July 17, 2003
In order to build a successful college basketball program, a solid foundation has to be set. The goals of the program have to be clearly defined and each member of the team has to be willing to work towards achieving those goals. University of New Mexico head coach Ritchie McKay has set two goals for the Lobo men’s basketball program that he and the rest of his staff are making great strides to achieve.
“Our goals for the program are two-fold,” stated the 38-year old McKay who is entering his eighth season as a Division I head coach and his second year at New Mexico. “First of all, we want a 100 percent graduation rate. I think anyone who does not have a commitment to a student-athlete’s progress academically is doing an injustice to the student and the university. We are committed to accomplishing that.”
The Lobos’ work in the classroom is paying off as the men’s basketball team increased its overall grade-point-average in both of McKay’s first two semesters at UNM.
“Second, we want to play championship-caliber basketball. I truly believe that the University of New Mexico has a great tradition. As a result, our community, rightfully so, has an expectation to contend for conference championships. Certainly, we want to embrace that and continue to further our program to where we reach the top of the Mountain West Conference.”
Looking back on the 2002-03 season, the casual observer might miss the important steps that were taken to build the University of New Mexico into one of the top programs in the Mountain West. Despite posting a 10-18 overall record, the Lobos made their mark on the league and showed promising signs of future success.
Senior guard Ruben Douglas led the nation in scoring at 28.0 points a game and was named MWC Player of the Year despite the Lobos’ seventh-place league finish. Freshman Mark Walters led all MWC freshmen in scoring and rebounding and was named to honorable mention all-conference. Junior Ryan Ashcraft emerged as a team leader and committed just 12 turnovers in 435 minutes of MWC action.
“There’s no doubt that losing a player like Ruben Douglas will affect us,” said McKay. “You can’t lose the nation’s leading scorer and not be affected. However, I think this year’s team will have more balance and will be much deeper. That should make us a better basketball team.”
The Lobos started the season with only 10 scholarship players and were dealt a serious blow when senior guard Senque Carey went down. Carey was lost for the season when he suffered a spinal cord injury against Northwestern State on Nov. 25 in just the second game of the season. That left New Mexico with just one player – Douglas – who had played more than one year of Div. I basketball. The undersized and out-manned Lobos refused to give up and stayed in many games against teams with more talent and a deeper bench.
“Lobo fans are certainly not used to rebuilding,” stated McKay. “From the outside looking in it may have seemed like a season that was devastating. However, I was really proud of our group, the way we came together, and the foundation that was laid for Lobo basketball. No one will ever remember the contributions made by that team, but players like Ruben Douglas, Ryan Ashcraft and Mark Walters all made a tremendous impact on the future of our program.”
Despite the school’s first losing season in 20 years, Lobo fans continued to spin the turnstiles at The Pit. UNM’s average crowd was 15,186, which ranked 12th among all NCAA Division I men’s basketball programs. The loyal UNM throng was able to celebrate the biggest win of the year on March 1 when New Mexico upset No. 22 Utah 76-69, in The Pit. McKay and his staff are preparing the 2003-04 team for more outcomes like that.
The 2003-04 Lobos will have a dramatically different look with 10 new faces joining the program to go along with six players returning from last year’s team.
Ashcraft and guard Javin Tindall are the lone seniors on the team, and will give McKay an experienced backcourt to guide the influx of newcomers to the program. Ashcraft has been named team captain and will be a major cog in returning the Lobos to their winning ways. “Ryan is one of my favorite players I have ever coached,” said McKay. “He represents what student-athletes should be about. He is a great leader, has an incredible heart and is a great teammate.”
The 5’11” Tindall was the team’s leading 3-point shooter from a year ago, connecting on 42.1 percent of his attempts, and is the second leading returning scorer. He averaged 9.1 points and scored in double figures in six of the last eight games. Tindall also led the team with 67 assists. “Javin had a good year getting back into Division I play,” said McKay. “I expect him to provide some leadership and play a major role for us this year.”
