2021–22 Wyoming Cowboys basketball team

The 2021–22 Wyoming Cowboys basketball team represented the University of Wyoming during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by Jeff Linder in his second year as head coach at Wyoming. The Cowboys played their home games at the Arena-Auditorium in Laramie, Wyoming as members of the Mountain West Conference. They finished the season 25–9, 13–5 in MWC play to finish in fourth place. They defeated UNLV in the quarterfinals of the MWC tournament before losing to Boise State in the semifinals. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as a No. 12 seed in the East region where they lost in the First Four to Indiana.

2021–22 Wyoming Cowboys basketball
ConferenceMountain West Conference
Record25–9 (13–5 MW)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaArena-Auditorium
Seasons
2021–22 Mountain West Conference
men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 23 Boise State153 .833278 .771
No. 24 Colorado State144 .778256 .806
San Diego State134 .765239 .719
Wyoming135 .722259 .735
UNLV108 .5561814 .563
Fresno State89 .4712313 .639
Utah State810 .4441816 .529
Nevada612 .3331318 .419
New Mexico512 .2941319 .406
Air Force413 .2351118 .379
San Jose State117 .056823 .258
Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

On February 14, 2022, the Cowboys were ranked No. 22 in the AP poll for the first time since 2015.[1][2]

Previous season edit

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Cowboys finished the 2020–21 season 14–11, 7–9 in Mountain West play to finish in eighth place in the conference.[3] In the Mountain West tournament, they defeated San Jose State[4] before losing to San Diego State in the quarterfinals.[5]

Offseason edit

Departures edit

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownReason for departure
Marcus Williams1G6'2'180FreshmanDickinson, TXTransferred to Texas A&M[6]
Drew LaMont2F6'8"225JuniorPlantation, FLTransferred to Georgetown (KY)
Kwane Marble II3G6'6"195SophomoreDenver, COTransferred to Loyola Marymount

Incoming transfers edit

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownPrevious School
Deng Dut2G6'4"192JuniorMelbourne, AustraliaJunior college transferred from College of Southern Idaho
Brendan Wenzel5G6'7"203RS SophomoreSan Antonio, TXTransferred from Utah in December during the 2020–21 season. Under NCAA transfer rules, Wenzel has to sit out until December and will be eligible to start in January during the 2021–22 season.

2021 recruiting class edit

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
NameHometownHigh school / collegeHeightWeightCommit date
Ben Bowen
G
Highlands Ranch, COMountain Vista HS6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)180 lb (82 kg)Nov 11, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPNN/A
Nate Barnhart
F
Lenexa, KSDe Soto HS7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)185 lb (84 kg)Nov 11, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Noah Reynolds
G
Peoria, ILPeoria Notre Dame HS6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)190 lb (86 kg)Apr 21, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   Rivals:    247SportsN/A    ESPNN/A
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout:   Rivals:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "ESPN – Wyoming Cowboys Basketball Recruiting 2021". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
  • "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 16, 2020.

Roster edit

2021–22 Wyoming Cowboys men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G0Drake Jeffries6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)186 lb (84 kg)RS SrIndian Hills CC
Mattoon HS
Mattoon, IL
G2Deng Dut6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)192 lb (87 kg)JrSimonds Catholic College
College of Southern Idaho
Melbourne, Australia
G5Brendan Wenzel6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)203 lb (92 kg)RS SoO'Connor HS
Utah
San Antonio, Texas
F10Hunter Thompson6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)232 lb (105 kg)RS SrPine Bluffs HSPine Bluffs, WY
F11Eoin Nelson6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)229 lb (104 kg)JrOtero Junior College
UCD Marian
Dublin, IRE
F15Nate Barnhart7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)185 lb (84 kg)FrDeSoto HSLenexa, KS
G21Noah Reynolds6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)202 lb (92 kg)FrNotre Dame HSPeoria, IL
G22Kenny Foster6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)194 lb (88 kg)JrSmoky Hill HSAurora, CO
G24Hunter Maldonado6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)203 lb (92 kg)RS SrVista Ridge HSColorado Springs, CO
F25Jeremiah Oden6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)201 lb (91 kg)SoSunrise Christian AcademyChicago, IL
G31Cort Roberson (W)6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)160 lb (73 kg)FrStanwood HSArlington, WA
F33Graham Ike6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)252 lb (114 kg)SoOverland HSAurora, CO
G40Ben Bowen6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)170 lb (77 kg)FrMountain Vista HSHighlands Ranch, CO
G53Xavier DuSell6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)190 lb (86 kg)SoArizona Compass PrepScottsdale, AZ
F55John Grigsby (W)6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)211 lb (96 kg)SoPark Center HSLouisville, CO
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Statistics edit

