Whatever lulls in energy New Mexico had last Saturday against USC continued into Wednesday night at WisePies Arena. Fortunately for the Lobos, their lackluster performance came against a subpar opponent.
UNM struggled to his shots from the field throughout the contest, particularly in the first half of a 75-63 victory over Nicholls State. The Lobos trailed by six points at one point in the first half and struggled to a 35-percent shooting effort into the under-8-minute media timeout.
Nicholls State entered the game with just one win on the season. Twice the Colonels have given up 99 points, including 106 points to Florida State in their opener. Wednesday was their closest game so far this season.
The Lobos (4-1) took Nicholls State lightly, Lobo head coach Craig Neal said, from what type of game it would be to the tempo of the game, to how fierce the Colonels would come out to play.
“They thought they were just going to come in here and it was going to be an easy one,” Neal said. “It wasn't.”
Forward Tim Williams recorded his second straight double-double with 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Guard Elijah Brown led all Lobos with 18 points, while guard Cullen Neal added 12. Though they reached double-figure scoring, Cullen Neal and Brown combined for 10 of 30 on field goals.
The Lobos simply were stagnant, Neal said. He called Wednesday’s game an opportunity to get better, but that didn’t happen. Some players on the team, he said, act as if they have a sense of entitlement when putting on the jersey.
He pointed to past experiences where UNM had guys who bought what the coaching staff sought, put in the work and found success. It is something this group must figure out, he said. Neal put part of it on himself, saying he’s been too soft on the team.
What is that going to take, exactly?
“Oh, they're going to buy in, or they won't play. I'll play Adam Cumber and Connor (Joy) and those guys,” Neal said. “It's a privilege to wear our jersey. It's not a right. Some of our guys think it's a right. They think they're just entitled to it.”
UNM finished the game with a 41.3 shooting percentage, completing 26 of its 63 shots from the field. From 3-point range, the Lobos made only 20.7 percent (6 of 29). Yet UNM managed to score 75 points. They have scored at least that many points in every game this season.
Lobo guard Anthony Mathis said the team found a way to win despite the poor shooting. However, he did admit the team did take the Colonels lightly.
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“That's with any team,” he said. “If you let any team hang around they can give you a game. We just need to learn how to step on them.”
It wasn’t necessarily bad shots UNM took, Neal said, but shots just weren't dropping. Looking back at the USC tape, Craig Neal thought his team took 13 bad shots. He estimated about four or five Wednesday night.
Down 27-21, UNM used two separate 7-0 scoring runs to push ahead to a 39-35 halftime lead. The Lobos outscored Nicholls State 20-0 from the 8:47 mark on.
The Colonels opened the second half with a 9-4 spurt to regain the lead, but the Lobos used a 14-2 rally to take the lead for good.
Joe Furstinger saw an increase in minutes and made the most of it. Playing 25 minutes, the forward blocked three shots and scored four. He also tied a personal best with two steals. Starting forward Sam Logwood also matched his best with two steals.
Craig Neal said earlier in the week he should have played Furstinger more against USC but found it hard with Williams and center Obij Aget playing well. This game, he got time for Furstinger, who held his own defending Nicholls State’s 7-foot, 300-pound center Kyle Caudill.
“Joe's giving us great effort. He's got great confidence right now. He's playing at a high level,” Craig Neal said. “I was real happy with the way he played, and he's going to continue to get better because he wants to get better.”
Mathis also performed well off the bench, leading all reserves with seven points, including a 3-pointer.
Nicholls State put three in double figures, led by forward Ja’Dante’ Frye’s 22 points. Guard Johnathan Bell added 13 points off the bench, while guard T.J. Carpenter netted 10 before being ejected with two technical fouls.
The Colonels were 32.8 percent on field goals (21 of 64). UNM out-rebounded them 45-39.
J.R. Oppenheim is the managing editor for the Daily Lobo. Contact him at managingeditor@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @JROppenheim.
