was on-pace to finish 30-25. It was very slow, very low-scoring and there was minimal offense. Offense picked up late and the final score was 70-63 in favor of the Aggies.
Part of that could be attributed to UConn's 302nd-ranked tempo, but the Aggies seemed pretty meticulous about their offensive possessions. That said, with their guards’ speed and Teddy Allen’s ability to get downhill, they could try to push the ball to catch Arkansas off guard, similar to Vermont.
Turnovers on both sides
While New Mexico State does a lot of things well on both sides of the court, it does not take care of the ball particularly well and doesn't force many turnovers.
Against UConn, the Aggies turned the ball over 11 times while only forcing the Huskies to turn the ball over 8 times. Although the 11 turnovers don’t seem to be terrible, the +3 on turnover margin is a common statistic for the Aggies throughout their season.
For the year, they’re averaging 13.9 giveaways per game, ranking 290th nationally, and just 12.0 takeaways per game (242nd). New Mexico State's minus-1.9 turnover margin is No. 300 out of 350 Division I teams.
The Razorbacks’ numbers trend in the opposite direction. They average 12.4 turnovers per game (156th) and force opponents into 14.7 turnovers per game (50th). Their plus-2.3 turnover margin is 51st in the country.
Another Experienced Coach
New Mexico State head coach Chris Jans is no stranger to success, similar to Vermont’s John Becker. Jans is coaching in his third NCAA Tournament with the Aggies, and Thursday’s victory was his first in the NCAA Tournament.
Over the span of six years as a head coach, including one at Bowling Green and five with the Aggies, Jans has compiled a 143-43 record (.769). He’s led New Mexico State to regular-season titles in the WAC in four of his five seasons, including this year, and has won three conference tournament championships.
He was back-to-back WAC Coach of the Year in 2018 and 2019 and has never lost 10-plus games at the helm of New Mexico State.
Good on the Boards
More often than not, teams that make a run in the NCAA Tournament have success on the boards. Vermont was a good rebounding team, albeit undersized, and now Arkansas faces off against another good rebounding team with even more size.
The Aggies average 38.0 rebounds a game and allow opponents to bring in 31.1 rebounds. That plus-6.9 margin ranks 14th nationally. On the flip side, Arkansas averages 38.2 boards but allows 34.4 to opponents, giving it a plus-3.7 rebounding margin (No. 74 in DI).
There is something to be said for competition, though. Arkansas has had to battle against some of the best, biggest and longest rebounding teams in the country playing in the SEC. Those 38.2 rebounds in the SEC hold more weight than 38.1 in the WAC.
However, New Mexico State did hold its own against one of the best rebounding teams in the country on Thursday. Coming into that matchup, UConn averaged more than 40 rebounds, ranking 8th in the country. They also limited opponents to under 33 boards per game.
While the Huskies stayed at par for the latter, they only hauled in 25 rebounds against the Aggies. The Aggies finished with 26, so they were plus-1 on the boards. It was a low-possession, slow game, so there weren’t many rebounds to grab, but New Mexico State went toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the country on the glass.
They are very well-disciplined and extremely physical in the post. Jans and the Aggies look to make opponents uncomfortable on the boards and in the paint. Rebounds, along with turnovers, could be the turning points in this matchup.