March sadness: New Mexico State denies Vandals first trip to NCAAs since 1990 by winning Western Athletic Conference tournament
From wire and news services
LAS VEGAS — Idaho’s gallant try for its first NCAA berth since 1990 came up short Saturday night, as New Mexico State won its third straight Western Athletic Conference tournament championship with a 77-55 victory over the Vandals on Saturday night before 1,518 at Orleans Arena.
The Aggies (26-9) shot 56 percent from the field, 46 percent from 3-point range, owned a 38-21 rebounding advantage and held Idaho (16-18) to 38 percent from the field to earn a bid to the NCAA tournament.
“We played pretty well in this tournament but tonight New Mexico State played better,” said Idaho coach Don Verlin, after his fifth-seeded Vandals got their first WAC tournament win since 2007, then knocked off the tournament’s top seed in the previous 48 hours. “We couldn’t get them stopped. They basically dominated us in every phase of the game. You have to give Marvin (Menzies), Daniel Mullings a lot of credit.”
New Mexico State outscored Idaho 46-16 in the paint, and used five 3-pointers to keep the Vandals honest on the perimeter.
“They really hurt us driving the ball to the basket,” Verlin said. “We couldn’t keep them in front of us. Early in the game they made some 3-point shots. If they have a weakness it’s shooting behind the arc, and they were able to make those and we had to extend a little bit, and then they were able to get to the basket.”
Idaho senior Stephen Madison, the program’s second all-time leading scorer, led the Vandals with 17 points after going 10 for 12 at the free throw line. Junior point guard Mike Scott added 14 points for the Vandals.
“We have a great group of guys in the locker room,” Verlin said. “Stephen Madison has been sitting next to me here for three nights now, and what a great career he has had. It’s always hard when it ends, especially for a guy like this who has had an unbelievable career here at the University of Idaho, our second all-time leading scorer.”
Idaho caught fire at the end of the season, winning eight of its final 11 games heading into its first conference championship game since 1993. The Vandals were 8-14 entering that stretch before finishing their season at 16-18.
“Our team battled,” Verlin said. “There was a point this season where we could have given up, and we didn’t. The last month of the season we were playing as good of basketball as anyone in the Western Athletic Conference.”
Mullings scored 18 points and Sim Bhullar added 14 for New Mexico State.
“Making the (NCAA) tournament is obviously a goal we had,” Menzies said. “I’m very excited about getting back and hopefully making some noise when we get there.”
New Mexico State often worked its offense through Bhullar, and the Vandals were unable to stop the Aggies’ 7-foot-5, 355-pound center around the rim or rotate fast enough when he kicked it out.
The second-seeded Aggies jumped to a big early lead and never gave Idaho a chance.
Bhullar was named tournament MVP. Tshilidzi Nephawe added 12 points for New Mexico State, which had a 38-21 advantage in rebounds and won’t have to sweat out Selection Sunday.
“This year’s been a roller coaster ride,” Mullings said. “Like coach always says at the beginning of the season, all the teams in the NCAA, every team has its trials and tribulations just like we had ours. We had a couple highs, good games and good wins in nonconference and we had a couple of lows in conference play, but the good thing about us is we stick together.”
Idaho beat New Mexico State in the teams’ last meeting this season, but was no match for the Aggies in its first conference title game since 1993.
The Vandals were the surprise of the bracket, the plucky underdogs with the losing record who had won one WAC tournament game in eight years before this season.
New Mexico State had to survive a last-second shot to hold off Seattle in its tournament opener and rallied in the second half to knock off Cal State Bakersfield in the semifinals.
These teams split two games during the regular season; New Mexico blew out Idaho by 24 in Las Cruces, and the Vandals pulled out a six-point win on their home court.
New Mexico State dominated early, using its inside-out game and motion to hit 10 of its first 15 shots. The Aggies went on a 12-2 run to build a 23-13 lead and kept dropping shots, hitting 15 of 27 in the first half for a 39-25 lead.
The Vandals had particular trouble with Bhullar. With no one within eight inches or 130 pounds of him, Bhullar simply turned and dropped the ball into the basket several times in the first half, scoring 10 points to go along with six rebounds by halftime.
“He’s really difficult to prepare against because you have to put so much attention to him,” Verlin said. “He really makes it tough.”
Little changed in the second half.
Bhullar kept getting deep post position — no one on Idaho’s team had any chance of pushing him out — and he scored a few baskets around the rim or kicked out to open shooters when the Vandals double- and triple-teamed him.
Idaho shot better early in the second half after going 9 for 27 in the first, but cooled off and continued to struggle with slowing the Aggies, never able to put a dent in their big lead.
IDAHO (16-18)
Hill 2-10 2-2 6, M. Scott 7-14 0-0 14, Seck 2-2 0-0 4, Madison 3-9 10-12 17, Kammerer 1-1 0-0 2, Dean 1-4 0-0 3, Wiggs 0-2 4-6 4, Callandret 1-4 0-0 2, Mpawe 0-0 0-0 0, Jiles IV 0-0 0-0 0, Egbert 1-1 1-2 3. Totals 18-47 17-22 55.
NEW MEXICO ST. (26-9)
Eldridge 3-8 0-0 8, S. Bhullar 6-9 2-3 14, Aronis 2-5 0-0 6, Nephawe 5-8 2-2 12, Mullings 8-12 2-2 18, Landry 0-0 0-0 0, Baker 3-5 4-6 11, Buovac 0-0 0-0 0, Dixon 2-5 4-4 8. Totals 29-52 14-17 77.
Halftime_New Mexico St. 39-25. 3-Point Goals_Idaho 2-13 (Madison 1-3, Dean 1-4, Callandret 0-1, Hill 0-5), New Mexico St. 5-11 (Aronis 2-4, Eldridge 2-4, Baker 1-3). Fouled Out_None. Rebounds_Idaho 21 (Seck 4), New Mexico St. 38 (S. Bhullar 9). Assists_Idaho 8 (M. Scott, Seck 2), New Mexico St. 17 (Eldridge, Mullings 4). Total Fouls_Idaho 17, New Mexico St. 18. A_1,518.