Site Map | Archives

Home › Sports › LoboZone

UNM men's basketball: Alford & Co. net big talent in the 11th hour

By Jeremy Fowler
Wednesday, May 2, 2007

The class

Here's the list of recruits committed to the University of New Mexico under coach Steve Alford. The Lobos have one more scholarship available for the 2007 class. Monquel Pegues will sign with UNM on Friday, his coach said.

Player; Ht.; School; Stat line

Monquel Pegues; 6-10; Cape Fear (N.C.) Community College; 18.3 points, 7.5 rebounds

Darrington Hobson; 6-7; Decatur (Ill.) Christian; 19 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists

Dairese Gary; 6-1; Concord (Ind.) High School; 22 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists

Johnnie Harris; 6-8; Chipola (Fla.) Junior College; 7.3 points, 4.6 rebounds

The University of New Mexico's scramble to assemble talent in the late signing period is impressing some on the national scale.

The addition of 6-foot-10 center Monquel Pegues of Cape Fear Community College - who will sign with the Lobos on Friday, Cape Fear coach Ryan Mantlo said - gives the Lobos a low-post scoring threat to accompany two highly touted high school guards and a 6-8 role player in forward Johnnie Harris from Chipola (Fla.) Junior College.

Now coach Steve Alford has one more scholarship that could punctuate a balanced and talented recruiting class for the University of New Mexico, Scout.com national recruiting expert Dave Telep said.

"If they could get three consecutive classes like the one they have this spring, there's no question New Mexico will continue advancing in the (Mountain West Conference)," Telep said. "They've made a strong push in the spring, which can be a tough time to recruit."

Alford took over the Lobos in late March, a time when most high school recruits are signed with their schools of choice. Most could predict Alford would visit the junior college scene for some big-bodied post players to complement a thin front line anchored by 6-9 junior Daniel Faris and not much else.

But guards Darrington Hobson and Dairese Gary, both top-150 players nationally, found UNM attractive enough to leave their previous commitments. Hobson escaped his verbal commitment to Pepperdine. Gary, a former Iowa signee under Alford, decided to follow the former Hawkeyes coach to New Mexico.

This class would only strengthen if the Lobos could land 7-footer Beas Hamga, Hobson's teammate at Decatur (Ill.) Christian who has New Mexico among his top five schools, Decatur coach Alan Huss said.

Kentucky and UNLV are also in the mix. Hamga, a 2008 recruit who is considering a reclassification to 2007, will make an official visit to UNM in the coming weeks, Huss said.

Hobson said he thinks Hamga will go to Kentucky.

With or without Hamga, the Lobos can rejoice in a class full of talent, Telep said.

The catalyst is Hobson, a 6-7 point guard whom Telep calls "a player who is talented enough to start in a big-four league."

Hobson is ranked the 116th-best player in the class of 2007, according to Rivals.com. Gary is ranked the 28th-best point guard by Scout.com, a guy Telep considers "tough and competitive."

"The key is seeing if they can fulfill (Hobson's) promise," Telep said. "If they can get everything out of his ability, he'll have the chance to make a lot of money."

Pegues (pronounced puh-geese) shouldn't have problems scoring from the low block in Division-I, Mantlo said. His biggest weakness could be defense and staying out of foul trouble, Mantlo said.

After watching Pegues, 20, play high school ball in North Carolina, Telep said his potential for stardom was intact.

"I expect him to finish off his career strong at New Mexico," Telep said. "You always knew that if he took care of business in junior college, he'd be a surprising player. He had a lot of potential."

Most schools sign high school players in November, but maybe New Mexico should always wait until March to make their moves.

When at Iowa, Alford and UNM assistant Craig Neal snagged heralded Tyler Smith in last season's spring signing period. Smith was an All-Big Ten third-teamer as a freshman last season.

Now this.

"That really shows that they don't panic toward the end," Telep said.