2023–24 UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros men's basketball team

2023–24 UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros men's basketball
ConferenceWestern Athletic Conference
Record6–25 (2–18 WAC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Nikita Johnson
  • Brandon Espinosa
  • Tyler Guidry
Home arenaUTRGV Fieldhouse
Seasons
2023–24 WAC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Grand Canyon † 17 – 3   .850 30 – 5   .857
Tarleton* 16 – 4   .800 25 – 10   .714
UT Arlington 13 – 7   .650 20 – 14   .588
Seattle 11 – 9   .550 23 – 14   .622
Utah Valley 11 – 9   .550 16 – 16   .500
Stephen F. Austin 10 – 10   .500 18 – 15   .545
Abilene Christian 10 – 10   .500 16 – 18   .471
California Baptist 8 – 12   .400 16 – 17   .485
Utah Tech* 7 – 13   .350 11 – 20   .355
Southern Utah 5 – 15   .250 10 – 21   .323
UT Rio Grande Valley 2 – 18   .100 6 – 25   .194
* Ineligible for the NCAA tournament due to transition from Division II
† 2024 WAC tournament winner

The 2023–24 UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros men's basketball team represented the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by third-year head coach Matt Figger and played home games at UTRGV Fieldhouse as members of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). They finished the season 6–25, 2–18 in WAC play to finish in eleventh place, and thus did not qualify to play in the WAC Tournament.

This was UTRGV's last season in the WAC, and also Figger's last as head coach. UTRGV announced on March 19, 2024 that it had fired Figger, who left with a 29–65 record after three seasons.[1] Less than a week later, UTRGV announced that it would join the Southland Conference effective that July.[2]

Previous season

The Vaqueros finished the season 15–16, 6–12 in conference play to finish in a tie for tenth place. They were defeated by Tarleton State in the first round of the WAC tournament to end their season.

Roster

2023–24 Texas–Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 0 J.J. Howard 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 188 lb (85 kg) Fr San Luis Obispo, California
G 1 Elijah Elliott 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 171 lb (78 kg) Jr Houston, Texas
G/F 2 C.J. Jackson 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Sr Atlanta, Georgia
G 3 DeAnthony Tipler Jr. 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 176 lb (80 kg) GS Ashland, Mississippi
G 4 C.J. Booker 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 145 lb (66 kg) RS Fr Arlington, Texas
G 5 Howie Fleming Jr. 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 217 lb (98 kg) Jr Louisville, Kentucky
G 10 Roy Jones III 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 217 lb (98 kg) RS Jr Pensacola, Florida
F 11 Ahren Freeman 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Sr Jacksonville, Florida
G 12 Fadi Mougharbel 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 199 lb (90 kg) RS So Beirut, Lebanon
G 13 Sherman Brashear 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 188 lb (85 kg) Jr Rockwall, Texas
G 14 Hasan Abdul-Hakim 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 206 lb (93 kg) Jr Toronto, Canada
F 15 Daylen Williams 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 204 lb (93 kg) Sr Los Angeles, California
F 21 Alex Horiuk 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 244 lb (111 kg) So Chernivtsi, Ukraine
F 23 Isaiah Barganier 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 245 lb (111 kg) So Fulshear, Texas
F 33 John Shanu II 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 255 lb (116 kg) So Houston, Texas
F 35 Saliou Seye 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 218 lb (99 kg) So Dakar, Senegal
F 44 David Oyona Ibandzo 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Fr Pointe-Noire, Republic of Congo
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: October 20, 2023

