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Oct. 25—UNM Lobo senior forward Mustapha Amzil hopes the beginning of this season is nothing like what it was a year ago at this time.
A versatile 6-foot-9 forward who came to UNM known as an outside shooting threat, Amzil started an agonizingly bad 1-for-21 from 3-point range over the Lobos’ first 10 games — the audible gasps from Pit fans growing louder and louder with each shot he took.
Will he change anything about his approach knowing how bad things got a year ago?
“Not really. I’m just trying to build on how I finished last year and just keep getting better,” Amzil said. “I feel like I can still get a lot better. … The mindset is still the same every day, just focus on getting better.”
His start to the season was so bad that Amzil went from starting the first two games of the season to being a healthy scratch from the Dec. 15 win at New Mexico State in Las Cruces, the team’s 11th game.
All he did after that was quietly become one of the best reserve players in the western part of the country, winning Mountain West 6th Man of the Year honors.
In those first 10 games, Amzil averaged 2.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and shot 4.8% from beyond the arc. In the next 25 games he played, Amzil averaged 8.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and shot 36.0% from 3-point range. And not only did his play gain the respect of coaches, teammates and fans, but so did his no-complaints approach to getting through that very public slump.
The respect has grown so much he was one of three players voted by teammates as team captain this year, along with junior guard Donovan Dent and senior transfer guard C.J. Noland.
He has been captain of Finland’s junior national team for years. A Dayton transfer, this is Amzil’s first time as a captain in college.
“It’s just honor,” Amzil said. “My teammates trust me. I think I’m one of the older guys on the team now, so I’ve got experience I can help everybody with.”
He said his experience has given him a new sense of confidence. Well, that and another thing.
“I think my…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/lobos-forward-mustapha-amzil-hopeful-035900540.html
Author : Albuquerque Journal, N.M.
Publish date : 2024-10-26 03:59:00
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