Report: Louisville considering Richard Pitino as next basketball coach

The Louisville Cardinals are considering Rick Pitino’s son Richard as their next head coach after a successful season at New Mexico.

The Louisville Cardinals have an opportunity to bring a very familiar face back to campus in Richard Pitino, the current New Mexico head coach and son of former Cardinals and current St. John’s coach Rick Pitino.

Reports indicate Pitino is the top candidate to become the head coach at Louisville, and that athletic director Josh Heird has been in contact with Richard “several times over the past few days.”

Pitino led the Lobos to a 26-10 record and their first Mountain West tournament championship and NCAA Tournament appearance since 2014 this past season, his third at New Mexico.

Pitino served as an assistant coach at Louisville from 2007-2009 under his father Rick, before serving as an assistant at Florida under Billy Donovan.

He was back at Louisville in 2011-12 during the team’s Final Four run, and then spent one year as the head coach at Florida International before taking over at Minnesota in 2013 and leading the Golden Gophers to the NIT championship in his first year and two NCAA Tournament appearances before departing in 2021.

Hiring the son of the coach who led you to a national title may sound good on paper, but the elder Pitino’s transgressions at Louisville are well documented and bringing the family back into the mix is certainly a unique situation.

However, Louisville struck out on top targets Scott Drew and Dusty May, and Pitino is a reasonable candidate based on his head coaching experience, recent success, and familiarity with the program.

Andy Katz says Oregon is a dark horse to make the Final Four

CBS Sports college basketball analyst Andy Katz says Oregon is one of four possible dark horses in the NCAA tournament.

When it comes to the NCAA tournament, 11 and 12 seeds are popular upset picks and a lot of the times, those seeds tend to come through for some reason.

Oregon finds itself as an 11-seed in this year’s tourney as they are matched up with 6-seed South Carolina today at 1 pm PST in Pittsburgh.

According to CBS Sports college basketball analyst Andy Katz, the Ducks are one of four dark horses to keep an eye on as March Madness proceeds over the next three weeks.

Other than Oregon, Katz said teams such as New Mexico, San Diego State and Wisconsin are all possible schools that could play the role of Cinderella.

New Mexico is an 11-seed, like Oregon, in the West Region and the Lobos open with Clemson. San Diego State is a 5-seed in the East Region that opens with UAB. The Badgers, soon to be a Big Ten foe for Oregon, is a 5-seed in the South Region and they begin competition with James Madison.

It’s funny how things can change on a dime in college basketball. Just two weeks ago, the Ducks were getting thumped by Arizona and now they are a possible favorite to advance to the Sweet 16 thanks to their Pac-12 tournament run in Las Vegas.

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New Mexico made the top hire per Paul Myerberg of USA TODAY Sports

One analyst believes the best hire happened in the Mountain West.

The 2023-24 coaching carousel seems to be never-ending with the Boston College Eagles joining the fray on Wednesday. Jeff Hafely opted to leave his post as a sitting head coach to take a coordinator role with the Green Bay Packers.

The move comes after Sherrone Moore was named the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines. The promotion of Moore came just days after Jim Harbaugh notified the university that he would be leaving for the NFL despite winning the CFP national championship a few weeks ago.

With so much movement going on at the FBS level, Paul Myerberg of USA TODAY Sports ranked 25 hires this past cycle. It begins with a familiar face rejoining the coaching ranks.

No. 1: Bronco Mendenhall, New Mexico Lobos

Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Mendenhall stepped down from his post as the Virginia Cavaliers head coach prior to the 2022 season. He was replaced by former Clemson Tigers offensive coordinator Tony Elliott. Mendenhall, the long-time BYU head coach is returning to his former stomping grounds in the Mountain West. Mendenhall replaces Danny Gonzales, who was fired after three failed seasons with the Lobos.

What Myerberg says…

He’s a winner, pure and simple. Mendenhall has been very successful at two stops, Brigham Young and Virginia, reaching bowl eligibility in every non-COVID-19 year of his coaching career outside of his debut season with the Cavaliers. Mendenhall is also a former New Mexico assistant under Rocky Long and brings deep familiarity with the program and the broader region. As one of the surest bets in coaching and a terrific ambassador for the program and athletics department, he’s an absolute coup for the Lobos.