Four sophomores also return, including Walters, David Chiotti, Jeff Hart and Mikal Monette. Walters’ averages of 9.5 points and 5.6 rebounds are tops among the returning players. The explosive guard is recovering from a torn ACL he suffered in a mid-May pickup game, but he should be fully recovered by the beginning of practice in October. “Mark has a chance to be one of the best players in the league and I think he showed that type of ability as a freshman,” McKay said. “As he develops strength and recovers from his injury we really expect special things from him.”
Among the returning lettermen, Chiotti showed the most improvement over the course of the season. He started the last 15 games and led the team in field-goal goal accuracy at 54.9 percent. The only true inside player the Lobos had on the court last year, the 6’9″ neophyte scored 92 points in his last 14 games compared to just 18 in the first half of the season. “David is really important to our success,” claimed McKay. “The stronger he gets and the more presence he can bring to our interior the better basketball team we are going to be.”
Hart and Monette came to UNM as walk-ons and were supposed to help out the team primarily in practice. Instead they became key reserves who saw plenty of action throughout the season. Hart played in all 28 games and made five starts, while Monette appeared in 20 games with two starts. “Jeff did a great job for our team last year. He has a great ability to shoot the ball and came in and gave us a lift off the bench. Mikal is a tough, hard-nosed, blue-collar guy. He embodies what we are trying to do here at New Mexico.”
The experience of these six players should mix well with the 10 new bodies that UNM welcomes this season. Lobo fans should already be familiar with three players, transfers Troy DeVries, Billy Feeney and Danny Granger. All three came to Albuquerque last season, but had to sit out after transferring. Feeney, a 6′ 10″ sophomore, and DeVries, a 6′ 2″ junior, transferred from Portland State while Granger, a 6′ 9″ junior, came to UNM from Bradley. Feeney will be eligible to play at the start of the season, while Granger and DeVries were both mid-season transfers and will begin their Lobo careers at the conclusion of the fall semester.
“Billy Feeney could surprise the league,” said McKay. “He is multi-talented and I think his redshirt year is going to make him a better player. Troy is an outstanding shooter who brings some maturity and toughness to our team. Danny is a talented and versatile 6′ 8″ player who not only is one of our best all-around athletes, but also one of our most unselfish.”
The highly-anticipated debut of Granger in a Lobo uniform should be worth the wait. A member of the Missouri Valley Conference all-Freshman team, Granger was averaging 19.2 points and 7.9 rebounds at Bradley before his matriculation at UNM.
The Lobos also bring in two additional transfers in Alfred Neale and Collins Ferris. Neale, a 6’5″ junior forward, comes to UNM from Northeastern Oklahoma A&M. A 7’3″ high jumper in high school, Neale averaged 15 points and 6.5 rebounds last season at NEO. Ferris is a 6′ 1″ junior walk-on who played the last two seasons at Northeastern (Colo.) Junior College. “We’re really excited about Alfred,” said McKay. “He a mature young man who is very athletic and can shoot the basketball. We were very fortunate that he was available and we were able to get him. Collins is one of those guys who is fun to root for because he plays so hard and is so unselfish.”
McKay and his staff also were able to land the services of five freshmen. Ryan Wall, Lenny Miles, Justin Benson, Sean Phaler and Kellen Walter all have the potential to make a dramatic impact on the program in the coming years.
Wall and Miles are two very talented guards who could see some time on the court this season. Like Walters, Miles is an athletic 6′ 2″ guard with a 42-inch vertical leap. Wall is a floor general who always thinks pass first. “Both Lenny and Ryan are potentially very important pieces to our puzzle,” stated McKay. “Lenny is a great athlete who has a very unique temperament for being so young. He doesn’t get rattled and is a very smooth player. Ryan is much the same in terms of his demeanor. He has as good of vision that I’ve seen in a high school guard. Both of those guys should help us right away.”
