The secret is out of a senior guard of Wyoming Obi Agbim – Casper Star -Tribun

Wyoming’s senior guard switched from a slightly recruited junior college in Star of Division II from the first team of Division II at Fort Lewis College to the leading goalkeeper in the Mountain West conference through the starting 15 games of the season.

Before injuring its ankle in the second half against Boise State on December 31, AGBIM averaged 18.5 points, three rebounds and three assists per match. The senior led the conference with a ridiculous 47% 3-point conversion while shooting 51% of the pitch.

Not bad for a player who goes through his first season at the DI level. AGBIM not only showed that he was ready for DI competition, but also to be a star at the first class of hoops at college.

Why did AGBIM take it so long to make the jump? Patience.

AGBIM had the opportunity to leave Fort Lewis after his season as a sophomore in 2022-23, but was not satisfied with the offers. After its fully Rokina presentation at the mountain athletic conference last season, in which it was an average of 15.5 ppg, AGBIM was ready to transfer to Wyoming with the remaining eligibility season.

Then UW’s head coach Jeff Linder went to New Mexico and Agby again had the decision to make. He entered the transfer portal and over 60 scholarship offers arrived.

While the 6-foot-3 guard tried to sift the stakeholders, he was heard by Wyoming Nick Reynolds assistant coach. Reynolds spent time recruiting agbim in the past, so when Sundance Wix was hired as the Cowboy Chief Coach in May, and Reynolds was asked to join the staff as an assistant, holding an agbim in the cosme became a top priority.

“Coach Reynolds called me and he told me that coach Wix was doing really good things (in Green Bay) that he would thrive in his insult,” Agby said. “I later had a phone call with coach Wix and he just explained how my game would fit into the system he wanted to start.”

Although AGBIM always maintained the self -confidence that he was a Division I player, he was extremely aware of the huge jump from the Athletic Conference of the Rocky Mountain to the Mountain West.

“I knew how strong the Mountain West Conference was,” AGBIM said. “This is one of the four best conferences at Basketball College, there are great players throughout the league.”

Despite the significant difference in the level of talents from DII to DI, the transition has been a hassle-free AGBIM since its debut with a 25-point performance against Concordia-St. Paul in just 25 minutes.

AGBIM added efforts on 28, 24 and 23 points against Bellarmine, Tennessee State and Loyola-Marymount in the game without a conference. Even when he attracted more attention from the opposite coaching staffs in their relevant scout reports, AGBIM continued to shoot the ball at an elite level as he filled the coveted role as the goal scorer of his team.

“I’m proud of the consistency,” Wix said. “To be a daily dude, you have to do it against all participants. He did it against the Big 12 teams, he did it against Low-Major, Mid-Major, it doesn’t matter. “

AGBIM said he was not trying to keep the conference at the point, sets records or reaches any plateau for evaluating, having hit 1000 points in the career in December. He is simply focused on making the right shots and the right moment to help Wyoming win games.

“I didn’t think to get here, I’ll be a leading goal scorer, but I just want to do my best to help the team,” AGBIM said. “I didn’t necessarily shoot many pictures, but every frame I (tried) tried to be as effective as possible and just take the right one at the right moment.”

In the recent upset victory of the team in UNLV, Agbim ended up with the ball in his hands with The Pokes at eight with less than a minute to play. When the shot clock descended, Agby was well protected, but the guard created a space using his vertical jump and explosion. Despite his hand in her face, Agby has knocked a 17 -foot jumper to give Wyoming a 10 -point lead. The bucket turned out to be instrumental in winning with 2 points.

AGBIM underwent low -quality ankle spraining when it slipped on a smooth section of the court during a home match against Boyz State on December 31. AGBIM returned to the cowboys on January 14th in the rematch against Broncos when Wyoming was a 96-55.

The senior admitted that he was not yet 100 percent. This said he was able to play his usual 36 minutes per game.

“If I tie it, then I’m full. There are no restrictions, “he said.

After the dominant non -conference season, AGBIM is at seven games in its first season in Mountain West Play. What was thought to be his only season in the Mountain West, before AGBIM exhausted its collegial eligibility and start a professional career, it may not be the case anymore. AGBIM received the sixth season of eligibility earlier this month for his season, spent at a Junior College level after the recent decision of the Board of Directors of NCAA Di.

AGBIM entered the season in order to improve its catch and shot percentage. He ended the 2023-24 season at 39%, and Wyoming’s coaches made sense to work with the talented shooter in this aspect of his game the moment he came to Larami.

With 18 games, AGBIM is currently shooting with a 53% clip of catch and shot, seventh best in the country.

The next step in the evolution of Agby is to help Wyoming’s crime grow around him, as he recognizes the additional defender who comes along his way.

“He doesn’t have to get all the time to be a weapon,” Wix said. “He just has to be able to be a threat to be a weapon that can open a gap. There are many things we can do with Obi. I think what we learned from the (first) game of Boise is that he took many contested photos early and we can move this thing because he attracts so much attention that we will be able to find an advantage. “

One of the easiest ways to determine the player’s value is to remove this player from his team. The subsequent game of the team in his absence will tell you everything you need to know.

If there was any additional need for evidence of the enormous value of AGBIM for the cowboys of Wyoming after two months, his absence of two games told The Tale.

AGBIM can return to play for the 2025-26 season. The right guard must have many elite offers (school and zero) that await him when the year is over.

The big question now, can Wyoming afford to hold it?