LOBO WOMEN GET EVEN
Basketball victory at San Jose State puts UNM at .500.
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Solid defense, dominant rebounding and a little good fortune added up to victory for the University of New Mexico women’s basketball team Saturday.
Antiesha Brown and Khadijah Shumpert combined for 33 points and 17 boards as the Lobos edged San Jose State 64-62 in a back-andforth Mountain West battle at SJSU’s Event Center.
UNM led by as many as 12 points in the first half and trailed by nine in the second before rallying for its third straight win and sixth in seven games. The Lobos (10-10, 6-3) reached the .500 mark for the first time this season.
San Jose State’s Ta’Rea Cunnigan, who led all scorers with 23 points, stepped to the foul line with a second left and a chance to tie the score. Cunnigan picked up Brown’s fifth foul on a move to the basket.
But SJSU’s career scoring leader missed both shots. UNM’s Cherise Beynon rebounded the second, which appeared to be an intentional miss, and the Lobos secured the win.
“I wanted to tell the team to forget about their gear and run to the bus,” Lobo coach Yvonne Sanchez said in a postgame phone interview. “We didn’t want any part of overtime or even another second on the clock. Let’s take the win and get out of here.”
Both the Lobos and Spartans (9-11, 3- 6) controlled stretches of the game: UNM with rebounding and post play, SJSU with pressing defense and 3-point shooting.
UNM raced to a 14-2 lead behind Shumpert and Cherise Beynon, but its ball security began to break down under SJSU’s full-court pressure. The Lobos had 15 turnovers in the first half and the Spartans led 31-28 at the break.
San Jose State stretched it to 42-33, but UNM regained its composure and put together a big rally. Bryce Owens hit a pair of 3s and Brown scored nine of her 17 points during a 26-9 surge that gave New Mexico a 59-51 lead with 6:40 left.
“San Jose State’s a tough team to play here,” Sanchez said. “They were 7-1 at home coming in and they hit us with a big run. Our players bounced back and that’s a great testament to them.”
The Spartans came up with a final surge, twice cutting UNM’s lead to one point. But Shumpert scored four of her 16 points late and the Lobos hit enough free throws to escape.
Beynon had eight points,