PlayerGPGSMPGFG%3FG%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
Xavier DuSell302028.0.356.327.7672.31.0.5.17.5
Deng Dut1217.3.100.077.750.81.1.3.0.7
Kenny Foster9010.7.278.1541.0002.0.7.4.01.8
John Grigsby701.8.286.167.000.3.0.0.0.7
Graham Ike333331.7.510.273.7169.61.3.7.319.5
Drake Jeffries343436.6.435.409.8115.4.7.6.510.3
Hunter Maldonado333337.3.495.250.7115.76.31.2.118.5
Eoin Nelson802.51.000.000.000.8.0.0.01.0
Jeremiah Oden343226.6.521.306.7364.5.4.4.87.8
Noah Reynolds23011.2.373.417.5651.0.7.2.22.9
Hunter Thompson34311.2.390.373.6361.5.3.0.12.7
Brendan Wenzel341423.0.405.358.7802.9.5.4.15.2

Schedule and results edit

Date
time, TV
Rank#Opponent#ResultRecordHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsSite (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 10, 2021*
7:00 pm
Detroit MercyW 85–47 1–0
 22  Ike  7  Jeffries  9  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (3,259)
Laramie, WY
November 14, 2021*
2:00 pm
Arkansas–Pine BluffW 85–45 2–0
 21  Ike  8  Ike  4  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (3,023)
Laramie, WY
November 18, 2021*
9:00 p.m., P12N
at WashingtonW 77–72 OT3–0
 26  Ike  10  Tied  2  DuSell Alaska Airlines Arena (5,670)
Seattle, WA
November 22, 2021*
7:00 p.m.
at Grand CanyonW 68–61 4–0
 17  Maldonado  7  Maldonado  7  Maldonado GCU Arena (6,872)
Phoenix, AZ
November 28, 2021*
7:00 p.m.
HastingsW 108–59 5–0
 33  Jeffries  10  Ike  7  Dut Arena-Auditorium (3,291)
Laramie, WY
November 29, 2021*
8:00 pm
at Cal State FullertonW 79–66 6–0
 21  Maldonado  9  Ike  9  Maldonado Titan Gym (772)
Fullerton, CA
December 2, 2021*
7:00 pm
DenverW 77–64 7–0
 35  Ike  14  Ike  4  DuSell Arena-Auditorium (4,030)
Laramie, WY
December 4, 2021*
2:00 pm
McNeese StateW 79–58 8–0
 20  Maldonado  10  Ike & Oden  5  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (3,726)
Laramie, WY
December 8, 2021*
8:00 p.m., P12N
at No. 11 ArizonaL 65–94 8–1
 22  DuSell  4  Tied  4  Maldonado McKale Center (13,077)
Tucson, AZ
December 11, 2021*
8:00 pm
Utah ValleyW 74–62 9–1
 16  DuSell  9  Ike  5  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (3,927)
Laramie, WY
December 22, 2021*
3:30 pm, ESPNU
vs. Stanford
Diamond Head Classic Quarterfinals
L 63–66 9–2
 25  Ike  11  Ike  8  Maldonado Stan Sheriff Center (4,041)
Honoulu, HI
December 23, 2021*
4:30 pm, ESPNU
vs. Northern Iowa
Diamond Head Classic Consolation 2nd Round
W 71–69 10–2
 17  Maldonado  7  Maldonado  6  Maldonado Stan Sheriff Center (3,951)
Honolulu, HI
December 25, 2021*
11:30 am, ESPNU
vs. South Florida
Diamond Head Classic 5th Place Game
W 77–57 11–2
 22  Maldonado  7  Ike  10  Maldonado Stan Sheriff Center 
Honolulu, HI
Mountain West regular season
January 15, 2022
7:00 pm, Stadium
at Utah StateW 71–69 12–2
(1–0)
 23  Ike  8  Ike  6  Maldonado Smith Spectrum (8,109)
Logan, UT
January 17, 2022
6:00 p.m., FS1
at Nevada
Rescheduled from January 4
W 77–67 13–2
(2–0)
 24  Ike  11  Ike  11  Maldonado Lawlor Events Center (6,369)
Reno, NV
January 19, 2022
7:00 p.m., MW Network/ATTSN
San José StateW 84–69 14–2
(3–0)
 20  Maldonado  8  Oden  12  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (4,371)
Laramie, WY
January 22, 2022
5:30 p.m., CBSSN
New MexicoW 93–91 15–2
(4–0)
 29  Ike  15  Ike  7  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (5,368)
Laramie, WY
January 25, 2022
7:00 p.m., Stadium
at Boise StateL 62–65 15–3
(4–1)
 19  Ike  9  Ike  5  Maldonado ExtraMile Arena (8,292)
Boise, ID
January 28, 2022
4:00 p.m., MW Network
at Air ForceW 63–61 16–3
(5–1)
 31  Maldonado  9  Ike  4  Maldonado Clune Arena (1,702)
