While the sea of fresh faces on the UNM men's basketball team were unveiled Saturday night at The Pit, it was the recognizable faces that stole the show.
The quartet of returning letterman David Chiotti, Ryan Ashcraft, Javin Tindall and Mark Walters set the tone for the game and perhaps for a success-filled season.
"Chiotti is confident," McKay said. "And Walters is getting better and better. I think you see him a little more healthy each day he goes out. Tindall and Chiotti have been the most consistent. They have really done a great job at improving on a daily basis and providing great leadership."
In the first half of the Lobos 95-42 pounding of Division II San Francisco State, sophomore center Chiotti was the spark that ignited the Lobo offense.
"David got us off to a great start, which we anticipated," McKay said. "That's kind of how he's been playing in the preseason and it was nice to see him carry it over."
Chiotti scored the Lobos' first eight points and continued his offensive barrage scoring 16 of the Lobos' first 21 points, with an array of jump hooks, layups and put-backs. He finished the game with a team-high 22 points and five rebounds.
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While Chiotti cleaned up in the first half, Tindall, the savvy veteran, sparked the second half offensive outburst.
Coming out of the locker room, Tindall buried a turn-around jumper and then drained two back-to-back 3-pointers on his way to setting a new school record for team 3-point percentage.
The Lobos shot nine of 10 from behind the arc in the second half and four of eight in the first half, giving UNM a 3-point shooting percentage of 72.1 percent.
Tindall continued his hot shooting, scoring 18 points and dishing out four assists.
Ashcraft, the team captain, got going offensively with two jump shots midway through the first half. He gave the Lobos seven points, two assists and no turnovers off the bench
"Ashcraft - I don't know what his numbers were, but he played great tonight," McKay said. "He does so many little things that no one recognizes."
Walters, still recovering from an offseason knee injury, was his usual steady and durable self, scoring eight points, tearing down six rebounds and dishing out four assists.
On the final possession of the first half, with the game clock under five seconds, Walters took two dribbles from the top of the key, pulled up and dropped a 3-pointer as time expired.
These four Lobo veterans will be the core of the team.
While the new players showed signs of brilliance, they seemed anxious at times. As the season wears on, the newcomers must depend heavily on the team's veterans to develop through a grueling season of basketball.
