Share of WAC Championship in sight as NM State travels to Chicago State

Game Twenty-Eight
NM State (23-4, 13-2 WAC) at Chicago State (6-22, 2-13 WAC)
Saturday, Feb. 26 | 1:00 p.m. MT | Jones Convocation Center | Chicago, Ill.
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THE OPENING TIP
• All it needs is one. With one more victory, the NM State men's basketball team will clinch at least a share of the 2021-22 WAC regular season title and the Aggies can get that win when they take on Chicago State Saturday afternoon at the Jones Convocation Center.
• The 23rd all-time meeting between the two programs will be carried around the nation on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Sam Brief and Chris Rouse are set to call all the action on that platform.
• Over the airwaves, legendary radio play-by-play man Jack Nixon will set up shop courtside to call the action.
• The play-by-play and analysis of the nation's 14th-longest tenured NCAA Division I men's basketball voice can be heard on 99.5 Zia Country FM in Las Cruces, N.M., and nationwide on The Varsity Network app.
• Affiliate stations of the Aggie Sports Network can be tuned in to in Artesia, N.M. (990 AM), Carlsbad, N.M. (1240 AM), Gallup, N.M. (94.9 FM), Alamogordo, N.M. (103.7 FM) and El Paso, Texas (1380 AM). All of those stations will also carry Nixon's commentary of Saturday afternoon's tilt.

FAST BREAK POINTS
• NM State sits alone in the top spot of the WAC standings and is within striking distance of claiming the 2021-22 WAC regular season crown. The Aggies can clinch at least a share of the crown with a win on Saturday after both Seattle U and Sam Houston lost Thursday night.
• For the second time under head coach Chris Jans and for the sixth time in the history of the program, NM State has won 23 of its first 27 games to start the season. NM State previously started 23-4 through its first 27 games in 2018-19, 2016-17 and 1990-91.
• Only three other teams in NM State history have put forth a better record than 23-4 through their first 27 games. The Aggies went 25-2 to start the year in 1969-70. The 1989-90 and 1968-69 versions of the Aggies went 24-3 through their first 27 games
• NM State's 23 wins are the 10-most among all NCAA Division I men's basketball teams this season as well as the most by any WAC team.
• NM State has won its last 32 home games against WAC opponents dating back 2017. The Aggies' last loss to a WAC team in the Pan American Center came on Feb. 23, 2017, when they dropped an 84-72 decision to Utah Valley.
• Since the start of the 2009-10 campaign, NM State owns an 87-4 (.956) record in WAC home games. Those four losses came by a combined 34 points (an average of 8.4 per game).
• NM State head coach Chris Jans is 62-11 (.849) in regular-season WAC games as the Aggies' head coach. Included in that record is a perfect 30-0 (1.000) showing against WAC squads inside NM State's home venue of the Pan American Center.
• NM State's .849 winning percentage in WAC regular season games under Jans is the nation's second-best in-conference winning percentage figure since 2017-18. Only Gonzaga's (75-2, .974) is higher.
• With a win at SFA on Saturday, Jan. 22, NM State senior forward Johnny McCants overtook Ian Baker for the highest number of wins in the history the program (111). Baker, who suited up for NM State from 2014-17, amassed 110 wins through the course of his storied Aggie career, but McCants is slowly increasing the number of wins on his resume with 118 to his credit.
• The second half has been a strength of the Aggies all season long. NM State has outscored its foes 1125-937 (+188) in the second half - good for an average of 7.0 points per game. NM State has outscored its opponent by 15 or more in the final frame six times this season, too. Only Arizona, Colorado State, Gonzaga, Kentucky and St. Mary's have exceeded those second-half scoring stats put up by the Aggies.
• High-scoring guard Teddy Allen currently leads the WAC and ranks 19th nationally in scoring at a clip of 20.0 points per game. Allen has put in 30 or more points four times this season which are the most 30+ point games by an Aggie in Chris Jans' tenure as head coach. Those four 30+ point games are the most by an Aggie in a single season since Troy Gillenwater went for 30 or more four times in the Aggies' 2010-11 campaign.
• Currently the Aggies have four players on their roster - Teddy Allen, Johnny McCants, Jabari Rice and Donnie Tillman - who have amassed 1,000 or more points in their respective NCAA Division I careers. Just three other programs - UAB (six), Notre Dame (five) and Florida (five) have more players on their 2021-22 rosters with 1,000 or more career points. NM State is one of 10 programs around the nation who have four 1,000-point scores on its roster.
• In addition to in the program's 1,000-point club, McCants has also jumped into the program's top-ten career rebounders. As of this writing, McCants has 721 to his credit which is the ninth-most by any Aggie player in the history of the program.
• Of the Aggies' four 1,000-point scorers, two of them - Johnny McCants and Jabari Rice - have piled up all of their points at NM State. McCants' 1,009 career points are the 35th-most on the Aggies' all-time scoring charts while Rice's 1,035 points put him 33rd on that list.
• Chris Jans is 24-4 (.857) in games directly after a loss as the Aggies' head coach.

