New Mexico

Five takeaways from Michigan State basketball’s win over New Mexico in the NCAA Tournament

Published

10 months ago

March 24, 2025

Five takeaways from Michigan State basketball’s win over New Mexico in the NCAA Tournament

For the second time in the 2025 NCAA Tournament, Michigan State basketball took a major punch in the first half from a feisty opponent but was able to pull away in the second half. In the Round of 32, the Spartans beat New Mexico 71 to 63 after going into halftime down to the Lobos.

Below, you can see our three key takeaways from the game:

Tom Izzo adding Coen Carr to starting lineup in the second half was brilliant

After heading into halftime down two to New Mexico, the Spartans emerged in the second half with a different opening lineup. Tom Izzo made the decision to switch out Jaxon Kohler for Coen Carr at power forward. There was one very clear reason why he did this: Mustapha Amzil. Amzil went off for 12 points in the first half when being guarded by Kohler, so Izzo put one of his lockdown defenders, Coen Carr, in the game to shut him down. Amzil only scored two more points the rest of the game, and Coen Carr added eight points, six rebounds, and a massive block along with his defense.

MSU’s veteran guards lead the way

In a night where freshman phenom Jase Richardson struggled from the field, Michigan State was carried on the offensive end by their veteran guards Tre Holloman and Jaden Akins. Those two led the Spartans in scoring with a combined 30 points, hitting the Spartans’ only made three-pointers on the night.

Frankie Fidler was a hero for MSU in this win

Frankie Fidler might not be the 20-point-per-game scorer some hoped to see this year, but he has been a vital piece off the bench, routinely helping the Spartans find some steady scoring when things get tight. While he hasn’t shot the ball well this year, he has found a great role in the offense with his willingness to drive to the basket and draw contact. Fidler had 10 points in this one.

Carson Cooper might deserve a starting spot

No matter what, I know that Carson Cooper will end up getting minutes every game with the way MSU uses their center rotation, but I am starting to wonder if Cooper has earned a starting spot for the rest of the tournament. He is very active on defense, sets good screens on offense, and has been rebounding the ball really well (he had a team-high eight rebounds against New Mexico and nine rebounds against Bryant). It might be time to give him the honor of starting the game at center.

I am not worried about Jase Richardson

Jase Richardson had one of his worst games as a starter against New Mexico, only scoring six points on 1-for-10 shooting. However, I am not concerned about Richardson. For one, he scored 15 points against Bryant and looked unbelievable in the second half of that win. But I also think it was clear that New Mexico was overplaying Richardson, and playing him very physically, to try and make other Spartans beat them instead. Even as he struggled to make shots, Richardson played a huge role in putting New Mexico in foul trouble, as the Lobos ended up committing twice as many fouls as MSU.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Andrew Brewster on Twitter @IAmBrewster.

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New Mexico

Understanding New Mexico’s data center boom | Opinion

Published

4 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Understanding New Mexico’s data center boom | Opinion

Paul Gessing, Rio Grande Foundation
| Las Cruces Sun-News

After years of failure to land a “big fish” business for New Mexico’s economy (or effectively use the oil and gas revenues to grow the economy) Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham with the help of her Economic Development Secretary Rob Black have lured no fewer than three large data centers to New Mexico. These data centers are being built to serve the booming world of Artificial Intelligence (AI), and they will have profound impacts on New Mexico.

It is our view that having these data centers locate in New Mexico is better than having them locate elsewhere. While we have many differences of opinion with this governor, we are pleased to see her get serious about growing and diversifying New Mexico’s oil-dependent economy albeit quite late in her second term.

Sadly, the governor and legislature have chosen not to use broad based economic reforms like deregulation or tax cuts to improve New Mexico’s competitiveness. But, with the failure of her “preferred” economic development “wins” like Maxeon and Ebon solar both of which the governor announced a few years ago, but haven’t panned out, the focus on a more realistic strategy is welcome and long overdue.

Currently, three new data centers are slated to be built in New Mexico:

Oracle’s Project Jupiter in Santa Teresa with an investment of $165 billion.
Project Zenith slated to be built in Roswell amounts to a $11.7 billion investment.
New Era Energy & Digital, Inc. While the overall investment is unclear, the energy requirement is the largest of the three at 7 gigawatts (that’s seven times the power used by the City of San Francisco).

What is a data center? Basically, they are the real-world computing infrastructure that makes up the Internet. The rise of AI requires vast new computing power. It is critical that these facilities have uninterrupted electricity.

That electricity is going to be largely generated by traditional sources like natural gas and possibly nuclear. That contravenes New Mexico’s Energy Transition Act of 2019 which was adopted by this Gov. and many of the legislators still in office. Under the Act electrical power emissions are supposed to be eliminated in a few years.

With the amount of money being invested in these facilities and the simple fact that wind and solar and other “renewable” energy sources aren’t going to get the job done. In 2025 the Legislature passed and MLG signed HB 93 which allows for the creation of “microgrids” that won’t tax the grid and make our electricity more expensive, but the ETA will have to be amended or ignored to provide enough electricity for these data centers. There’s no other option.

New Mexicans have every right to wonder why powerful friends of the governor can set up their own natural gas microgrids while the rest of us face rising costs and decreased reliability from so-called “renewables.” Don’t get me wrong, having these data centers come to New Mexico is an economic boon.

But it comes tempered with massive subsidies including a 30-year property tax exemption and up to $165 billion in industrial revenue bonds. New Mexico is ideally suited as a destination for these data centers with its favorable climate and lack of natural disasters like hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods. We shouldn’t be giving away such massive subsidies.

Welcoming the data center boom to New Mexico better than rejecting them and pushing them to locate in other states. There is no way to avoid CO2 emissions whether they happen here or somewhere else. But, there are questions about both the electricity demand and subsidies that must be addressed as New Mexico’s data center boom begins.

What will the Legislature, radical environmental groups, and future governors of our state do to hinder (or help) bring these data centers to our State? That is an open question that depends heavily on upcoming statewide elections. It is important that New Mexicans understand and appreciate these complicated issues.

Paul Gessing is president of New Mexico’s Rio Grande Foundation. The Rio Grande Foundation is an independent, nonpartisan, tax-exempt research and educational organization dedicated to promoting prosperity for New Mexico based on principles of limited government, economic freedom and individual responsibility

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New Mexico

New Mexico maintains full childhood vaccine recommendations despite HHS rollback

Published

16 hours ago

January 7, 2026

Press Room

New Mexico maintains full childhood vaccine recommendations despite HHS rollback

SANTA FE, N.M. (KFOX14/CBS4) – The New Mexico Department of Health says it will continue to recommend the full schedule of childhood vaccines.

State officials announced the move Tuesday, directly defying a new federal policy that scaled back routine immunization guidance.

The announcement comes after U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS), under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., reduced the number of vaccines it recommends for all children.

The New Mexico Department of Health stated the federal changes were “not based on new scientific evidence or safety data.”

“New Mexico will not follow the federal government in walking away from decades of proven public health practice,” said Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. “Our recommendations remain unchanged.”

State health officials sought to reassure parents, emphasizing that vaccines remain widely available and covered by insurance.

“We know this is confusing for parents, but the science is clear: vaccines are safe, effective, and save children’s lives,” said Dr. Miranda Durham, chief medical officer for NMDOH.

All childhood vaccinations will continue to be covered under programs like Medicaid and the federal Vaccines for Children Program.

The state encourages parents to consult their healthcare providers using the American Academy of Pediatrics’ immunization schedule.

RECOMMENDED: CDC cuts childhood vaccine list, sparking healthcare professionals’ concerns

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