Lobos better, but still fall to Nevada
Free-throw, 3-point shooting improve as Wolf Pack pull away
The margins are shrinking but the bottom line is still unchanged.
For the fourth straight time the University of New Mexico men’s basketball team was beaten by double digits in Mountain West Conference play, fading late in an 84-74 loss to Nevada on Saturday night in Lubbock, Texas.
It marked the second straight sweep for UNM opponents in league play, but Saturday’s loss was easily the most competitive for a team that has looked overmatched the last couple of weeks.
“Yeah we did lose but made major growth our first few games,” said senior guard Keith McGee. “Honestly even though we did lose I’m still proud of our guys and I’m happy where we’re at. We’re finally starting to get it.”
The Lobos (3-4 overall, 0-4 MWC) showed what they’re capable of in the first half. That’s what happens when the 3-pointers fall, the free-throw shooting isn’t too shabby and you’re not throwing the ball away. They connected on 5 of 12 tries from the outside and 7 of 9 from the line while turning it over just three times in the first 20 minutes.
Much of the spark from distance came from the guy who was most unhappy after the previous game. After attempting just one shot in limited minutes in Thursday’s loss to Nevada, McGee took to Twitter to voice his displeasure after his role in an otherwise listless offense.
“How you a shooter only getting maybe one shot,” he wrote in a since-deleted post just moments after UNM’s 14-point loss.
McGee subbed into Saturday’s game less than three minutes in. He immediately went to work, hitting his first two shots and launching twice more the next two times the ball was passed to him.
Even struggling point guard Jeremiah Francis got into the act by hitting a rare 3-pointer early in the game. That one shot produced more points than UNM’s leading scorer, Makuach Maluach, had in in the first half. The senior struggled finding his stroke but heated up after halftime with a muchneeded 3-pointer and a fast-break layup that was part of a 14-0 run that erased what had been a nine-point Nevada lead.
The Lobos took a 47-46 lead on a 3-ball by McGee in the corner off an assist from Saquan Singleton at the 14:20 mark. They went up by five just moments later on another 3, this time from freshman guard Isaiah Marin.
That got the attention of the Wolf Pack, who responded by connecting on their own shots at the same time the Lobos cooled off at the line, and their 2-2-1 press did little to slow Nevada. The
Pack started getting buckets at the back end of the press and opened a 69-60 lead in the final eight minutes.
“What really let us down as we kind of got out of that nice stretch was our defense,” said Lobos coach Paul Weir. “We just couldn’t get stops.”
Just when it looked to be over, the Lobos went on a 10-0 run to regain the lead in the final five minutes, but that’s as good as it got.
Desmond Cambridge hit back-to-back 3s for Nevada, which UNM followed with a turnover by Maluach. It was part of an 11-0 run that put the Lobos away. Forced into a smaller lineup due to foul trouble, the faster Lobos were unable to apply the pressure when needed to halt the Pack’s run.
Four Lobos finished in double figures, led by 14 from McGee and 13 from Maluach. Singleton and Francis each had 10; for Francis it was a career high as a Lobo.
LOBOS NOTES
Still winless: Weir dropped to 0-4 against former Lobos coach Steve Alford. He also lost his first four meetings with
New Mexico State after leaving the Aggies to take over at UNM four years ago.
Coming up: It doesn’t get any easier for New Mexico. Up next is a two-game series against Utah State, the defending MWC Tournament champion and a winner of four straight in conference play. The Aggies completed the season sweep of Air Force on Saturday and are now 7-3 overall and 4-0 in the MWC.
Both games will be played in Lubbock.