MISCELLANEOUS & MILESTONES
• A win on Saturday would give NM State a total of 10 road wins this season. NM State last hit the double-digit mark in road wins in 2018-19.
• NM State's collective field goal percentage of .462 ranks 72nd in the nation and is the second-best in the WAC.
• The Aggies' rebounding margin of +7.6 is the 11th-best in the nation as well as the second-best in the WAC.
• NM State ranks 15th nationally in terms of field goal percentage defense. The Aggies are allowing their opponents to shoot just 38.8-percent from the floor this season which is the second-best among all WAC teams.
• In one of his most recent games, redshirt junior guard Jabari Rice put in 21 points as NM State won at WAC foe SFA (Jan. 22). When Rice scores 20 or more points in a game, NM State is 10-1 (.909).
• High-scoring guard Teddy Allen leads NM State and the WAC in scoring at a rate of 20.0 points per game and also ranks 61st nationally in free throw percentage (.851). The Phoenix, Ariz., product also sits among the top 55 players nationally in field goal attempts (51st, 391).
• Now in his fifth season in an NM State uniform, Johnny McCants has broken into the program's top-ten leaders in blocked shots. McCants, a Las Cruces, N.M., product has 119 rejections to his credit as a collegian which are the seventh-most all-time by any Aggie. McCants is one of just four Aggies in program history who have amassed 1,000 or more points, 700 or more rebounds and 100 or more blocked shots.
• Teddy Allen has claimed WAC Player of the Week honors on four occasions through the 2021-22 season. That's the most by an Aggie since Zach Lofton picked up four such citations in the 2017-18 campaign. The only Aggie who has racked up more WAC Player of the Week honors than Allen is Pascal Siakam (five in 2016-17).
• With a strong push at the tail end of the Aggies' regular season, Allen could break into the program's top-ten single-season scoring list. He has 540 to his credit at the moment, putting him 48 points away from matching Daniel Mullings (588) for the 10th-best single-season point total in program lore.
• Each of the Aggies' best three-point shooting performances this season have come on the road. NM State has shot 50-percent or better from long range in a game three times this season - at SFA (14-of-28 on Jan. 22), at Grand Canyon (13-of-25 on Feb. 19) and at Dixie State (8-of-15 on Feb. 10).