Benson is a 6′ 7″ forward who was rated among the top-100 high school players in the country. He averaged 31 points and 11 rebounds as a junior and should provide a boost to the Lobos’ inside game. “Justin is a wonderful kid with an incredible personality. I am excited about his potential, and he has a confidence that I think is infectious.”
Phaler, a 6′ 9″ forward, is another top-100 player who initially signed with UCLA. He was released from his national letter and has agreed to walk on at UNM. Although weighing just 195 pounds, Phaler averaged nearly 20 points and nine rebounds a game last season at Villa Park (Calif.) High School. He made 107 3-pointers and shot better than 90 percent from the line. Phaler’s biggest obstacle is getting healthy following a serious car accident on June 26 when he suffered two chipped vertebrae. He is expected to wear a back brace for several months, but could be ready for full workouts by mid-September. “Sean may be the skinniest guy in college basketball but also could be one of the most skilled. I’ve known Sean’s game for a few years and I’m so excited about his future in our program.”
Walter is also a 6′ 9″ forward who is expected to redshirt this season. “We really felt like we got a steal with Kellen,” said McKay of the walk-on. “He is going to make a impact on our program in the future.”
“We’re excited about our group. We feel like we not only were able to attract skilled and talented basketball players, but we attracted a very character-oriented group of people. I’m interested in team basketball players and they’re the ones I think have the most chance for success. When they get used to playing with each other and become part of a system, you will see a very hard-working and unselfish team.”
The 2003-04 Lobo men’s basketball team is bigger, deeper and could be one of the most promising teams in recent history. Nine of the 16 players have had at least a semester of practice under McKay and have become familiar with his style of play. The maturity and skill of the rest of the new players should help UNM quickly reach its goal of playing championship-caliber basketball in the Mountain West Conference.
PRESEASON NOTES
SEASON NO. 101: The University of New Mexico men’s basketball program begins its second century of competition when the 2003-04 season gets underway in November. The Lobos first laced up the hightops on Feb. 2, 1900, when they lost 8-6 to the Albuquerque Guards. While this season is actually the 105th anniversary of that inaugural year, UNM did not field a team for various reasons in 1900-01, 1903-04, 1917-18 and 1920-21.
The Lobos have been on the hardwoods continuously since the 1921-22 season and have compiled an all-time record of 1,192-946 (.557). New Mexico was 418-495 (.458) from 1900-62, but has gone 774-451 (.632) over the past 41 seasons, an average of nearly 19 wins per year. The Lobos have made 26 trips to the postseason during that span, including 10 appearances in the NCAA Tournament and 16 showings in the NIT.
HEAD COACH Ritchie McKay: Ritchie McKay begins his second season in charge of Lobo hoops and his eighth year as a collegiate head coach. He was named UNM’s school’s 18th head coach on March 28, 2002.
McKay had previous stops at Portland State (1996-98), Colorado State (1998-2000) and Oregon State (2000-02). He has a career record of 93-107, 10-18 at New Mexico. While at Mountain West Conference member Colorado State, McKay led the Rams to the NIT in 1999. McKay is the son of the late Joe McKay, who was a three-year letterman at guard for the Lobos from 1961-63.
PERSONNEL PICTURE: The Lobos return six lettermen, including four starter, from last year’s team that finished 10-18, the school’s first losing season in 20 years. The big loss is 6-4 shooting guard Ruben Douglas, who led the nation in scoring last year by averaging 28 points a game. Returning starters include senior guards Ryan Ashcraft and Javin Tindall, sophomore post David Chiotti and sophomore guard Mark Walters. Sophomores Jeff Hart and Mikal Monette will also be back.
It will still be a young team as the only player with more than one year of experience at UNM is Ashcraft.
Lettermen not returning are 6-6 forward Jamaal Williams and 6-11 post Chad Bell, both who elected to transfer at the end of last season. Williams is now at the University of Washington, Bell at the University of Nevada at Reno.
