Men's Basketball: UNM hangs on for a hard-fought victory to stay in MW hunt

The Lobos were dealt a bad hand with some injuries prior to Wednesday night’s game, but they worked with what they had and pulled off an 80-77 victory over the UNLV Rebels.

The Lobos improved to 14-9 overall and 7-4 in the Mountain West conference and sit just below Nevada and Boise State in the conference standings. UNLV remained at the bottom with a 10-13 record, just 3-7 in league play.

"We were able to make plays and spread the floor tonight," UNM head coach Craig Neal said in a release. "I am proud of our guys."

The win did not come easy though, as New Mexico was missing senior forward Tim Williams, who had been a key member of the Lobo offense while averaging 17.9 points per game.

Neal recently released a statement that Williams suffered a “stress reaction” on his left foot and it is not clear how long he will have to rest.

However, the team handled his absence well.

Lobo junior guard Elijah Brown led the team with 29 points on 8-for-17 shooting, making all eight of his free throw attempts and three shots from beyond the arc.

Two other Lobos saw double figures. Senior center Obij Aget contributed with 15 points and 11 rebounds to record his first double-double of the season.

Freshman Damien Jefferson also added 13 points, a season-high for the guard/forward.

The Lobos were also missing guard/forward Dane Kuiper, who was forced to sit out due to concussion protocol after his nose was broken during an 82-65 loss to Nevada on Jan. 28.

Defending UNLV turned out to be a difficult task as Tyrell Green finished the night with 25 points, followed closely by teammate Jovan Mooring with 23.

But as a whole, the Rebels shot 39.1 percent from the field, well below the Lobos’ 48.3 percent.

UNLV had the edge at the foul line, making 81 percent of their shots, while the Lobos made 75 percent. But the edge wasn’t enough.

The Lobos might have gotten the win, but they weren’t the dominant team for much of the night. The biggest lead of the first half was five points, but it belonged to the Rebels at the 12:10 mark.

Both teams had runs, but neither could pull ahead for long. The two schools played to a dead heat, forcing a 35-35 tie to end the half.

A jumper by Jefferson gave the Lobos a two-point lead just 16 seconds into the second half. New Mexico held the lead until the 16:32 mark when a layup by UNLV’s Christian Jones made it 41-41.

Much like the first period, the teams traded shots and the lead and, with 3:17 remaining on the clock, the score was tied 66-66. Jefferson once again broke the tie, this time with a layup.

The score put the Lobos on top for good, and they stretched the advantage to as many as six with 42 seconds remaining. But UNLV was desperately looking for a comeback and almost got it.

With eight seconds remaining, Green made it a two-point game at 79-77. The Lobos left the door open after Jordan Hunter missed a free throw with about six seconds left.

Mooring tried to push the game into overtime with a last second three-point attempt, but the shot was off target.

The match was a close one, but Neal said he was pleased with the way his team executed against the Rebels to close out the game.

The Lobos will be back in Albuquerque this weekend to host San Jose State on Saturday for a 4 p.m. tip-off.

Isabel Gonzalez is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. She mainly covers men’s soccer and basketball. She can be reached at sports
@dailylobo.com or on Twitter 
@cisabelg.