JANS THE MAN
• A phrase emblazoned on t-shirts and buttons around the Las Cruces area, it would be difficult to argue that Chris Jans, the Aggies' fifth-year bench boss, is anything other than "The Man" upon taking a look at his coaching resume since he arrived at NM State prior to the start of the 2017-18 season.
• .772 | Owning an impressive winning percentage of .772 (139-41) through his five seasons of service as an NCAA Division I head coach, Jans ranks seventh in the nation in terms of winning percentage among active NCAA Division I head coaches. The only individuals who own a better winning percentage than Jans are Arizona's Tommy Lloyd (.926), Loyola-Chicago's Drew Valentine (.786) and Gonzaga's Mark Few (.837). Kansas' Bill Self (.767), Duke's Mike Krzyzewski (.765) and Kentucky's John Calipari (.764) rank slightly below Jans in terms of career winning percentage.   
• 104 | Averaging over 23 wins a season during his tenure as an NCAA Division I head coach, Jans' 104 total victories through his first four seasons as a DI leader rank 10th all-time on the NCAA Division I charts.
• 118 | Jans' time at the helm of NM State has been particularly memorable. Since his arrival before the beginning of the 2017-18 season, the Aggies have gone 118-29 (.803).
• 23.6 | On average, the Aggies have won 23.6 games per year under Jans' direction.
• 62 | The Aggies have been nearly unbeatable in the WAC since Jans arrived. Since 2017-18, NM State has gone 62-11 (.849) in regular season WAC contests, owning the second-highest in-conference winning percentage in the nation during that time frame.
• 3 | The 2019-20 campaign marked the third consecutive season in which Jans was named the WAC's Don Haskins Coach of the Year. He's one of just three coaches in the league who won the award for three consecutive seasons, joining Mark Fox (Nevada, 2005-07) and Stew Morrill (Utah State, 2009-11).
• 2 | For a span of two seasons (2018-19 and 2019-20), the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) has lauded Jans as its District Six Coach of the Year.

BLOCK & ROLL
• NM State has totaled with six or more blocks in a game eight times this season. Much of that has to do with McCants, the WAC's best shot-blocker, who has 40 to his credit this year. Eight of the top 11 blocked shot performances in the Chris Jans coaching era have come this season while NM State's blocks per game average of 4.1 is well ahead of any other season under Jans. The Aggies averaged 2.4 blocks per game in 2020-21, 1.8 in 2019-20, 2.6 in 2018-19 and 3.0 in 2017-18. According to KenPom, 6.3-percent of possessions for NM State foes this season result in a blocked shot by NM State. That's the eighth-best rate among all NCAA Division I men's basketball teams.

LAST TIME OUT vs. CHICAGO STATE | NM State 78, vs. Chicago State 61 | Jan. 1, 2022
• Holding on to a four-point lead at the half, NM State started the final frame on an 11-0 run and didn't look back en route to a 78-61 victory over Chicago State on the first day of 2022 inside the Pan American Center.
• Jabari Rice led the way for NM State, finishing one rebound shy of a double-double with a 15-point, nine-rebound outing. Teddy Allen and Marchelus Avery added 11 points apiece for NM State who won its 16th-straight game over the Cougars.
• NM State used the starting lineup combination of Allen, McCants, Mario McKinney Jr., Will McNair Jr. and Rice for the third time this season. The Aggies are 3-0 with that starting lineup.
• Allen's 11 points were his fewest in a game at that point of the season as were his seven field goal attempts.
• By going 2-for-2 from the field, junior guard Nate Pryor extended his streak of consecutive field goals made to seven dating back to Dec. 11.
• The game was NM State's first WAC game of the regular season as well as the first WAC tilt inside the Pan American Center in 667 days.
• Johnny McCants, Nate Pryor, Donnie Tillman and Rice all made their respective returns to the NM State lineup during the game, too. McCants, Pryor and Rice had sat out each of the Aggies' previous two games to rest and rehabilitate while Tillman appeared on the court for the first time since Friday, Dec. 3 at UTEP.
• NM State moved to 14-3 all-time in WAC openers with Saturday afternoon's win. That record includes a 3-2 mark in WAC openers under head coach Chris Jans.
• Clayton Henry continued to work his way back into the Aggies' rotation during the win as well. The senior guard finished with a season-high six points as well as a pair of rebounds in 15 minutes of action.