Mendenhall edged out new Houston Cougars head coach Willie Fritz, who checks in at No. 2. New Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer was the No. 3 head coach according to Myerberg. Former Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo and former Troy head coach Jon Sumrall round out the top five.

Multiple school records broken at NIT, U.S. Am runner-up gets first college win among things you missed from start of college golf’s spring season

Here’s what you missed from the last week of college golf. 

The spring season is officially here.

College golf kicked back into swing this week with the first few tournaments of the spring slate. February is the month when the schedule really picks up, however, though some teams didn’t take long to stand out and make a statement after the winter break.

There were numerous school records broken at the National Invitational Tournament, including one by the host team. The 2023 U.S. Amateur runner-up also got a win and helped his team to victory, and the defending national champs had a stellar showing as well.

Here’s what you missed from the last week of college golf.

MORE: College golf practice facilities

New Mexico vs. #13 Colorado State: Keys to a Rams Win, How to Watch, Odds, Prediction

The CSU Rams welcome the New Mexico Lobos to Moby Arena to open conference play. Here’s how the Rams can get MW play started with a win.

New Mexico vs. #13 Colorado State: Keys to a Rams Win, How to Watch, Odds, Prediction


The Rams host their in-state foe


Contact/Follow @J0shFr3d & @MWCwire

Can the Rams open conference play strong?

WHO: New Mexico Lobos (12-1) vs. #13 Colorado State Rams (12-1)

WHEN: Tuesday, January 2nd — 8:30 p.m. MST / 7:30 p.m. PST

WHERE: Moby Arena; Fort Collins, CO (8,083)

TV: Fox Sports 1 (Stream FS1 on Fubo and click the link here for a free trial)

SERIES RECORD: This will be the 132nd all time matchup between the two schools. New Mexico leads the all-time series 79-52

LAST MEETING: Colorado State won 92-84 in Fort Collins last season.

ODDS: Colorado State -2.5

A big matchup to open Mountain West play on Tuesday for both Colorado State and New Mexico. The Rams are looking to keep the pressure on everyone else and the Lobos are looking for the road upset in Fort Collins.

Both teams are 12-1 coming into this matchup, however they’ve both gotten there in very different ways. New Mexico is 35th in both KenPom and NET, their SOS is ranked 198th by KenPom and their best win by NET rankings is a 13 point road win over UC Irvine. Colorado State is 30th in KenPom and 15th in NET, their SOS is ranked 52nd by KenPom and their best win by NET rankings is a 21 point neutral site win over, then 8th ranked, Creighton.

Players to Watch

F Jaelen House – New Mexico

Only the third leading scorer for the Lobos, House makes his impact all over the court. House is a hound on defense and will be all over his assignment in Fort Collins. He plays a pressure game on both ends of the floor and is a key reason why the Lobos force as many turnovers as they do.

G Isaiah Stevens – Colorado State

The Rams leader on and off the court. And now the all time leading scorer for Colorado State. As Stevens goes, the Rams go. Yes, the Rams have more depth this year. But Stevens still puts everything into motion. He finds those little spaces and leaves everything on the court.

Keys to the Game

Offensively

Take care of the basketball. The Rams have the 2nd ranked assist to turnover ratio in the country at 2.1. New Mexico is 15th in the nation in steals with 10 per game and and 16th in the nation with 16.31 turnovers forced per game. The Rams need to take care of the basketball in this one.

Keep moving the ball around. This along with taking care of the basketball will be the main keys for the Rams offense. CSU throws too many skip passes and it can cost them against New Mexico. The Rams need to keep moving the ball, but they can’t be careless with their passes.

Defensively

New Mexico is ranked 26th in the nation in Free Throw attempts per game at 24.5. However, they don’t convert those FTs as much as they should; ranking just 282nd in the nation at 67.08% from the line. The Rams need to play controlled defense and keep their hands up.

The Lobos like to drive the ball as evidenced by their large amount of FTs per game. They don’t shoot many three point shots and they only make them just over a third of the time. The Rams will need to use their length to stay in front of the Lobos, clog the passing lanes, and force New Mexico to shoot from the outside.

Predictions

This is going to be a close one. CSU shoots at a 53.2% clip and the Lobos only allow teams to make shots at a 39.8% clip. The Rams won’t have a full complient of players and that will be the biggest challenge for them. This will be a back and forth battle, but the home court advantage that a loud Moby Arena provides will be the difference maker in the end for the Rams.

