Lobos face tall order against Ariz.
you know what, that you weren’t where you were supposed to be. We’ve really gotten back to just spending more time on ourselves.”
That means more time spent on the basics of shooting, player positioning and fighting for spots at both ends of the floor. The Lobos have failed to shoot better than 40 percent in six of the last eight games and the assists-to-turnover ratio is less than 1-to-1.
Rebounding, of course, continues to be the biggest problem. UNM’s glaring lack of size has only been magnified this season with the loss of center Connor MacDougall to injury and small forward Sam Logwood to a brief defection. The 6-foot-9 MacDougall has yet to to play since the exhibition loss to BYU on Oct. 27.
With Arizona’s lineup featuring 7-foot-1 freshman Deandre Ayton, a projected top pick in the NBA Draft next summer, the game clearly works from the inside out. On the surface, UNM has no one to guard him.
Weir said Ayton reminds him of Greg Oden, the former Ohio State big man who was still in college when Weir was on Steve Alford’s staff at Iowa. The Hawkeyes had to face Oden at least twice a year, making for a logistical nightmare in terms of matchups.
“It was very similar,” Weir said. “I thought Oden might have changed the game a little bit more defensively than [Ayton] does, but offensively he’s superior.”
Ayton averages 20.5 points, 11.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. He and 6-foot-5 guard Allonzo Trier combine to score more than half of the Wildcats’ average 84 points a night, making for one of the most lethal one-two punches in the country.
Aside from a disastrous three-game stretch Arizona spent at a tournament in the Bahamas over the Thanksgiving break, one in which the ’Cats came in ranked No. 2 but lost in consecutive days to North Carolina State, SMU and Purdue, things have gone according to plan.
They’ve won four straight ever since, including a win at home over No. 7 Texas A&M to climb back into the Top 25 in time for Saturday’s game.
Weir said if MacDougall plays, he’s getting thrown into the mix as though he’s been there the entire time. Whereas a guard coming back from injury might have a harder time getting minutes based on the team’s depth in the back court, the fact that 6-foot-9 senior Joe Furstinger and 6-foot10 freshman Vladimir Pinchuk are left alone gives MacDougall a chance to get significant time right away.
“Right now I think just with our lack of depth up front, he’s walking into a minimum of 10 minutes, you know, just right off the bat,” Weir said.
Game notes
Whiteout: UNM is encouraging fans to wear white to Saturday’s game, which is expected to draw a nearcapacity crowd despite it being on national TV and bumping into the end of the Gildan New Mexico Bowl right across the street.
Rarefied air: Ayton is listed at 260 pounds and is known for his remarkable jumping ability. There is a video of him YouTube showing off the 44-inch vertical leap that has NBA scouts drooling over his upside.
To see it, visit www.youtube.com/ watch?v=OeBhoVeFhT4.
Lobos-Wildcats: Weir said one of the first calls he made when he took over at UNM was to Arizona coach Sean Miller about extending the UNM-Arizona rivalry. The Lobos have already inked UTEP to a four-year contract but Weir wants games against regional rivals like Arizona, BYU, Texas Tech and UTEP to be a regular thing.
Women’s basketball
On the road: The unbeaten Lobos (11-0) head to Big 12 country on Saturday afternoon to face Oklahoma at the Lloyd Noble Center. The game can be seen on satellite for customers subscribing to Fox Sports Oklahoma.
UNM has set a school record for the best start in program history and tied the team record for its longest winning streak. The Lobos, however, haven’t beaten OU in 22 years and are just 2-9 against the Sooners overall.
Oklahoma snapped a four-game losing streak last weekend with a win over nationally ranked South Florida, but the Sooners (4-5) have struggled in several areas this season including 3-point shooting (31 percent) and turnovers (14.6).