Dent, Toppin, House and Amzil Earn All-Mountain West Honors
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – New Mexico had four players earn All-Mountain West honors as the conference announced its 2024 men’s basketball awards on Tuesday. Sophomore guard Donovan Dent and freshman forward JT Toppin were both named to the second team and graduate guard Jaelen House was named to the third team. Toppin was named the conference’s Co-Freshman of the Year, while senior forward Mustapha Amzil was named the Co-Sixth Man of Year. House was also named to the All-Defensive Team.
The three selections to the three all-Mountain West teams ties a school record for the Lobos. New Mexico also had three players selected in 2004-05, 2009-10, 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2022-23. House, a second-team selection last year and a third-team selection in 2021-22, became the third Lobo to be named to the All-Mountain West teams three times, joining Ruben Douglas (2001-03) and Kendall Williams (2012-14).
Toppin is second Lobo to be named Mountain West Freshman of the Year, joining Williams in 2010-11. He is the seventh freshman, and first Lobo freshman, to be named first or second team All-Mountain West. In conference play, Toppin led the Mountain West in rebounds (9.6), offensive rebounds (3.78), field goal percentage (.599) and blocks (2.17). His seven double-doubles in Mountain West play are the tied for the second most in conference history by a freshman, trailing only Kahwi Leonard’s 10 in 2009-10 at San Diego State. He earned Mountain West Freshman of the Week honors nine times, tying the conference record set by Boise State’s Tyson Degenhart in 2021-22.
Dent becomes the fifth Lobo (joining Douglas, Williams, Alex Kirk and Elijah Brown) to be a first or second team All-Mountain West selection as a sophomore. He ranked among the conference leaders in scoring (14th-13.9), field goal percentage (sixth-.516), assists (fifth-5.11), free throw percentage (14th-.727), blocks (14th-0.78) and assist/turnover ratio (seventh-2.49) in conference games. Dent is the only Mountain West player this season with a 30-point game (31 vs. Boise State) and 14-assist game (14 vs. Utah State) in conference play this season.
House earned All-Mountain West honors for the third time and was selected to the All-Defensive Team for the second straight year. The only Mountain West player on the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List, he becomes the first player to lead the conference in steals for three straight seasons after grabbing 39, seven more than anyone else in the conference. Offensively, House ranked among conference leaders in scoring (eighth-14.9), assists (12th-3.28), free throw percentage (T-1st-.879), three-pointers (12th-2.0) and assist/turnover ratio (13th-1.59) in league play.
Amzil is the first Lobo to earn Mountain West Sixth Man of the Year accolades since the conference debuted the award in 2008-09. He led the conference in points off the bench, scoring all 162 of his Mountain West points as a reserve. His 11 double-figure games off the bench led the conference and was five more than anyone else in the league. He averaged 9.0 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in the conference, while shooting 47 percent from the floor, 39 percent from 3-point range and 84 percent from the free throw line.
All four players were also honored on Monday when the media’s All-Mountain West awards were announced. Dent, Toppin and House were named to the media’s second team, while Jamal Mashburn, Jr. was named to the third team. Toppin was the Freshman of the Year, House was the Defensive Player of the Year and Amzil was the Co-Sixth Man of the Year in the media’s Mountain West awards.
The Lobos (22-9, 10-8) will begin play at the Mountain West Tournament on Wednesday with a first-round matchup with Air Force (9-21, 2-16). Game time at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas is 5 p.m. MT (4 p.m. PT) and the game will be broadcast on the Mountain West Network.