Final Score: Colorado State 84, New Mexico 80

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2023-2024 College Football Coaching Carousel

Texas A&M hires Duke’s Mike Elko as the coaching carousel continues to spin.

The end of the college football season is here and the coaching carousel is once again getting fired up. This season saw two early head coaching changes within the Big Ten to get an early jump on things, but more coaching changes are popping up as we close in on the end of another regular season around the nation.

We’ll keep track of all of the head coaching changes in our updated coaching carousel tracker to see what head coaches are out and who is replacing them. This will be updated daily as needed with the latest head coaching changes as jobs open up and are filled. As is so often the case in college football, one coaching vacancy being filled will lead to another opening popping up as a result.

As of Thursday, Dec. 8 there are 2 head coaching vacancies in college football, including 1 power conference job to fill. A total of 19 head coaching changes have been made this year.

Below is the updated chart for this year’s edition of the head coaching carousel in college football. After that is a bit more detail on each job opening, listed in alphabetical order.

New Mexico Basketball: Lobos Continue to Build 2024 Recruiting Class with Local Addition

New Mexico Head Coach Richard Pitino secures the commitment of local product Dylan Chavez for 2024 class.

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New Mexico Basketball: Lobos Continue to Build 2024 Recruiting Class with Local Addition


New Mexico Lobos receive commitment from local talent Dylan Chavez


Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

Richard Pitino secures the commitment of local product Dylan Chavez for 2024 class.

The New Mexico Lobos are gearing up for year three of the Richard Pitino era in Albuquerque. After a quicker turnaround than even the lead man would have expected from the program he inherited back in 2021, one of the strongest fanbases in the country has returned to the Pit in droves.

Though sometimes looking too far ahead can be a bit of a risk, it’s never too early to receive the commitment of players you have been recruiting for what is often years at a time. Thursday afternoon at ABC Prep in Albuquerque, Lobo fans received such a recruiting win.

La Cueva High School senior Dylan Chavez chose to stay home & play for his hometown New Mexico Lobos. He’ll join the team for the 2024-2025 season as a preferred walk-on.

The Lobos have a rich history of local players dawning the signature cherry & silver. And walk-ons have made their impact on the program over the years. Guys like Jordan Arroyo, Clay Patterson & Tim Jacobs all stepped into bigger than expected roles over the past decade. Currently on the roster are some more local hoops stars in freshman guard Shane Douma-Sanchez (Del Norte HS) & junior transfer Deraje Agbaosi (Eldorado HS).

So when asked about why he chose to stay home as a non-scholarship player over a handful of division-I offers, Chavez’s answer wouldn’t surprise you “I wanted to stay home, play in front of my family,”.

“I grew up a Lobo fan. My dad and my grandpa would take me to the games as a kid. So I think it’d be awesome to stay home and play for the city I grew up in,” told the Albuquerque Journal.

Fans might remember the 6’6 shooting guard had previously committed to New Mexico State. But decommitted this past spring after the coaching staff was fired in February in the middle of a tumultuous season in Las Cruces.

Chavez joins Pitino’s first commit for the 2024 class, combo guard Kayde Dotson of Beaumont, TX. The three-star combo guard made his announcement back on September 20th via his Instagram. Choosing the Lobos over a dozen of other D-I offers, including Grand Canyon, SMU & in-state rivals New Mexico State.

Coach Pitino and company are also still in contention for three-star Canadian Jovan Milicevic, whom they had on official visit in early September.

So, the hype surrounding New Mexico’s forthcoming season is real. Not only by fans and traditional media who cover the team, but nationwide. Fans have a chance to get their first glance of the Lobos in person on October 14th at 12:00 PM inside the Pit. They’ll have their home opener on November 6th against Texas Southern.

Larry Muniz covers college basketball as a writer for Mountain West Wire and WAC Hoops Digest. Also as a co-host of the college basketball podcast “Hoops Talk W/Jay & Larry”. He is also a USWBA Member.

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New Mexico vs. Wyoming Cowboys: Why the Cowboys will win

As the 3-1 Wyoming Cowboys host the New Mexico Lobos to open MWC play, what does the Pokes need to do to come out undefeated in the MWC?