McKay and his staff will welcome 10 new faces to the team in 2003-04, three transfers from other NCAA Div. I institutions (Troy DeVries, Billy Feeney and Danny Granger), two junior college transfers (Alfred Neale and Collins Ferris) and five freshmen (Justin Benson, Lenny Miles, Sean Phaler, Ryan Wall and Kellen Walter).
TRYING TO REVERSE A TREND: After going 10-18 last season, UNM looks to avoid consecutive losing seasons for what would be only the second time in more than 40 years. New Mexico was 6-20 in 1979-80 and 11-15 in 1980-81. The Lobos have only had four losing campaigns since Bob King arrived in Albuquerque before the 1962-63 season.
UNM has had three straight sub-.500 seasons in Mountain West Conference play, finishing 6-8 in both 2000-01 and 2001-02 and 4-10 last season. New Mexico had previously not had a losing record in league games since 1983. The Lobos have not had four straight losing seasons in conference play since 1980-83.
THE PIT: The 2003-04 season marks the 38th year of basketball in The Pit/Bob King Court, which was completed in December of 1966. UNM has an all-time mark of 522-128 (80%) in the building that resides 37 feet below street level. The Lobos have had a winning record in The Pit in 36 of their 37 years as tenants and tore off a school-record 41-game home winning streak from 1996-98. Since the beginning of the 1995-96 season, the Lobos are 123-26 (83%) at home.
POSTSEASON PERENNIALS: UNM has advanced to postseason play seven of the past eight years and 18 times in the last 20 seasons, dating to 1983-84. The Lobos participated in the NIT from 2000-02, advancing to the second round in 2000 and the quarterfinals in 2001. The Lobos have also made seven NCAA Tournament appearances since 1991, including a school-record four straight from 1996-99, moving to the second round each time.
Before a first-round exit in the NIT in 2002, UNM had been one of just eight schools in the nation to win at least one postseason game (NCAA or NIT) from 1996-2001: Connecticut, Cincinnati, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State, Purdue, Stanford and New Mexico.
NCAA TOURNAMENT RETURNS: UNM will again play host to NCAA Tournament games when the 2004 women’s championship comes to The Pit. The Lobos will host first- and second-round games March 20 and 22 or March 21 and 23. New Mexico is in a stretch where it will host NCAA competition for five consecutive years. The NCAA Men’s First and Second Rounds were here in 2002 followed by the Women’s First and Second Rounds and the Midwest Regional a season ago. UNM also hosts the Men’s West Regional in 2005 and the Women’s West Regional in 2006.
SENQUE CAREY UPDATE: Lobo guard Senque Carey has regained full use of his limbs following surgery on Jan. 27, 2003, to remove a bulging disc and fuse vertebrae in his neck. The procedure took place at the Stanford Medical Center. Carey was in the hospital for 15 days after the surgery.
Carey suffered a spinal cord injury Nov. 25, 2002, in a game against Northwestern (La.) State. He was injured with 7:41 remaining in the first half while attempting to draw a charge. After the seemingly innocent collision with NSU’s Byron Allen, Carey lay motionless for nearly 15 minutes before being immobilized, placed on a stretcher and taken to University Hospital. He had no feeling from the neck down when he was taken from the arena. He was able to move his arms the next morning.
After 13 days of paralysis in his legs from Nov. 25-Dec. 7, Carey attended a Lobo practice on Sunday, Dec. 8, and walked with assistance from his girlfriend (now fiancee), Nadia Steed, and a student manager much to the delight of his coaches and teammates. He has really become an unofficial student coach, giving guidance and encouraging his teammates at practice and at games.
Carey has not been cleared to play by UNM doctors, however, he has been working out on his own. Carey has become an avid golfer in his spare time while finishing his coursework at UNM.
Download a copy of the 2003 Men’s Basketball Summer Prospectus below.
