Busting Brackets
Fansided

Mountain West Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2022-23 season

By Tristan Freeman

Feb 28, 2022; Laramie, Wyoming, USA; Wyoming Cowboys guard Hunter Maldonado (24) controls the ball against the San Diego State Aztecs during the first half at Arena-Auditorium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Babbitt-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 28, 2022; Laramie, Wyoming, USA; Wyoming Cowboys guard Hunter Maldonado (24) controls the ball against the San Diego State Aztecs during the first half at Arena-Auditorium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Babbitt-USA TODAY Sports /
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New Mexico Lobos guard Jaelen House Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
New Mexico Lobos guard Jaelen House Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports /

. Lobos . 4. team. 507. .

Head coach Richard Pitino may have finished 9th in his first year in the Mountain West but he found a few good building blocks that came back for another year. Five of the team’s top six scorers from last season, led by the dynamic duo of Jamal Mashburn and Jaelen House.

Mashburn is the top returning scorer in the conference with 18.2 ppg. The all-conference guard went for 20+ points 14 times, including a season-high 29 points at Utah State. House was the playmaker of the team, producing 16.5 ppg and 4.9 apg for the Lobos. He had a whopping 42 points on 15/22 shooting against Air Force, as well as 18 points and 13 assists versus San Jose State.

Other key returning players are 6th Man guard KJ Jenkins, along with starting forward, Jay Allen-Tovar and Javonte Johnson. 7’0 center Sebastian Forsling is back after starting 13 games as a freshman and the frontcourt depth has been upgraded with a pair of frontcourt transfers as well.

Morris Udeze started the past two years at Wichita State and was a double-digit scorer at the AAC level. And Josiah Allick is a 6’8 stretch forward from Kansas City who averaged 12.9 ppg and 6.1 rpg on 55% shooting from the field. These are players that can play at the Mountain West level and with Mashburn and House leading the backcourt, New Mexico is a prime candidate to make a big leap up the standings.