EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — The 2025 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament is finally here.
Games began on Tuesday as the First Four round tipped off. Unfortunately for UTEP and New Mexico State men’s basketball fans, neither program are in the NCAA tournament this year.
This is the 15th straight year UTEP has missed out on playing in the tournament. Meanwhile for NMSU, this is the third consecutive year the are not dancing.
Anyways, there are some individuals with local ties that are participating in this year’s NCAA tournament. Here’s some notable individuals to keep an eye out for.
KJ Lewis
KJ Lewis is a sophomore guard at Arizona. He’s a spark plug for the Wildcats. This season, he is averaging 10.9 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game off the bench.
Lewis’ local tie is that he played his first three years of high school basketball at Chapin High School in El Paso, Texas.
During his junior year, the four-star, top 100 high school recruit made his verbal commitment to Arizona, and did it live on KTSM.
Lewis and Arizona locked in the No. 4 seed in the east portion of the bracket. Arizona will face off against No.13 seed Akron in the first round of the tournament.
Arizona and Akron go head-to-head on Friday at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA. Game is scheduled to start at 5:35 p.m. MT. The game will air on truTV.
Rodney Terry
Rodney Terry is currently the head coach of the Texas men’s basketball team.
Terry was the UTEP men’s basketball head coach from 2018-2021. He did not have much success while leading the Miners. The program went 37-48 during his three seasons in El Paso.
Terry left UTEP for an assistant coaching job on Chris Beard’s staff at Texas ahead of the 2021-22 season.
In the midst of the 2022-23 season, Terry was promoted to interim head coach of Texas after Beard’s arrest on an assault charge.
Terry guided Texas to a win in the Big 12 Tournament Championship game and a NCAA tournament appearance that season when he took over for Beard.
Terry was then promoted to full-time head coach in after the ’22-23 season. Texas has made the NCAA tournament the last two seasons with him as head coach.
The Terry-led Texas Longhorns will play Xavier in the First Four round. Game at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio is on Wednesday at 7:10 p.m. MT.
Winner of the game will play 6-seed Illinois in the first round of the tournament.
Kimani Young
Kimani Young is currently the associate head coach at UConn. The 2024-25 season is Young’s seventh season on the program’s coaching staff.
Young played his college basketball in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) under the late, great Don Haskins at UTEP in the 1990s. Young played at UTEP from 1994-1997. He averaged nearly 13 points per game as a Miner, and transitioned to coaching shortly after his playing career
Young has played a role in helping lead UConn to back-to-back national championships the last two years. El Paso native Tristen Newton played for Young at UConn and was a major player during the Huskies’ national championship runs.
UConn is the No. 8 seed in the west. UConn will play No. 9 seed Oklahoma at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, NC on Friday at 7:25 p.m. MT.
Chris Jans
Chris Jans is currently the men’s basketball head coach at Mississippi State.
Jans was the men’s basketball head coach at New Mexico State from 2017-2022. In his five seasons as the Aggies’ bench boss, he guided NMSU to a 122-32 record and three trips to the NCAA tournament.
Jans went 1-2 in NCAA tournament teams while at New Mexico State. His lone win while leading NMSU was when the Aggies pulled off the 12 over 5 seed upset against UConn in the 2021-22 NCAA tournament.
After that season, Jans took the head coaching job at Mississippi State.
Jans has been at Mississippi State since the 2022-23 season and has led the program to the NCAA tournament every year since.
Mississippi State is the No. 8 seed in the east. It’ll take on No. 9 seed Baylor in the first round at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, NC on Friday at 10:15 a.m. MT.
Tony Madlock
Tony Madlock is Alabama State men’s basketball’s head coach.
Madlock’s local tie is that he was an assistant coach on Tony Barbee’s staff at UTEP from 2006-2010.
Madlock’s final season at UTEP was the last time the Miners made the NCAA tournament. UTEP is currently in a 15-year NCAA tournament drought.
Anyways, in just his third season as the bench boss at Alabama State, Madlock has led the Hornets to the NCAA tournament.
It’s the program’s first NCAA tournament appearance in 14 years.
Alabama State matched up with St. Francis in the First Four at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio on Tuesday.
Alabama State beat St. Francis, 70-68, thanks to a March Madness-esque play in the final seconds of Tuesday’s game.
It was Alabama State’s first ever NCAA tournament win.
Alabama State will now take on No. 1 seed Auburn in the first round on Thursday at Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY.
Ken Deweese
Ken Deweese is an assistant coach on the Colorado State men’s basketball team. He joined the staff in June of 2024.
Deweese was on the UTEP men’s basketball coaching staff from 2010-2016.
Deweese was elevated to assistant coach for the 2011-12 season after serving as UTEP’s Director of Basketball Operations for the 2010-11 campaign. DeWeese helped guide UTEP to over 120 wins, including three seasons of 22 wins or more and two NIT appearances. Known for his recruiting at UTEP, DeWeese signed 26 players that were on Conference USA commissioner’s Honor Roll selections.
Colorado State, the No. 12 seed in the west, will play No. 5 seed Memphis in the first round of the tournament. Game is on Friday at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA at 12:00 p.m. MT.
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