During the tournament the Lobos will play three games in four days. The event also features Connecticut, George Mason, West Virginia, Dayton, Texas Tech and the College of Charleston.
UNM head coach Craig Neal said Sunday that he hadn’t had a chance to look at the scouting report for the Eagles (1-1), but he knew about some of their personnel led by coach Jim Christian.
“They have two really, really good guards, one of them was All-ACC player last year. He’ll have them playing at a high level,” Neal said. “They’ll be tough-minded, and they’ll guard you, so our guys are going to have to be ready.”
Sophomore guard Cullen Neal seems to be ready after finding his rhythm early this season with back-to-back 20-plus point games. He netted a career-high 26 points in the season opener against Idaho State and followed that act with a 23-point outing against Cal State Fullerton.
The Lobos (2-0) have struggled in the half court so far this season. A vast majority of their points have come off of transition baskets with one of the guards running the floor.
Redshirt sophomore guard Devon Williams and senior guard Deshawn Delaney have flourished so far with this run-and-gun offense. Neal said he expects to get Williams or Delaney at least one transition dunk/layup per game.
Sophomore center Obij Aget, standing at 7-foot-1, has faced only one 7-footer this season, but he has held his own down low with the big men. He is averaging 8.5 points (6 of 8 from the field) and nine rebounds in the first two contests.
Shooting has been fairly consistent through the first two games of the season. The Lobos are connecting on 46.4 percent of their shots so far this year. However, the team has not showed productivity at the free-throw line. They are shooting 66.2 percent (43-65) from the charity stripe.
UNM has yet to trail this season. The Lobos have been tied for a combined 2:34 through the first two regular season games but have yet to find themselves down in either game.
This will be the fifth straight year that the team has participated in an early-season tournament. The Lobos have only taken home a championship trophy once when they defeated then 21st-ranked UConn Huskies in The Paradise Jam two years ago.
The Lobos will face Boston College in the first round of the tournament on Thursday. This is the second meeting in recent years between the Lobos and Eagles. The Lobos defeated BC in 2011 when they won 75-57 in the fifth-place game of the 76 Classic in Anaheim, Califonia.
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Neal said he has no worries about his players playing away from The Pit.
“I think they’ll be a little bit more relaxed,” he said with a smile. “It’s not easy going down that ramp even when you’re the home team ... It’s legendary; the tradition of this place (The Pit), and this building is legendary.”
Kyle Tomasi is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @KyTo22.
Men’s basketball vs. Boston College
Thursday
3:00 p.m.
TV: ESPN2