LAST TIME OUT | NM State 68, at Seattle U 55 | Monday, Feb. 21, 2022
• Size won out Monday night at the Redhawk Center as NM State used a 14-point, 14-rebound double-double courtesy of Will McNair Jr., to take sole possession of the top spot in the WAC standings with a 68-55 triumph at Seattle U.
• The double-double was McNair Jr.'s second of the 2021-22 campaign and his first of the 2022 calendar year. It culminated with "Big Philly" connected on a backbreaking fadeaway jumper on the baseline with 1:39 left which made it a three-possession game.
• Although Teddy Allen saw his stream of 20+ point games come to an end, he still showed off the all-around skill set which makes him a favorite for WAC Player of the Year. Allen finished with 19 points, four rebounds, a game-high five assists and a team-high three steals in NM State's third-straight win over the Redhawks.
• Allen's 19-point outing was his first time finishing with fewer than 20 points since netting just two in a setback at Sam Houston back on Jan. 20. Prior to Monday night, the Phoenix, Ariz., product had scored 20 or more in eight consecutive outings. His double-double streak also ended as he had finished with a double-double in each of the Aggies' three games prior to Monday night.
• McNair Jr.'s rebounding prowess helped NM State own a 50-36 (+14) edge on the glass. The Aggies' 50 rebounds were the second-most in a single game this season.
• Monday night's showdown was the first regular-season WAC game between two teams with 20 or more wins since March 5, 2020. That night, NM State hammered California Baptist, 83-50, inside the Pan American Center.
• Johnny McCants snared another three rebounds in Monday night's win, hiking his career total to 721. On NM State's all-time charts, that's the ninth-most all-time and now McCants needs 17 more to move up to eighth on the program's all-time list.

SCOUTING CHICAGO STATE | ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATISTICS
• For its final home game of the 2021-22 campaign, Chicago State hopes to continue one of its best seasons in recent memory. The Cougars' mark of 6-22 this season features a 2-13 showing in WAC tilts. Chicago State's six total victories are the most in a single season by the program since 2016-17 while its two league victories have matched the total number of them accumulated by the Cougars over the six seasons prior to this one.
• First-year head coach Gerald Gillion has the services of Brandon Betson this year as both have turned heads in WAC action. Betson ranks as the Cougars' top scorer (13.3 points per game) and also tops the team's charts in assists (2.8 per game).
• Four of the Cougars' six triumphs this season have occurred within the walls of the Jones Convocation Center. Included in that total is a 58-56 win over California Baptist back on Saturday, Jan. 8. It was the program's first WAC home victory - and first WAC victory - since Saturday, March 3, 2018.
• Chicago State stands as one of the nation's best teams in terms of offensive rebounding. The Cougars' average of 11.79 offensive boards per outing ranks fourth among all WAC teams and 56th in the nation.
• Coreyoun Rushin and Jahsean Corbett have each accounted for a trio of double-doubles this season. It's the former who tops the Cougars' charts in rebounding (7.1 per game), steals (1.2 per game) and blocked shots (0.7 per game).
• The only win Chicago State has over NM State came inside the Jones Convocation Center back on January 16, 2014. That day, the Cougars scored an 86-81 win over the Aggies.

THIS DATE IN NM STATE HISTORY
• Last year in Stephenville, Texas, NM State picked up its first win on Feb. 26 since 2000 by claiming a 78-51 triumph at Tarleton.
• That victory was head coach Chris Jans' first on the date as an NCAA Division I head coach.
• NM State owns a 1-2 all-time mark in WAC games played on Feb. 26.
• The first game NM State played on this date came in 1921. The Aggies scored a forfeit win over New Mexico Mines.
• Jemerrio Jones earned the final WAC Player of the Week honor in his NM State career on this date in 2018.

COMING UP NEXT
• The Pan American Center is the place to be next week as NM State puts the wraps on the regular season. Hoping to celebrate an outright WAC regular season title with thousands of its fans in attendance, the Aggies brace for a Wednesday night matchup against Texas foe SFA. Tip-off has been set for 7:00 p.m. in a game that, if NM State wins, will lock up the outright league crown for the hosts.