The Lobos' catchphrase of the week was "must-win."
Head coach Ritchie McKay said Saturday that Monday's game against Air Force was a "definite must-win" for the team.
Juniors David Chiotti and Mark Walters mimicked their coach's statement. They both said if the Lobos lost to Air Force, it would be detrimental to snagging the second seed in the Mountain West Conference.
Following through on the must-win notion with Monday's 63-52 victory put UNM back into the hunt for the second seed.
"I definitely felt it was a must-win," senior Danny Granger said. "Utah is so far ahead. It's pretty much a battle for second place now, and Air Force was in second, so this was a must-win."
After winning three in a row, the Lobos dropped a game at Wyoming on Feb. 7 they could have won. What looked like a run to the top of the MWC standings turned into the doldrums of fourth place.
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But then came Monday, and the Lobos did exactly what they said they had to do - win.
Now second-place Air Force and third-place Wyoming look a lot closer.
Whatever team gets that second seed would avoid having to play Utah (22-3, 10-0) until the finals of the MWC tournament. And there's always the chance the Utes could falter early in the tournament, especially because they are almost guaranteed an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
If the Lobos keep coming through, they'll find themselves in the most important must-win situation of the season - the MWC Championship game.