 

New Mexico vs. Wyoming Cowboys: Why the Cowboys will win


The Wyoming Cowboys ride into conference play boasting a 3-1 record and now hosting the New Mexico Lobos for their Homecoming game.


Contact/Follow @KayceeClark and @MWCwire

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WEEK 5: New Mexico Lobos (2-2, 0-0 MW) vs. Wyoming Cowboys (3-1, 0-0 MW)

WHEN: Saturday, September 30— 2 PM MST

WHERE: War Memorial Stadium (29,181)

TV: Mountain West Network

STREAMINGGet a free trial with FuboTV

RADIO: Cowboy Sports Network

SERIES RECORD: Wyoming 40-35, New Mexico is 20-16 in Laramie

LAST MATCHUP: Oct. 8, 2022 – Wyoming won in Albuquerque last year 27-14

WEBSITES: GoWyo.com, the official Wyoming athletics website; GoLobos.com, the official New Mexico athletics website.

GAME NOTES: Wyoming | New Mexico

ODDS: Wyoming -14

OVER/UNDER: 41.5 points

An odd finale to Wyoming’s non-conference schedule, a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown leading to a 22-19 victory over Appalachian State, now puts the Cowboys at 3-1. This is now the fourth season of the past five, they have begun in this fashion.

The Lobos return to Laramie for both teams’ first action in the Mountain West for 2023.

Despite having one of the worst offenses in all of college football last season, the Lobos still gained an early 14-0 lead on the Cowboys in Albuquerque. UAB transfer Dylan Hopkins commands the new-look New Mexico offense and has added a needed explosion to the offense.

The quarterback has taken the Lobos to two victories thus far, against Tennessee Tech and Massachusetts. However, in the second half against UMass, the offense only managed zero points and 50 yards before ultimately winning in overtime.

The Lobo defense has also allowed the 27th most points per game in college football.

Wyoming also had a lackluster offensive performance last week, with only 31 passing yards. Take out Harrison Waylee’s 75-yard touchdown, and the offense only managed 133 yards.

New Mexico has had the Pokes number since head coach Craig Bohl took over the program in 2014, winning six of the 10 games. This will be the third time these teams have opened the Mountain West Conference schedule against each other; however, it has never gone the Pokes way, losing both. How does Wyoming turn this around?

A Wyoming victory comes from…

A Wyoming victory requires a better showing from the offense. Waylee’s dominance through his two games has shown for the Cowboys, but the team needs to be able to move the ball continually. Whether this comes from the speed of Waylee or a mixture of other backs, such as Sam Scott and Jamari Ferrell, the rushing attack must be on point. Earlier in the week, it was announced from the team that D.Q. James had been dismissed from the team. On social media, James said otherwise, that he had entered the transfer portal.

Coinciding with the rush, the team must be back to dominating the time of possession. Against Appalachian State, the Pokes held the ball for less than 20 minutes. The first three games saw the Pokes 13th in the country, averaging 33 minutes and 30 seconds per game. They’ve now dropped nearly three minutes from one game. With New Mexico having new offensive weapons, ensuring they can’t use them helps for a Wyoming win.

Another aid to a brown and gold win is getting earlier stops in Lobo drives. Last week, the defense bent but didn’t break, giving up the four field goals. However, many of those scoring drives were long-sustained drives of 67 yards, 87, 87 and 18. While limiting the number of points is good, preventing any points, obviously, is great.

Stopping New Mexico early in their drives will be key through pressure from the defensive line and quick wrap-ups of any check-downs Hopkins may throw. Keeping an eye on running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt, averaging 6.8 yards per carry will also be key to shutting down the Lobo offense.

The first third of the season has shown that quarterback Andrew Peasley doesn’t need to throw for 300 yards and several touchdowns a game for the Pokes to win. What does need to happen is an effective passing game. Rarely does a team like Wyoming win with 31 passing yards and only five completions.

A fully healthy Peasley completing passes will help push this game out of reach from the Lobos.

Wyoming 34 – New Mexico 23

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Watch: Tru Washington announces commitment to New Mexico

Here’s how four-star combo guard Tru Washington announced he’ll be playing for New Mexico.

There are still many hoopers from the recruiting class of 2023 who have not yet made their college commitments, including LeBron James’ son, Sierra Canyon (Calif.) combo guard Bronny James.

