Vaqueros continue preparations amid schedule announcement

Graduate guard Marvin McGhee III defends the ball against Luis Ramirez (left), junior guard, and Marshal Destremau, redshirt junior forward, during the UTRGV Men’s Basketball Team practice Oct. 6 in the UTRGV Fieldhouse on the Edinburg campus.
Draya Rios/THE RIDER

Following a Sept. 29 news release by the Athletics department announcing the upcoming schedule, UTRGV’s Men’s Basketball Team remains steadfast in its preparations for the 2025-26 season.

The Vaqueros’ non-conference schedule includes games against some of the country’s toughest opponents in Baylor University and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, both regular fixtures in March Madness the last five years.

The Vaqueros, with head coach Kahil Fennell, enter with a chance to make history, as they are seeking their first consecutive winning seasons since the Broncs did so in the 1988-89 and 89-90 seasons.

Fennell is entering his second season and is coming off of UTRGV’s first winning season (16-15) since 2018-19 under the late Lew Hill (20-17).

The head coach said the games against top opponents provide a great “benchmark” to see how the team stacks up ahead of games against Southland Conference opponents.

Redshirt junior guard Always Wright receives the ball during the UTRGV Men’s Basketball Team practice Oct. 6 in the Fieldhouse on the Edinburg campus.
Draya Rios/THE RIDER

“It’s a great platform for our guys to play on national television,” Fennell said. “There’s so much that has to go into our preparation and our building process and our development before we get anywhere near Nov. 3 for Baylor.”

One thing that has changed this season compared to last is team depth. One issue that plagued the Vaqueros, particularly late in conference play, were injuries that forced them to put players out of position.

In both recruiting and the transfer portal, the Vaqueros added players who could both stretch the floor for their bigs and provide depth for the team, both in bench minutes and injuries.

Graduate forward Kwo Agwa, last season, missed time due to injury. Agwa said, this season, his priority, and by extension the team’s, is to stay available and to be “100% healthy.”

“I feel like most teams are not about skills; it’s about availability,” Agwa said. “Whoever’s available at the end of the day is going to win the championship, so I feel like that’s what we’ve got to capitalize on, getting rehab every day, focusing on getting healthy.”

Head coach Kahil Fennell runs the men’s basketball practice as the team prepares for the 2025-26 season Oct. 6 in the UTRGV Fieldhouse on the Edinburg campus.
Draya Rios/THE RIDER

Asked about the readiness of his roster to withstand the injury scenario, Fennell said he is “really excited” about this year’s roster.

“Obviously, we’d love to avoid that kind of a scenario again,” he replied. “Now, compared to this time last year, we just have so many more available bodies and guys that are really, really competitive and ready to help us win.”

Returning to the team is sophomore point guard Jaylen Washington, who said the team is entering the season “with a chip on our shoulder.” Washington averaged 13.8 minutes a game as a freshman last season.

“We love to work,” Washington said. “We’re ready to win, and we’re ready to show not just the [Rio Grande] Valley, but the whole world, and put the whole world on the show.”

The Vaqueros will play a couple of closed-door scrimmages against Texas A&M University–Kingsville and Prairie View A&M University before the season opening. Its home opener will be against Southern Adventist University Nov. 17 in the UTRGV Fieldhouse on the Edinburg campus.