Colorado Springs, CO
January 31, 2022
6:00 p.m., FS1
Colorado State
Border War
W 84–78 OT17–3
(6–1)
 35  Maldonado  8  Ike  7  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (7,539)
Laramie, WY
February 3, 2022
7:00 p.m., MW Network
Boise State
Rescheduled from January 1
W 72–65 18–3
(7–1)
 33  Ike  10  Tied  7  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (7,063)
Laramie, WY
February 6, 2022
5:00 p.m., FS1
at Fresno State
Rescheduled from January 8
W 61–59 19–3
(8–1)
 21  Maldonado  9  Jeffries  6  Maldonado Save Mart Center (6,017)
Fresno, CA
February 8, 2022
7:00 p.m., Stadium
Utah StateW 78–76 OT20–3
(9–1)
 28  Ike  13  Jeffries  5  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (5,558)
Laramie, WY
February 12, 2022
7:00 p.m., Stadium
at San José StateW 74–52 21–3
(10–1)
 25  Ike  18  Ike  5  Maldonado Provident Credit Union Event Center (2,251)
San Jose, CA
February 15, 2022
7:00 p.m., Stadium
No. 22 at New MexicoL 66–75 21–4
(10–2)
 26  Ike  7  Ike  4  Maldonado The Pit (8,208)
Albuquerque, NM
February 19, 2022
2:00 p.m., MW Network/ATTSN
No. 22 Air ForceW 75–67 22–4
(11–2)
 29  Maldonado  12  Ike  8  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (8,312)
Laramie, WY
February 23, 2022
7:00 p.m., CBSSN
at Colorado State
Border War
L 55–61 22–5
(11–3)
 22  Jefferies  13  Ike  3  Tied Moby Arena (8,085)
Fort Collins, CO
February 26, 2022
6:00 p.m., CBSSN
NevadaW 74–61 23–5
(12–3)
 23  Ike  15  Ike  6  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (7,855)
Laramie, WY
February 28, 2022
7:00 p.m., CBSSN
San Diego StateL 66–73 23–6
(12–4)
 17  Oden  11  Maldonado  11  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (5,438)
Laramie, WY
March 2, 2022
8:30 p.m., FS1
at UNLVL 57–64 23–7
(12–5)
 22  Maldonado  10  Maldonado  7  Maldonado Thomas & Mack Center (6,204)
Paradise, NV
March 5, 2022
2:00 p.m., Stadium
Fresno StateW 68–64 OT24–7
(13–5)
 21  DuSell  8  Ike  8  Maldonado Arena-Auditorium (6,230)
Laramie, WY
Mountain West tournament
March 10, 2022
3:30 p.m., CBSSN
(4) at (5) UNLV
Quarterfinals
W 59–56 25–7
 12  Wenzel  13  Ike  5  Maldonado Thomas & Mack Center 
Paradise, NV
March 11, 2022
7:30 p.m., CBSSN
(4) vs. (1) Boise State
Semifinals
L 61–68 25–8
 18  Ike  9  Maldonado  5  Maldonado Thomas & Mack Center 
Paradise, NV
NCAA tournament
March 15, 2022
7:10 pm, TruTV
(12 E) vs. (12 E) Indiana
First Four
L 58–66 25–9
 21  Maldonado  10  Jeffries  5  Maldonado UD Arena (12,522)
Dayton, OH
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Mountain Time.

Source[7][8]

References edit

  1. ^ [email protected], Ryan Thorburn. "Wyoming Cowboys ranked No. 22 in AP poll for first time in seven years". Casper Star-Tribune Online. Retrieved February 21, 2022.
  2. ^ "Ranked for first time in seven years, Wyoming faces UNM". CBSSports.com. Retrieved February 21, 2022.
  3. ^ "2020-21 Mountain West Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved February 21, 2022.
  4. ^ "San José State vs. Wyoming - Game Recap - March 10, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 21, 2022.
  5. ^ "Wyoming vs. San Diego State - Game Recap - March 11, 2021 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 21, 2022.
  6. ^ Gambino, Frank. "Former UW Player Marcus Williams Transfers to Texas A&M". K2 Radio. Retrieved February 21, 2022.
  7. ^ "University of Wyoming Official Athletic Site - Men's Basketball". gowyo.com.
  8. ^ "2021-22 Wyoming Cowboys Schedule and Results". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved February 21, 2022.