2010-11 (Senior)
Guard Gordo Castillo completed his four-year career in 2010-11 as one of the best shooters in Aggie history. He finished his career as No. 5 on NM State’s all-time career 3-point field goals made list with 161 and No. 6 for career 3-point field goals attempted with 396. In his senior campaign, Castillo played in 32 games with eight games started. He averaged 9.1 points per game, which ranked third on the team. Castillo shot 40.0 percent from the 3-point line (66-of-165) and 85.7 percent from the free-throw line (42-of-49), both marks were team highs. He also shot 43.1 from the field (91-of-211) and recorded 30 assists and 21 steals. Castillo posted 13 double-figure games as a senior, the most of his career. Castillo tied his career high with 20 points in the 82-76 win over Louisiana (Dec. 21) with a 4-for-7 performance from the 3-point line. He tallied 10 games with three or more 3-pointers including a season-high five 3-pointers against San Jose State (Jan. 15) and Idaho (Jan. 29). In his final game in the Pan American Center, Castillo recorded his first career double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds in the 77-68 win over Nevada (March 5). He followed that showing with 14 points on 10-of-10 shooting at the free-throw line to help the Aggies defeat Nevada, 66-60, (March 10) in the first round of the WAC Tournament.
2009-10 (Junior)
In his junior campaign, Castillo made an appearance in all 34 Aggie games along with starting two contests at UTEP (Dec. 13) and at UCLA (Dec. 15). He averaged 5.4 points and 1.9 rebounds per game in 2009-10. Castillo shot 88.9 percent from the free-throw line, 43.1 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from the 3-point line. In WAC games, he shot 48.0 percent from beyond the arc, which ranked second in the league. Castillo also had the second-best 3-point percentage in a WAC game, 83.3 percent. He made 5-of-6 shots from the 3-point line at Louisiana Tech (Jan. 30). In the second rivalry game of the year at New Mexico (Dec. 5), Castillo posted a team-high 17 points off the bench along with five rebounds, and both marks were season-high performances. He was 4-for-7 from the field and shot a career-high 8-of-9 from the free-throw line. In his first start of the season at UTEP, Castillo scored 17 points on a 5-for-7 shooing performance including 3-of-5 from behind the 3-point line and a 4-for-4 showing at the free-throw line. His performance helped the Aggies to an 87-80 victory, which was the first win over the Miners in El Paso since December 2006. Castillo followed that performance with 11 points in a career-high 31 minutes at UCLA’s history Pauley Pavilion in his second consecutive start of the year. In his best game in WAC play at Louisiana Tech, Castillo tallied 17 points, a season-high mark he achieved for a third time, and he was 6-for-7 from the field in the 91-77 win that handed the Bulldogs their first home loss of the season. In the next road game of the year at Fresno State (Feb. 11), Castillo scored 10 points, which was his fifth double-digit scoring performance of the season. Castillo concluded his junior year with six points in his first NCAA Tournament game against No. 12 Michigan State (March 19) with a 2-for-3 showing from the 3-point line.
2008-09 (Sophomore)
Castillo played a significant role for the Aggies as a sophomore in 32 games. He shot 44.8 percent (39-of-87) from the 3-point line, a mark that led the WAC and ranked No. 7 on NM State’s single-season list for 3-point field goal percentage. Castillo posted a 48.1 field goal percentage and an 85.7 free-throw percentage and he averaged 4.5 points and 2.1 rebounds per game. He started two games in his second season against UTEP (Dec. 14) and at Hawai’i (March 7). In the ESPNU BracketBuster 94-86 win over Cal State Fullerton (Feb. 21), Castillo had a career-high 20 points on 6-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc along with five rebounds. He was a consistent 3-point threat with at least one made in 21-of -32 games. At Kansas (Dec. 3), Castillo shot 50 percent from the 3-point line for six points in 21 minutes of action. In his first career start, a 90-78 win over UTEP, Castillo scored four points and grabbed four rebounds. He followed that performance with eight points in only 13 minutes against Prairie View A&M (Dec. 17). Castillo continued to strike quickly with a 50 percent 3-point showing and nine points in 13 minutes of action against Loyola Marymount (Dec. 28). In the WAC opener at Fresno State (Jan. 3), he scored 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field with a pair of 3-pointers in the 79-66 victory. Castillo posted his second double-figures performance of the season at Idaho (Jan. 24) with 11 points and four boards. Two games later against Hawai’i (Jan. 31), he collected 12 points on a perfect 4-of-4 from the 3-point line.
2007-08 (Freshman)
In his first season as an Aggie, Castillo made an appearance in 18 games. He shot 41.9 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from the 3-point line. The Las Cruces native made at least one shot from beyond the arc in eight games. Castillo averaged 2.1 points per game. He scored in his first appearance with a 3-pointer against UC Davis (Nov. 14). In the first WAC home game of the year against Fresno State (Jan. 5), Castillo provided a spark off the bench with a career-high eight points on 2-for-4 shooting from the 3-point line in a career-best 19 minutes. Castillo hit multiple 3-pointers on four occasions, Prairie View A&M (Dec. 11), Alcorn State (Dec. 31), Long Beach State (Feb. 23) in addition to the Fresno State game.
High School
Castillo, a two-time Gatorade Player of the Year, is the only student-athlete to ever win the award twice in New Mexico boy’s basketball. He averaged 25 points, seven rebounds and six assists as a senior. Castillo scored 30 or more points nine times as a senior while he poured in a career-best 51 against Albuquerque High School. In his junior season, Castillo averaged 26.3 points and 7.4 rebounds per game while he led the Bulldawgs to the Class 5A State Basketball Tournament. In the opening round of the state tournament, Castillo scored 25 points and grabbed a career-best 19 rebounds as the Bulldawgs nearly upset top-seeded Manzano.
Personal
He was born and raised in Las Cruces and is the son of Arthur and Elizabeth Castillo. He was a three-year academic award winner at Las Cruces High School. Castillo majored in sociology.
