by Lee Cornell
Daily Lobo
The UNM basketball team led its intrastate rivals for nearly 40 minutes on Saturday night but ultimately let the game slip away, losing 59-58 to the New Mexico State Aggies.
Senior guard Ruben Douglas had the ball stolen from him as he drove to the basket with less than 30 seconds left in the game and a one point Lobo lead. NMSU's Brandon Mason stole the ball and fed it to a streaking Jason Fontenet who went the distance and laid the ball in with 16.7 seconds left in the game, giving the Aggies a one point advantage heading into the final moments.
UNM had a chance to win the game on its last possession but freshman Mark Walters missed a difficult running shot as time expired.
The only other lead that NMSU had on the evening came in the first half when it led 19-18. From the beginning the Lobos came out and took an early advantage. Douglas hit a lay up after going back door and junior guard Javin Tindall got out of his recent slump with a 3-pointer to put UNM up 5-0.
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Towards the end of the first half, the Lobos led 32-23 but lost their shooting touch as the Aggies crept back into the game, cutting the lead to 32-29 at the half.
In the second half, UNM found its shooting touch once again and took a commanding 44-35 lead. But a 3-pointer from NMSU's Mason cut the lead to 44-38 with nine minutes and 23 seconds left in the contest.
The Aggies trailed throughout but kept it close by hitting clutch shots.
With the Lobos up 52-50, Walters followed a missed shot with a one-handed follow jam that put UNM back up by four and gave them a much needed boost of energy. NMSU however was unfazed, scoring on its next possession to cut the lead in half 54-52. Douglas was fouled for the Lobos and hit both free throws to give UNM back its four point advantage 56-52. Fontenet answered for the Aggies driving to the hoop and getting fouled by Lobo guard Ryan Ashcraft while making the layup. He made the free throw, cutting the lead to one point with 1:20 left.
UNM was plagued by untimely poor free-throw shooting as both sophomore forward Jamaal Williams and Douglas made one-of-two from the stripe, giving the Lobos a 58-57 lead when Douglas was stripped by Mason.
For the game the Lobos shot 45.8 percent from the field and 25 percent from beyond the 3-point line. They were led by Douglas and Williams, who scored 20 and 15 points respectively. Walters and Tindall also tossed in nine and eight points. Douglas led all rebounders, pulling down nine boards.
NMSU was led by Mason and Fontenet who contributed 20 and 14 points. Mason also hit four of six 3-pointers. As a team, the Aggies shot 34 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from 3-point land.
Perhaps the most important statistic of the game was UNM's 20 turnovers to NMSU's 14. The Lobos were also nine-of-14 from the free-throw line while the Aggies were 16-for-25.
UNM returns to The Pit tonight to take on Northeastern State University. Tip-off is is scheduled for a 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast on KKOB, 770-AM.
