THE GOOD NEWS
Four underclassmen -- sophomore starting guard Jonathan Gibson, freshman starting forward Herb Pope, freshman reserve forward Wendell McKines and freshman guard Jahmar Young -- played big minutes and gained plenty of experience this season, mean. With them, the Aggies are in good position to weather the storm of losing four key seniors.

THE BAD NEWS
The Aggies probably lose as much talent to graduation this year as anyone in the WAC. Senior point guard Fred Peete, forwards Justin Hawkins and Hatila Passos and center Martin Iti -- all four transfers who came in under previous coach Reggie Theus -- were the foundation of this year's team and accounted for around 45 points, 24 rebounds per game. Hawkins led the team in scoring, Passos led in rebounding, Peete led in assists and steals and Iti led in blocked shots.

KEY RETURNEES
Freshman Herb Pope, who played just half the season, showed glimpses of greatness, reminding Aggie fans why he was arguably the best high school recruit the program ever landed. Pope started just 12 games but in that time became the team's third leading scorer with 11.1 points per game and grabbed 6.8 boards per game. Along with sophomore guard Jonathan Gibson and fellow freshmen Wendell McKines (forward) and Jahmar Young (guard), Pope will make the Aggies one of the WAC favorites for several years to come.

ROSTER REPORT

--Senior forward Justin Hawkins made the most of his time playing for New Mexico State, scoring more than 1,100 points in just two seasons. Hawkins, who had transferred from Utah, was a two-time first team All-Western Athletic Conference selection.

--Freshman forward Herb Pope finished the season off with his two best games in the Western Athletic Conference semifinals and championship game, scoring 18 and 20 points respectively, including averaging 10.5 rebounds in those two games.

Pope wasn't cleared by the NCAA to play until mid January when the WAC season had already begun. He spent last offseason recovering from gun shot wounds and fighting eligibility issues about a class he took in high school. He was also charged in December with drunken driving in his home state of Pennsylvania.

Once he got on the court, he seemed at home and if the upcoming offseason is trouble-free, Pope could develop into one of the WAC's top 2-3 players.

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