One of the other top remaining uncommitted players in the nation made his decision this week. Here’s how Compass Prep (Ariz.) four-star combo guard Tru Washington announced that he will be playing for New Mexico.

Asked why he picked the Lobos, Washington told On3 that New Mexico kept it real during his recruitment and he’s looking forward to the atmosphere.

“I chose New Mexico just because they always kept it real, They have been at every AAU game, whether I was playing or not… Lobos nation, I can’t wait to get out there and play in front of you guys. I know The Pit is a great atmosphere to play in.”

According to Maxpreps, in 2021-22 at Mountain Pointe (Ariz.) Washington averaged 21.5 points per game to go along with 7.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 3.3 steals. He shot 57% from the floor, 33% from three and 79% from the line.

Going by On3’s rankings, Washington (6-foot-3, 175 pounds) is ranked No. 16 among combo guards and No. 115 overall in the nation.

Richard Pitino’s recruiting class of 2023 now has two members. The other is Texas power forward Jadyn Toppin.

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‘We’ll be an improved group’: Sooners defensive backfield improved from a year ago

Head Coach Brent Venables believes his defensive backs will be better than they were a year ago.

Brent Venables and his staff committed to ensuring the results of the 2022 season would not be replicated in 2023.

He and the Sooners’ staff were hyperactive in the transfer portal, and they closed their 2023 recruiting class on a significant high note by securing the services of five-star safety Peyton Bowen.

As the Sooners look ahead to spring practice, the time for evaluation and understanding just what type of roster the Sooners will have is here. When speaking with the media last week, Venables made it clear one specific group is primed for a better year.

The defensive backfield.

“So I think we’ll be an improved group,” Venables said about the defensive backfield. “And we lost a bunch of guys. I think we know that … I’m not sure we didn’t lose a lot of production in the secondary, but we, we lost a bunch of bodies.”

Brent Venables believes between the players returning and those that joined the team as midyear enrollees, the Oklahoma Sooners have a better group of defensive backs than they did a year ago.

[autotag]Kendall Dennis[/autotag] (USF), [autotag]Bryson Washington[/autotag] (New Mexico) and [autotag]Joshua Eaton[/autotag] (Texas State) transferred out after the 2022 season. It’s notable none landed with a Power Five squad.

[autotag]CJ Coldon[/autotag] is the biggest loss the Sooners suffered in the secondary after a strong second half of the season. [autotag]Justin Broiles[/autotag] hopes to continue his playing career at the NFL level.

Dennis, Washington and Eaton didn’t play enough for their departures to matter much. Their transfers allow Oklahoma to examine what they have in the players brought in over the past two cycles.

Gentry Williams snagged an interception in his first collegiate game. He didn’t see the field much as a true freshman, but the Sooners love his size, athletic ability, and his competitiveness.

Robert Spears-Jennings is another 2022 signee that could make an impact this season. His play speed and physicality were on display last season despite limited snaps.

Kani Walker was brought in before the season from Louisville. Like Williams, Walker has the physical tools the Sooners are looking for in their outside corners.

[autotag]Reggie Pearson[/autotag], a transfer from Texas Tech, is a heavy hitter with plenty of collegiate experience. That physicality and experience will help bring an edge to the Sooners defensive backfield.

Most notably, [autotag]Peyton Bowen[/autotag] also joins the defensive back room. The most highly coveted secondary recruit for Oklahoma in quite a while, Bowen is expected to be a great one.

[autotag]Billy Bowman[/autotag], [autotag]Woodi Washington[/autotag], [autotag]Damond Harmon[/autotag], [autotag]Jaden Davis[/autotag], [autotag]Justin Harrington[/autotag] and [autotag]Key Lawrence[/autotag] return after playing meaningful snaps for the Sooners last season. They’ll get another offseason in the Sooners’ defensive system, and should have a better understanding of the expectations in the defense.

The hope is because of the improved talent, there will be better production and depth on the secondary depth chart when it drops just before the season.

It remains to be seen how this will actually play out over the course of the season. However, it’s hard to argue with Venables’ assessment. The players who played the most last year are back and should understand the scheme better, which will lead to better performances on the field.

All that’s left is for those returning players to prove their head coach right.

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Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Bryant on Twitter @thatmanbryant.