JUCO big man commits to New Mexico
Allen-Tovar adds to a roster that currently needs some size
Guards are on the way.
Now, the Lobos have added some size.
Jay Allen-Tovar, a 6-foot-9 forward from San Jose, Calif., who averaged 10.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.3 blocks while shooting 60.7% from the field in 24 games this past season at Salt Lake Community College in Utah, announced on social media early Thursday he would be joining the Lobos.
“Happy Birthday momma, I love you. You deserve to see my success. #COMMITTED,” he wrote on his Instagram account along with an image of himself in a Lobos uniform.
On Twitter, along with the same image, he wrote, “Dream come true. #COMMITTED.”
While the Lobos are hopeful to land at least one more big man in the recruiting process, new coach Richard Pitino can’t comment on any recruit until he has signed and been cleared to enroll at UNM.
The UNM roster currently has two scholarship bigs returning in 6-10 Valdir Manuel and Assane Ndiaye — who is still with the team but has yet to be cleared medically to play for the Lobos and it remains unclear if he will remain on scholarship for the coming season. Jordan Arroyo, a 6-7 walkon forward from Atrisco Heritage Academy, is also still working out with the team.
Allen-Tovar joins Jamel King, a 6-7 prep signee from November, and recent power conference point guard transfers Jaelen House, from Arizona State, and Jamal Mashburn Jr., from Minnesota, as Pitino’s first UNM recruiting class.
STILL HERE: As he has been for the past four seasons, Makuach Maluach was present and account
ed for Thursday at the Rudy Davalos Center as the Lobos went through their final spring drills as a team before finals next week and players leaving for the summer.
Whether or not the four-year Lobo starter will return to UNM and take up the NCAA’s blanket offer to all players to use an extra season of eligibility remains to be seen.
He certainly hinted toward the end of the season he would be moving on from UNM — be it to start a professional career overseas or possibly as a graduate transfer elsewhere. But since the coaching change that brought in Pitino, Maluach has continued to practice with the team and the new coaching staff. Pitino has made it clear there’s a spot on the roster for the player who is No. 17 on UNM’s all-time scoring list with 1,308 points.
There is no hard and fast deadline for Maluach to make a decision short of the start of the fall semester, but it isn’t expected to take that long.
TALKIN ‘BOUT PRACTICE: Running Thursday’s practice was Pitino and his three new assistants — Isaac Chew, Eric Brown and Andy Hill. Also in attendance, though not all on court working the players out, were returning staffers Dan McHale, now a special assistant to the head coach, video coordinator Robert Edwards, strength coach Nick Michael and trainer Gilchrist Schmidt.
Neither Saquan Singleton nor Kurt Wegscheider was present, but the rest of the players who haven’t entered the transfer portal were on hand taking part.
Returning point guard Jeremiah Francis III said he can’t wait to welcome the new Lobos this summer, but also said he feels excited about the past six weeks or so of practices with the new coaching staff and seeing how motivated returning players are to put last year behind them.
“Last season’s in the past, and we’re looking toward the future now,” Francis said after Thursday’s practice. “Each day is a blessing to be on the court, especially with everything the world is still going through. I just feel like these guys (that are back from the past Lobos season) are more hungry, and we’re ready to listen to what Coach P has to say. And it’s been really good (the past month of practices). You’re just going to see a bunch of dogs out there next year (with the returning players).”
For his part, Pitino on multiple occasions since being hired has sung the praises of the returners on the roster — players he didn’t recruit, but ones he welcomes to stay with the program.
“We’ve been working very, very hard to work out our current guys,” Pitino said Wednesday when he was the guest speaker with the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce.
He explained that after this week’s workouts — Thursday being the last of them — the team will focus next week on finals and then have three weeks off before returning for summer session classes June 6, which is also when new players begin to arrive on campus.
“Really, that June and July is huge for us to just establish a culture,” Pitino said.