On Jan. 10 the Lobos had to prepare for an Aggie squad that just lost two of its best players, forward Stephanie Bairstow and guard Makenlee Williams. This time around, UNM knows to key in on freshman standout Funda Nakkasoglu.
Nakkasoglu nearly willed her team to victory after dropping 29 points in a tight 60-59 game at WisePies Arena. However, a late turnover by the freshman guard demolished any chance of their leaving the Pit victorious.
“The biggest focus for us is that she can’t take the game over,” head coach Yvonne Sanchez said. “This kid kind of went off and had her coming out party against us. Now we know what she can do.”
Sanchez said her team may not necessarily be able to stop the freshman phenom completely, but the Lobos (11-10, 7-3 Mountain West) will have to contain her.
Nakkasoglu is an early favorite to win the Mountain West Freshman Player of the Year. Her 15.8 points per contest is fifth-best in the Mountain West, and she averages 4.5 assists per game, which is good enough for third in the conference.
Redshirt senior guard Antiesha Brown said the Lobos will yet again rely on defense to contain the explosiveness of Nakkasoglu. She said New Mexico will force Nakkasoglu to settle for tough jump shots in traffic and not behind the arc.
“We want to get her going to the basket,” Brown said. “That’s where all of our help is. We want to run her off the three-point line.”
Junior guard Bryce Owens said the Lobos aren’t bringing a completely new look defensively, but team defense is going to play a large role. She said she is pleased with the defensive play during the Lobos’ four-game winning streak.
“I think we’re going to be a little bit more prepared this time around,” Owens said. “They’re going to come out with a lot of energy, and we have to match that energy.”
Sanchez said the one-point victory at home does nothing for the Lobos’ confidence going into Logan, Utah. However, she said the team’s progress from the last time the Lobos encountered Utah State warrants heightened confidence.
However, Sanchez said Utah State (6-16, 3-7 MW) must have a feeling that it can knock down the number-three team in the Mountain West, since the Aggies nearly pulled out a road victory less than a month ago.
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The Lobos have matured into a solid running machine and have been able to run teams down with its bench.
“They’re going to be good and mad and they think they can beat us,” Sanchez said. “What makes us a really good team right now is our depth.”
The Lobos have won seven of their last eight games, including Wednesday’s dominating 69-46 blowout against Air Force (2-20, 1-10 MW). Owens said that the streak is nice, but the team is hungry for more.
“We’re happy that we got these wins, but we’re not satisfied,” Owens said. “We know we’ve got a tough road ahead of us.”
Liam Cary-Eaves is the assistant sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at assistantsports@dailylobo.com or on twitter @Liam_CE.