Schedule and Results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 6, 2023*
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Southwestern Adventist W 110–59  1–0
  20 – Williams   11 – Abdul-Hakim   7 – Tied  UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,622)
Edinburg, TX
November 10, 2023*
7:00 p.m. 		vs. South Dakota L 79–100  1–1
  30 – Elliott   11 – Freeman   7 – Abdul-Hakim  Sanford Pentagon (1,884)
Sioux Falls, SD
November 14, 2023*
7:00 p.m., Big 12 Now 		at TCU L 55–88  1–2
  19 – Elliott   5 – Freeman   8 – Abdul-Hakim  Schollmaier Arena (5,438)
Fort Worth, TX
November 17, 2023*
7:00 p.m., Big 12 Now 		at Oklahoma L 66–90  1–3
  15 – Elliott   10 – Williams   3 – Abdul-Hakim  Lloyd Noble Center (4,686)
Norman, OK
November 20, 2023*
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		North American W 92–73  2–3
  20 – Brashear   12 – Williams   8 – Abdul-Hakim  UTRGV Fieldhouse (644)
Edinburg, TX
November 24, 2023*
7:00 p.m. 		vs. Hawai'i
Acrisure Invitational semifinals 		L 57–76  2–4
  18 – Elliott   13 – Freeman   2 – Elliott  Acrisure Arena (735)
Thousand Palms, CA
November 25, 2023*
7:00 p.m. 		vs. Arkansas State
Acrisure Invitational 3rd place game 		L 58–75  2–5
  16 – Howard   6 – Williams   3 – Booker  Acrisure Arena (893)
Thousand Palms, CA
November 29, 2023
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Grand Canyon L 69–79  2–6
(0–1) 		 21 – Abdul-Hakim   8 – Abdul-Hakim   3 – Tied  UTRGV Fieldhouse (1944)
Edinburg, TX
December 2, 2023
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Tarleton State L 75–77  2–7
(0–2) 		 23 – Abdul-Hakim   7 – Abdul-Hakim   4 – Elliott  Wisdom Gymnasium 
Stephenville, TX
December 6, 2023*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Texas A&M–Corpus Christi
South Texas Showdown 		W 76–74  3–7
  23 – Freeman   7 – Freeman   5 – Elliott  American Bank Center (2,296)
Corpus Christi, TX
December 15, 2023*
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Texas A&M–Corpus Christi
South Texas Showdown 		L 76–86  3–8
  23 – Abdul-Hakim   7 – Freeman   6 – Booker  UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,012)
Edinburg, TX
December 18, 2023*
7:00 p.m. 		at Chicago State L 68–78  3–9
  17 – Elliott   7 – Williams   3 – Booker  Jones Convocation Center (72)
Chicago, IL
December 30, 2023*
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Incarnate Word W 77–74  4–9
  21 – Elliott   14 – Williams   4 – Abdul-Hakim  UTRGV Fieldhouse (718)
Edinbrug, TX
January 4, 2024
12:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Stephen F. Austin L 78–85  4–10
(0–3) 		 26 – Freeman   11 – Freeman   7 – Abdul-Hakim  UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,031)
Edinburg, TX
January 6, 2024
5:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Abilene Christian L 89–91 OT 4–11
(0–4) 		 26 – Abdul-Hakim   9 – Williams   8 – Elliott  Moody Coliseum (1,521)
Abilene, TX
January 11, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Seattle W 81–80 OT 5–11
(1–4) 		 22 – Freeman   10 – Freeman   4 – Abdul-Hakim  UTRGV Fieldhouse (591)
Edinburg, TX
January 13, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Utah Valley W 76–68  6–11
(2–4) 		 14 – Tied   6 – Williams   5 – Elliott  UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,015)
Edinburg, TX
January 18, 2024
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at UT Arlington L 73–91  6–12
(2–5) 		 22 – Elliott   7 – Elliott   4 – Elliott  College Park Center (1,824)
Arlington, TX
January 20, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Tarleton State L 73–77  6–13
(2–6) 		 23 – Elliott   8 – Williams   7 – Freeman  UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,514)
Edinburg, TX
January 25, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		California Baptist L 54–63  6–14
(2–7) 		 18 – Howard   7 – Seye   2 – Tied  UTRGV Fieldhouse (1,932)
Edinburg, TX
February 1, 2024
8:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Utah Tech L 64–81  6–15
(2–8) 		 19 – Howard   4 – Horiuk   2 – Howard  Burns Arena (1,455)
St. George, UT
February 3, 2024
7:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Southern Utah L 59–79  6–16
(2–9) 		 18 – Elliott   7 – Tied   2 – Jones III  America First Event Center (1,352)
Cedar City, UT
February 8, 2024
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Stephen F. Austin L 84–92  6–17
(2–10) 		 40 – Elliott   10 – Williams   4 – Williams  William R. Johnson Coliseum (2,120)
Nacogdoches, TX
February 15, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Abilene Christian L 79–87  6–18
(2–11) 		 24 – Williams   7 – Abdul-Hakim   6 – Elliott  UTRGV Fieldhouse (2,041)
Edinburg, TX
February 17, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		UT Arlington L 70–89  6–19
(2–12) 		 15 – Brashear   6 – Williams   4 – Williams  UTRGV Fieldhouse (2,766)
Edinberg, TX
February 22, 2024
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Utah Valley L 59–70  6–20
(2–13) 		 17 – Williams   11 – Williams   5 – Tied  UCCU Center (2,601)
Orem, UT
February 24, 2024
5:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Seattle L 56–84  6–21
(2–14) 		 23 – Elliott   12 – Williams   3 – Williams  Redhawk Center (926)
Seattle, WA
February 29, 2024
8:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Grand Canyon L 43–72  6–22
(2–15) 		 12 – Elliott   8 – Elliott   2 – Tied  GCU Arena (7,192)
Phoenix, AZ
March 2, 2024
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at California Baptist L 52–88  6–23
(2–16) 		 21 – Williams   9 – Williams   3 – Seye  Fowler Events Center (2,550)
Riverside, CA
March 7, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Utah Tech L 74–79  6–24
(2–17) 		 26 – Elliott   13 – Williams   6 – Elliott  UTRGV Fieldhouse (857)
Edinburg, TX
March 9, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Southern Utah L 59–68  6–25
(2–18) 		 24 – Elliott   11 – Williams   4 – Tied  UTRGV Fieldhouse (652)
Edinburg, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

Source[3][4]

References

  1. ^ "UTRGV Athletics Announces Change in Leadership in Men's Basketball Program" (Press release). UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros. March 19, 2024. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  2. ^ "UTRGV Athletics Accepts Invitation to Join Southland Conference in 2024-25" (Press release). Southland Conference. March 25, 2024. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  3. ^ "2023–24 Men's Basketball Schedule". goutrgv.com. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
  4. ^ "UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros Schedule 2023-24". ESPN Enterprises, Inc. Retrieved November 2, 2023.