LAS VEGAS – The New Mexico State men's basketball team advanced to the semifinals of the 2018 Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament and will now battle the fourth-seeded Redhawks of Seattle U at Orleans Arena on Friday, March 9, for a 9:30 p.m. (MT) tip-off.
 
Mychal Clanton will have the call on the ESPN3 broadcast as the Aggies look to defend its tournament title with Sed Bonner serving as the analyst and Rachel Vigil as the sideline reporter.
 
GET CONNECTED
Get up to the minute information and news about the NM State men's basketball team all season on Twitter and Instagram by following @NMStateMBB and on Facebook at FB.com/NMStateMBB.
 
LISTEN UP!
Aggie fans that can't make it to the 2018 WAC Tournament can catch the games all weekend by listening to NM State Athletics/US Bank Hall of Famer Jack Nixon on 99.5 Zia Country and affiliate stations on the Aggie Sports Network listed below.
 
Alamogordo      103.7 FM KNMZ
Albuquerque     1150 AM KNMM
Carlsbad           1240 AM KAMQ
El Paso             1380 AM KHEY
Gallup               1230 AM, 94.9 FM KYVA
Las Vegas         107.1 FM KMDS
 
FRESH ON THEIR MIND
When NM State and Seattle U take the court Friday night, the Aggies will have a little extra incentive after losing to the Redhawks in KeyArena less than a month ago while SU heads into the contest with some confidence after its 77-60 win over UT Rio Grande Valley in the quarterfinals. On the other side of the count, Seattle U's win over NM State at home will also add to its confidence that the Aggies are human after all.
 
New Mexico State is 2-0 all-time against Seattle U in tournament play. The first win for NM State occurred in the quarterfinal game of the 2014 conference tournament, a narrow 70-68 affair in favor of the Aggies. The second meeting in tournament play between the Aggies and Redhawks occurred the very next year, this time with the automatic bid for the NCAA Tournament – an honor the Aggies were able to take in its 80-61 prevailing of Seattle U.
 
Matej Kavas leads the team with 15.1 points after posting 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from deep Thursday night against UT Rio Grande Valley. Jordan Hill, who is one of five players averaging in double-figures for SU, is averaging 13.2 points while dishing out a team-high 101 assists. He was one of five Redhawks to score 10-plus points vs. UTRGV.
 
Aaron Menzies, who recorded a double-double in the quarterfinal game with 12 points and 10 rebounds, is third on the team with 11.3 points per game and 8.9 rebounds per game. Josh Hearlihy is just a tick off from Menzies and averages 11.2 points per game. Richaud Gittens concludes the list of double-digit scorers for Seattle U, with 10.3 points per game on top of his 5.1 boards per game. Gittens had a team-high 17 points in its opening tournament game.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Aggies were firing on all cylinders Thursday night in their quarterfinal game against Chicago State, knocking down 36-of-70 shots (.514) – 14 of which came from 3-point range. The defense also turned the Cougars over 15 times while out-rebounding Chicago State 51-27 – including 18 offensive rebounds.
 
However, the NM State bench was the star of the show Thursday as it combined for 45 of the team's 97 points. Leading the way for the bench was Keyon Jones, who knocked down six deep balls – including three-straight at one point in the second-half – for a season-high 18 points.
 
Meanwhile, Las Cruces local Johnny McCants continues to make a name for himself. The redshirt freshman had eight points and six boards on 4-of-4 shooting – two of which came via highlight reel type dunks.
 

UP NEXT
Should New Mexico State defeat Seattle U in the semifinals, it'll face the winner between the second-seeded Wolverines of Utah Valley or the third-seeded Lopes of Grand Canyon on Saturday, March 10, at 8 p.m. (MT) on ESPNU.