After losing two games in a row for the first time this season, the University of New Mexico Lobos added another win to their record on Saturday, March 1, beating the Air Force Academy Falcons 92-71.
The Lobos had no trouble against the Falcons, as they led the other team for the entire game. The only time the game was tied was between tipoff and the first Lobo basket.
The Lobos were simply too fast and tenacious for the Falcons to handle. The Falcons were rattled by the Lobos' defensive pressure and ended up turning the ball over 20 times, which created 28 points of offense for the Lobos.
The Lobos easily got inside the paint and scored around the rim. Either through post-ups, fast breaks or drives from the outside, the Lobos seemed to be able to get to the basket at will.
Both teams hit their shots efficiently as the Lobos shot 53.1% and the Falcons shot 44.6% from the field. The Lobos created their lead through extra possessions and from the free-throw line.
The Lobos were led by guard Donovan Dent, who finished with 23 points and six assists. Four other Lobos finished with 14 or more points as they looked for each other on cuts and for kick-outs from drives.
The Lobos remain first in the Mountain West standing, and if they win the last two games on their schedule, the team will secure a Mountain West regular-season title.
“We wanted to win the regular season,” Dent said. “It’s more important in our opinion, and we wanted to win it bad.”
The Lobos have not won a regular-season Mountain West title in over 10 years, with their last one coming in the 2012-13 season.
“Our No. 1 goal is to win a regular-season championship,” Head Coach Richard Pitino said.
The Lobos did go to a smaller lineup than usual at times. This was partially due to key players getting into foul trouble. Nelly Junior Joseph had four fouls along with his 14 points and 13 rebounds. Forward Ibrahima Sacko also picked up four fouls despite his few minutes of playing time.
Forward Mustapha Amzil was an important contributor to the Lobos offense. He finished with 15 points and five rebounds. He struggled with an injury recently, only playing 15 minutes the previous game and missing the two games before that.
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“I thought maybe it's good to get him back in rhythm,” Pitino said. “He’s very, very important to what we do. It’s just a hard thing, ‘cause you can’t get a lot of rest right now.”
The Lobos will hit the road to face the University of Nevada Wolf Pack on Tuesday, March 4. Then, they will return home to finish out their regular season against the University of Las Vegas Running Rebels.
Jaden McKelvey-Francis is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on X @jadenmckelvey
