Women's basketball: Lobos outplay Aggies

The Lobos defeated the New Mexico State Aggies 67-52. The University of New Mexico improved to a 6-2 record and NMSU fell to 4-3.

UNM had four players in double-digit scoring. Paula Reus and Charlotte Kohl led the team in scoring with 15 points each. Reus added eight rebounds and five assists. Kohl finished with 13 rebounds and four blocks.

Aniyah Augmon scored 10 points and had five steals in the game. Vianè Cumber had an injury to her shoulder and was unable to play the second half, so Lara Langermann came off the bench and played the third most minutes on the team with 32. She hit two three-pointers to keep up the Lobos' offensive momentum.

NMSU had two players in double-digit scoring. Ene Adams scored 11 and grabbed 11 rebounds. Lucía Yenes came off the bench and led the team in scoring with 20 points along with two assists, six rebounds and two steals.

UNM won the game by using their size to their advantage. They outscored the Aggies 42-16 in the paint and out rebounded them 47-33. After the game, Augmon said that was the game plan but didn't realize how well they executed.

"It's about being aggressive and we did a better job of going up to get those rebounds today and I think that had a lot to do with it,” Augmon said.

Head Coach Mike Bradbury is now 7-0 against the Aggies at home and 11-2 overall. He credited their performance to slowing down NMSU Guard Molly Kaiser who had given the Lobos trouble in the past. Kaiser had four points on two for eight shooting.

"I don't know if we've ever played New Mexico State and Molly Kaiser didn't have 25 plus (points) ... We committed a lot of resources to her and we had four different people guard her throughout the game," Bradbury said.

Both teams started out slow on offense. Kohl scored the first points of the game with a layup and Kaiser tied it up with a jump shot. The Lobos were down 4-3 at the first media timeout with 4:39 left in the first quarter.

Nyah Wilson drove to the basket to give the Lobos the lead 7-6. UNM played well on defense and got to the free throw line to keep themselves in the game, but made just two of their 13 shots in the quarter.

Langerman started the second quarter with a three-pointer for the Lobos but Aggie Yenes responded immediately with a three-pointer of her own. Reus hit a three-pointer to trigger a 9-0 run from the Lobos to force the Aggies to take a timeout down 21-12 with 2:49 left in the second quarter.

In the first half, the Lobos did a great job at defending without fouling with the Aggies only shooting two in the entire half. UNM led 27-19 going into the third quarter. Kohl was dominating in the paint with eight points, five rebounds and three blocks in the half.

The Lobos started the third quarter with a 6-0 run but the Aggies got it right back with the two three-pointers. The Lobos led 35-24 with 5:35 remaining in the quarter.

NMSU's full court press after a made basket forced a turnover. But with good passing that led to easy layups, UNM held on to their lead. They were up by eight going into the fourth quarter.

Wilson made a three-pointer to extend the lead to 13 and Lobos led by double digits the rest of the game. Augmon dished the ball to Reus who gave it right back to Augmon for a layup and a foul. Augmon sank the and-one free throw to go up 58-42 with 4:47 left in the game.

With the Lobos up 15 and 53.1 seconds remaining, both Lobos and Aggies were diving for a loose ball on the ground. It ended with a scuffle that led to offsetting fouls from Augmon and Adams. Aggie Sianny Sanchez-Oliver was called for an intentional foul. Reus made both technical free throws and the Lobos won 67-52.

The Lobos will next play against Mississippi Valley State University on Monday, Dec. 4 at home in The Pit.

Thomas Bulger is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @thomasbulger10

---