Jake Hall drives to the basket during UNM’s 92-64 exhibition victor over Washington State. Photo courtesy of Andres Chavez, ESPN Radio 101.7 The Team.
““You’re going to have to find some individual scoring in this type of matchup more than you would in maybe some other defensive schemes.””
UNM men’s basketball has put up 90 plus points in its first two exhibition games, yet it’s third and final one against Arizona State in the Pit (Powered by Nusenda) on Oct. 25 at 2 p.m. may test the Lobos’ offense in ways they have not seen in the exhibition season.
Similar to Oklahoma State and Washington State, the Sun Devils will bring a big roster filled with front-court depth into Albuquerque. ASU features 11 players 6-foot-5 or taller, including centers Filip Malesevic at 7-foot-3, Ben Defty at 7-foot-1 and Nate Garcia at 7 feet.
But, ASU’s size isn’t the only challenge for UNM. ASU head coach Randy Bennett’s teams at Saint Mary’s were known for their disciplined defense and ability to limit opponents’ scoring opportunities.
Last season, Saint Mary’s was top 20 in Ken Pom’s adjusted defensive efficiency and defensive effective field goal percentage—two statistical categories that show just how stingy Bennett’s defense can be in preventing offenses from getting into the paint to create high percentage shots.
“They eliminate assists, they eliminate 3-point volume,” Eric Olen said when praising Bennett’s Saint Mary’s teams during UNM’s media availability on Friday. “You’re going to have to find some individual scoring in this type of matchup more than you would in maybe some other defensive schemes.”
Although ASU is unproven with a brand new roster, don’t expect Lobo guards Uriah Tenette and Dax Hall to be able to penetrate the paint with ease the way they did against Wazzu last Sunday en route to helping UNM get 23 assists. ASU will be much more disciplined than both OSU and Wazzu and with the size it’s bringing to the Pit, the Lobos offense will have its hands full.
If UNM does indeed need some individual scoring, the obvious choice is Mountain West preseason player of the year Jake Hall. He’s been on fire in the exhibition season, averaging 26.5 points per game while shooting 84% from the field (16 of 19) and 76% from the 3-point line.
UNM is making a concerted effort to get Jake Hall the ball in half-court this season because of his versatility as a scorer.
“…We want to keep getting his usage up,” Olen said. “As long as he maintains the efficiency, we’re going to keep trying to drive his usage up.”
With two games of game film, expect ASU to throw big-physical defenders at Hall to limit his clean looks and make scoring tougher. Sunday will be a test to see if the Lobos can find solutions against a disciplined defense with size.
UNM’s Defense Still A Work-In-Progress
Despite making big strides on the defensive side of the ball against Wazzu, the Lobos still have plenty of room to grow. UNM had several communication breakdowns that led to Washington State getting many wide-open shots due to UNM defenders not being on the same page.
“Communication is something that we’re continuing to emphasize,” Olen said. “We put two on the ball a lot. We rotate a lot. We change defenses a fair amount. We switch. All of that requires guys being on the same page, and so we’re having a lot of unforced just sort of communication mistakes.”
One player for ASU the Lobos cannot leave or allow to get comfortable offensively 6-foot-8 St. Mary’s transfer Paulius Murauskas. Murauskas is a 1,000 point scorer and was named Big 12 Newcomer of the Year at Big 12 Media days. He averaged 18.4 points per game last season while shooting 33% from the 3-point line and shot 84% from the free throw on 200 attempts.
St. Mary’s under Bennett was also a terrific offensive rebounding team. They finished No. 13 in Ken Pom’s offensive rebound % and a team with the kind of size ASU is brining, the Lobos will once be tested on their ability to control the defensive glass and limit second chance opportunities.
“They’re always one of the best rebounding teams,” Olen said. “I think they were top 15 on both sides of the ball nationally at St. Mary’s last year. Another great test for us on trying to survive on the defensive glass against a big physical team.”
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