Matthew Salcido - The Daily Lobo

Sports

OPINION: Lobo sports’ most important new student-athletes

Matthew Salcido | May 16

Recruiting is as unique and important to college sports as any aspect of the game itself, sometimes even more so. Recruiting can stress fans, break coaches and change programs forever. The hardest thing about recruiting is that it’s never done; a player can come, go or hold out for as long as an offseason can go. With this in mind, Daily Lobo sports editor Matthew Salcido has broken down some of the most important student-athletes making their way down to the University of New Mexico, at least for now.

Culture

REVIEW: 2022 presents a weak slate of Oscar-nominated animated shorts

Matthew Salcido | March 22

The nominees for the 2022 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film showcase a weaker set of nominees than years previous. None of the shorts pushed the boundaries of animation particularly far with most being light on any kind of emotional substance. “Boxballet,” directed by Anton Dyakov “Boxballet” is a brilliant little short out of Russia and easily my favorite of the nominees. We follow a boxer, Evgeny, and a ballerina, Olya, after their initial meeting as they get to know each other and try to decide whether anything romantic might happen between them. Through a familiar story, “Boxballet” utilizes no dialogue, with the entire story being told through the animation and its visuals, culminating in a truly riveting experience.

Culture

OPINION: Oscar-nominated live-action shorts center trauma and loss

Matthew Salcido | March 20

This review contains spoilers for “Ala Kachuu - Take and Run,” “The Long Goodbye,” “The Dress,” “Please Hold,” and “On My Mind” This year’s nominees for the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film all center around the human response to trauma and the isolation that can often follow. If you want some unspoiled recommendations, I’d say “Ala Kachuu - Take and Run” is brilliant, “The Long Goodbye” is quite good, “The Dress” would’ve been amazing were it not for one fatal mistak eand “Please Hold” and “On My Mind” are solid. If I had to pick my preference to win, I’d go with “Ala Kachuu - Take and Run.”

Sports

Lobos women’s basketball advances to Sweet 16 of WNIT

Matthew Salcido | March 20

The University of New Mexico women’s basketball team beat the University of San Diego Toreros 73-69 Sunday, March 20 at The Pit. The win advances the Lobos to the third round of the Women’s National Invitational Tournament as one of only 16 teams left. Saturday’s win was the UNM women’s 26th in the season, only the third time they’ve reached that many wins in a single season in program history San Diego drew a stark stylistic contrast with the high-octane, sharp-shooting Lobos. Throughout the season, the Toreros have relied on defense and scoring in the paint to win games. The Lobos scored early and got up 5-0 before Sydney Hunter scored San Diego’s first points.

Sports

Lobos track and field teams compete in Mountain West indoor championships

Matthew Salcido | February 27

The University of New Mexico track and field teams competed in the Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships Feb. 24-26 at the Albuquerque Convention Center. This competition gave the Lobos the chance to show off their best and jockey for qualifying positions for the NCAA Indoor Championships. It’s no secret that the best of the Lobos’ track and field are in the women’s distance program, and they got the chance to prove it again first thing Thursday, Feb. 24 in the distance medley relay, though there was some drama on the way. On the first 1200-meter leg of the relay, the lap counter jumped erroneously from three laps to one.

Sports

Arda Azkara captivates the Mountain West

Matthew Salcido | February 21

Arda Azkara may be a new face around the Mountain West Conference, but the freshman tennis player from Turkey has been gunning to conquer the tennis world ever since he was a kid. Now playing for the University of New Mexico, Azkara seized the conference’s attention when he swept the Mountain West Player and Freshman of the Week honors for the week of Feb. 10-16. When asked about that week, the first thing he talked about was his team’s success. “(It was) a tough week,” Azkara said. “Two big matches against Santa Clara and GCU … We were 0-2 on the season but we had those two good wins and now (on Thursday) we’re at 2-2.”

Sports

Men’s basketball falls to CSU 83-68

Matthew Salcido | February 17

The University of New Mexico men’s basketball team lost to the Colorado State University Rams 83-68 Thursday, Feb. 17 at The Pit. The Rams came to Albuquerque at No. 3 in the Mountain West conference and on a four-game win streak. The Lobos were hoping to get another upset after defeating the University of Wyoming on Tuesday, Feb. 15 but failed. Colorado State features star forward David Roddy, who had averaged 19.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game this season. The Lobos lost their first matchup to the Rams, 80-74, back in January.

Sports

Women’s basketball clobbers Utah State 93-73

Matthew Salcido | February 17

The University of New Mexico women’s basketball team resoundingly defeated Utah State University 93-73 Wednesday, Feb. 16 at The Pit. The win makes the Lobos 12-3 in conference play, still trailing the No. 1 University of Nevada, Las Vegas but far ahead of the 9-4 University of Nevada, Reno. Utah State has struggled this season and was only 3-11 going into Wednesday’s game. UNM beat the Aggies 98-83 in Utah in January, and the Lobos scored more than 90 points the previous two times they played Utah State before this season. Both teams got off to a fast start offensively. The Aggies looked to post up against UNM’s Shaiquel McGruder and got a good mix of driving layups, outside jumpers and post scoring.

Sports

Lobos women’s basketball suffers first home loss to Wyoming

Matthew Salcido | February 6

The University of New Mexico women’s basketball team were handed their first home loss of the season, 60-59, by the University of Wyoming on a last second buzzer beater at The Pit on Saturday, Feb. 5. With two losses in conference play, the Lobos dropped to second place in the Mountain West Conference standings behind the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. UNM was battered inside, particularly by 6-foot, 4-inch Allyson Fertig, who scored 19 points and grabbed 18 rebounds. As a team, Wyoming scored 40 points in the paint while UNM managed a small 22 paint-points in comparison. They also outrebounded the Lobos 43-24.

Sports

Lobos women’s basketball beats CSU, stays undefeated at home

Matthew Salcido | February 3

The University of New Mexico women’s basketball team beat Colorado State University 81-73 Wednesday, Feb. 2 at The Pit. UNM is still undefeated at home and currently holds the No. 1 spot in the Mountain West Conference while still in a neck-and-neck battle with UNLV to keep the top spot. The Lobos beat the Rams 85-74 in their first matchup in January after Lobo Antonia Anderson put up 30 points. Colorado State had to try to keep up with a Lobo offense that has averaged over seven points more than theirs through the season. The Pit crowd was sparse due to harsh winter weather conditions, which also delayed tipoff for 22 minutes.