It's a bird, it's a plane, no wait -- it's Mark Walters.
The high-flying redshirt freshman has raised eyebrows with his play so far this year.
On Friday night, the Lobo sensation continued to display his strong skills.
He scored a career-high 19 points, including a run of nine straight points in the first half that helped the Lobos secure a comfortable lead as they cruised to a 91-66 win over the Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne.
Walters has been an impact player from the opening tip off of the first game. His first points as a UNM basketball player came in the Lobos' first game against the University of California when he threw down a put-back dunk that sent the Lobo faithful into frenzy.
"We knew in the first couple of days of individual workouts that he was a special player," Head coach Ritchie McKay said. "When he combines his knowledge of the game with his ability, he's a pro prospect."
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Since then, he has only gotten better.
Two games ago, the 6-foot-2-inch guard played more like a big man, recording his first career double-double, pulling in 11 rebounds to add to his 12 points.
It has not been an easy road to the starting lineup for the Albuquerque native. Last year, he went virtually unnoticed while sitting on the sidelines during his redshirt year.
At the beginning of last season few people could have projected Walters to be a part of the starting lineup. With former point guard Marlon Parmer and incoming freshman Ashanti Cook projected ahead of him on the depth chart, Walters looked like he would be fighting for playing time. That changed when Parmer was dismissed from the team and former Head coach Fran Frashilla resigned, prompting Cook to bolt to Georgetown University. Since then, Walters has been thrust into the Lobos' immediate picture -- and he hasn't disappointed. Going into Friday's game, Walters was averaging 9.8 points per game and an impressive 6.8 rebounds a game, including a team-high 14 offensive rebounds in just over 23 minutes per contest. His rebounding has been second only to senior star Ruben Douglas.
Walters may have slipped under the media radar but he did not go unnoticed by his teammates.
"He wasn't a surprise to us at all," junior forward Jamaal Williams said. "We saw him in practice last year and he was doing the same stuff he's doing in games now."
With the lack of size on this year's UNM squad, Walters has had to play a physical game, and that suits him just fine. He may not be that tall but he's strong. The three-sport high school star seems to fit the build of a football player more than a basketball player.
"He works hard in the weight room, you can see he's big and strong, kind of like a football player and he's explosive," Douglas said. "He's 6'2 but he plays like he's about 6'8."
Walters has also proved to be one of the few players on the team that can create his own shot. He has been involved in pressure situations early and often with the Lobos involved in four tight games already.
It was Walters that took the final shot with UNM down by a point against New Mexico State University a little over a week ago. Although he missed the shot, the experience can only mean good things for future close games.
Walters is a part of a team that will rely heavily on first-year players this year. In just a few games, he has assumed a leadership role among the other first-year players forward David Chiotti, guard Jeff Hart and forward Mikal Monette.
"I see myself as a leader who leads by example," Walters said. "I'm an energy guy that will do whatever it takes to get the team going."
His work ethic has been widely discussed among teammates and coaches. Walters said that his mom's relentless work ethic while raising him and his sisters alone taught him to always work hard.
"I know that to get anywhere in life you have to work hard," he said. "It only hurts for a little bit and it's worth it in the long run."
