A must-win in late January?
For the UNM men's basketball program and its showdown with the Utah Utes Saturday, the clichÇ "must-win" hits the nail on the head.
UNM welcomes the best of the Mountain West Conference this weekend, the University of Utah and Brigham Young University. With a win or two, the Lobos and their fans will be back in the thick of the race. With two losses, UNM can kiss any chances of contending for the conference crown goodbye.
A week after the Lobos debacle against Air Force at The Pit, UNM sits in the cellar of the Mountain West Conference. With another loss, the Lobos will fall 0-3 in conference play for the first time since the Lobogate scandal year of 1979-80, when they began 0-4.
To regain the confidence lost, UNM (9-6, 0-2) must protect its home floor.
These next two games will undoubtedly set the tone for the rest of the season.
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After loses to Wyoming and Air Force to open conference play, the Lobos have been left scratching their heads. Defense, or the lack thereof, has made all the difference. UNM has allowed opponents to shoot 58.4 percent (52 of 89) from the field and 52.6 percent (20 of 38) from behind the arc. In prior games, defense was the name of the game, allowing opponents to shoot 39.8 and 32.6 percent, respectively.
On the other side of the court, the offense has been looking emphatically sluggish. With senior point guard Javin Tindall seemingly in a slump, the offense has been out of sync. Only junior forward Danny Granger seems to be playing to potential. A mixture of turnovers, and the lack of assists have lead to a stale, motionless offense.
The Utes, in contrast, invade The Pit atop the conference standings, riding a nine-game winning streak. Utah is 15-3 overall and 3-0 in the conference after whipping Wyoming and Colorado State at home this week. In their conference opener on the road, the Utes outlasted a pesky and talented University of Nevada-Las Vegas team.
Much like Air Force, Utah plays stingy defense and possess assassin-like, 3-point bombers. While Air Force leads the nation in scoring defense, Utah is a close second, only allowing 53.9 points per game.
The Utes are first in the MWC in 3-point accuracy, making 41.7 percent from deep, while the Lobos counter with the worst 3-point percentage defense in the league, allowing 35.3 percent.
Although Utah has dominated the overall series, McKay and his Lobos got one of their most memorable wins last season at home. Led by Ruben Douglas and his record-breaking 26 free throws, UNM upset then No. 22 ranked Utes.
The Utes come in blazing hot, whereas the Lobos come in bitterly cold. The Lobos can douse that fire if they play to their expectations and get a win. All the criticism and their 0-2 start will be forgotten, and the Lobos will be back in the conference race.
Tipoff is at 1:04 p.m. from The Pit. The game will be televised by ESPN+Plus with local coverage by KRQE-13. It can also be heard live on 770 KOB AM.
