HOBBS, NM---The USW Men's basketball program will take to the road for what may one of the most unique schedules not only in the state, but in the entire country. USW will be relocating to Van, TX on the campus of Sky Ranch Christian Camps for the chance to compete in their 2021 schedule. The Mustangs will spend the entire 2021 schedule playing non-conference and RRAC opponents as the "road" team. But to add to the uniqueness of playing on the road, the Mustangs also have a huge challenge ahead of them. USW will start their season opener with a Red River Athletic Conference matchup against Texas A&M-Texarkana. In normal years, the Mustangs would play 8-10 non-conference games in October, November and December to prepare them for the RRAC schedule. But due to New Mexico COVID-19 regulations, the Mustangs were unable to compete this fall, so the important games begin from the start. Head Coach Cory Hitchcock is prepared for the schedule and hopes the modified practices and gameplanning will pay off for his team. "We talk about it as a program, there's no wiggle room or trail and error this year. We need to be ready to go and focus on the things we work on in practice. We have to understand the concepts we are putting out there. I think that if the guys can do that, they'll be fine. They're pretty amped to get back out there. It's been a while, so I think there's going to be nerves and mistakes, but I have to know as a coach that those things will happen."


2019-2020 Recap

The Mustangs had a very successful season in Hitchcock's first season as the Head Coach for the Men's program at USW. USW finished 3rd in the RRAC and saw 4 student-athletes earn All-Conference honors. The team won 16 games and had the first winning season since 2014-2015. The 11 RRAC victories is 2nd in school history behind the 2014-2015 team. 

The team set records in: Fewest Points Per Game Allowed (76.1), Highest Point Margin (4.1), Rebounds Per Game (39.6), Rebound Margin (6.6), Rebounds in a Game (66 vs. Texas College 1/16/2020), Assists in a Season (545) & Assists Per Game (18.8). 

2021 COVID Schedule

Playing every game on the road is no challenge for the Mustangs this season says Coach Hitchcock. The Mustangs typically have the longest and furthest travel of any team in the conference. So his team is only going to embrace the opportunity and run with it this season. "Our guys like being on the road, so I think for them it will be fine. I like the fact that we are going to be at Sky Ranch and be given the ability to walk around and do some other activities, rather than being stuck in a hotel room. We are fortunate and blessed to be able to play and I know the guys are excited. Whatever happens this year, we are going to give it all we got and leave it all out on the floor and hopefully good things happen."

The Mustangs currently have 13 games scheduled, including 8 RRAC contests. But with COVID protocol and restrictions, the schedule may have changes from now until the end of the season. 

DEFENSE, DEFENSE, DEFENSE

Talking with Coach Hitchcock, nothing gets him more excited during practice and games than a good brand of defense. The defensive side of the ball has been the biggest area of change over the last 2 years for Hitchcock and his coaching staff. Hitchcock knows that in a tough conference like the Red River, you have to bring a strong defensive minded attitude to the floor every game, otherwise you won't be able to outscore opponents. "Defense is going to be our identity. We preach it everyday at practice and spend a lot of time on it. I'm a defensive-minded coach and so we put a lot of emphasis on defense. I tell our guys that if we don't play defense this season, it's going to be a long season for us. I think the guys are capable of being a good defensive group and are buying into what we want them to do. We have to be high energy on both ends of the floor to be successful. It's going to be a fun and unique group this season."

Key Returners

SR-Point Guard-Derrick Hall
    6'4"--Richmond, CA

The lone 4-year senior in the program is Derrick Hall. Last season Hall was a top-12 finisher in the NAIA in assists (161) and assists per game (6.4). To go along with his assists numbers, Derrick had a career-high in points with 6 per game and grabbed 6.1 rebounds per game. Coach Hitchcock is excited for Hall this season and will lean on the senior for his leadership and to be the floor general for the Mustangs. "We want him to do everything he did last year and more. We want him to be more aggressive scoring this year and hoping to get him to take 5-10 shots per game to help us out on the offensive end. He's a lot better offensively than I think people give him credit for because of how unselfish he is. We want him to be the floor general that he was last year and give him a little more duties to help carry us over the top. He's a phenomenal point guard and leader for us. The guys really feed off of him and we go as Derrick goes. I think he understands that and is up for the challenge." 

SO-Forward-Thurbil Bile
    6'4"--Aurora, CO

SO-Forward-Alex Pena
    6'4"--Denver, CO

Thurbil Bile and Alex Pena are what Hitchcock and staff want out of their guys. Hustle, energy, selflessness and talent. Both of these players brought that to the court last year in their freshman seasons and are looking to make the leap that Hitchcock knows they are both capable of. Bile saw action in 22 games and Pena played in 28 games last season. The combination of the Colorado natives averaged 15.5 points per game and averaged just short of 8 rebounds per game. "Alex and Thurbil are our two energy guys. When they're on the same team in practice, the energy they bring to the court is unbelievable. They do so much for us. They do the simple stuff, get on the ground for loose balls, take charges. Thurbil is a highlight reel waiting to happen. They are going to have to step up and make that jump from freshman to sophomores for us to be successful. They're up for the challenge and I think they will have great seasons. The sky is the limit for both of them."

SR-Guard-Nathaniel White Jr. 
    6'0"--Dallas, TX

29 games played---4.3 PPG--74% FT---42% FG---1.2 RPG

SR-Forward-Tyler Watkins
    6'3"--Dallas, TX

29 games played---6 PPG---44% FG---3.3 RPG---1.4 APG

Who's Going to Step Up

Like in all college athletics, filling the void of graduated seniors is what makes great programs what they are. Last year Joshua Harris (15.9 PPG) and Akeem Black (14 PPG) were the two leading scorers for the Mustangs. Both Black and Harris were the epitome of what Coach Hitchcock wants in his guys. So filling the void of 29 points per game is going to be no easy task. But Hitchcock isn't going to rely on just 2 guys to fill that 29 points, he is hoping for 8-10 guys to chip in and increase their total team scoring. 

"I don't think were going to look for 1 or 2 guys to fill that void. I think it's going to be a team thing to fill the scoring from Josh and Akeem. John Garcia is back and I think he can light it up when the situation calls for it. I expect Drew Derrieux to knock down some big shots for us. Thurbil, Alex and Derrick will help fill that void as well. Nathaniel White Jr. is back and I know he can get us some buckets when needed. Replacing that production may seem like a lot, but we had to do that in the previous season. We want to have 8-10 guys that have anywhere from 8-15 points. It's going to be a total team effort to get our point total. 



The Mustangs tip-off their 2021 season on Friday, January 15th, as they take on Texas A&M-Texarkana in a RRAC matchup starting at 7:30 CT/6:30 MT. The game will be streamed via the TAMUT athletic website. Links for the live stream and live stats will be posted on Twitter and Facebook as well as on the uswathletics.com Men's Basketball schedule.