Jackson says farewell to Lobos
Vance Jackson had spent the better part of the last year skirting the line between staying at the University of New Mexico or heading elsewhere for his basketball future.
On Monday, he finally made it official by announcing his time as a Lobo was over.
The 6-foot-9 small forward has entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal with the intent of finishing his college eligibility elsewhere. A UNM spokeswoman said Jackson will earn his undergraduate degree in May and will be immediately eligible to play his senior year during the 2020-21 season as a graduate transfer.
A native of the Los Angeles area, Jackson posted messages to his personal Instagram and Twitter accounts Monday afternoon thanking the Lobos fans, players and coaches for his time in Albuquerque. He played two seasons for UNM after spending his freshman season at Connecticut. He sat out the 2017-18 season as a redshirt transfer and wound up starting 44 of the 60 games in which he appeared as a Lobo.
He averaged 12.2 points and 6.2 rebounds in his two seasons with all of his numbers dipping slightly from his sophomore to junior years. He struggled badly in the first 12 games this past season, shooting just 30 percent from the field (24-for-80) and 24 percent from 3-point territory while averaging 6.7 points — barely half of what he did as a sophomore.
His numbers improved dramatically after the Lobos were hit hard by off-court issues that included point guard Dru Drinnon quitting the team in early December, point guard JJ Caldwell getting suspended for the rest of the season later that month and the suspension and ultimate dismissal of center Carlton Bragg in December and January, not to mention further disciplinary measures to guards JaQuan Lyle and Vante Hendrix.
Jackson sat out five games in the heart of the Mountain West Conference schedule due to a knee injury he received Jan. 15 in a blowout loss at Colorado State. He came back in early February and finished the season strong, leading the team in scoring over the last month. That included a 26-point performance against San Jose State in the opening round of the MWC Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev.
“I’ve learned so much during my 3 years at New Mexico and to receive my degree is a blessing itself,” Jackson wrote in his Instagram post. “It was definitely one of the hardest decisions of my life, but after praying to the man above and thinking it through with my family I feel this decision is best for my future as a player.”
The Lobos will have as many as eight returning players next season after the exits of Jackson, Bragg and outgoing seniors Lyle and Corey Manigault. It’s highly doubtful, however, that all nine players — Hendrix, Makuach Maluach, Keith McGee, Kurt Wegscheider, Zane Martin, Tavian Percy, Emmanual Kuach and Bayron Matos — will return.
Caldwell told Stadium Sports, which has ties to the Mountain West Network, on Sunday night that he will transfer. The troubled 6-foot point guard was suspended Dec. 22 for his role in a domestic battery case and wasn’t seen or heard from again. He filed a lawsuit against UNM in January seeking reinstatement and undisclosed damages, essentially ending his brief Lobo career that began after a checkered freshman season at Texas A&M.
It’s also unclear if Hendrix, a mid-year transfer from Utah, will return. He was disciplined twice late in the season, including getting sent home during the MWC Tournament. Head coach Paul Weir has remained decidedly uncommitted to Hendrix’s future as a Lobo, saying his return for 2020-21 is unclear.
As of Monday evening the NCAA transfer portal had just two Lobos on the list; Jackson and Drinnon. Neither Caldwell nor Hendrix was on there, although schools are given two business days to put a player’s name on the list after the player announces his intent to leave.