The UNM men's basketball team struggled from the free-throw line and wasn't as lethal as usual from 3-point range.
So, in Saturday's 64-48 win over TCU, the Lobos clamped down on defense, leading to their fourt h straight double-digit victory.
UNM freshman guard Jonathan Wills said the defense wanted to set a tone, especially after a close first half.
"We just realized that they were getting back in the game," he said. "You have to play defense obviously to win games, so it was just a matter of everybody digging down and getting stops to know that's what we have to do to get a win. That's going to be our identity this year - defense."
The Lobo defense was solid from the beginning, holding the Horned Frogs to 23 points and forcing 13 turnovers in the first half.
TCU's leading scorer Kevin Langford had just one point at the intermission and finished with four points - all on free throws.
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Still, UNM held onto a slim three-point lead at the half due to its own offensive woes. However, the defense came out ferocious in the second half, holding the Horned Frogs scoreless until a Henry Salter field goal with 13:32 left in the game.
In The Pit, it's tradition for the fans to remain standing until the opposing team scores - in Saturday's case, nearly seven minutes.
UNM guard J.R. Giddens said the crowd's loud approval of each defensive stop helped carry the team.
"We got very hyped for that," he said. "I wish we could have just kept it down on them, and we (Lobo fans) could have just stayed up the rest of the game, but we could really feel the intensity from the crowd out there."
By the time Salter put TCU on the board in the second half, the Lobos had built a 22-point lead. After Salter's bucket, UNM was leading 45-25.
The Lobos continued to frustrate the TCU offense and forced 23 turnovers in total, which they turned into 21 points. The Horned Frogs finished with just eight assists on the game.
TCU outrebounded the Lobos 34-31 but managed just three second-chance points.
The TCU trio of Langford, Salter and Brent Hackett combined for 26 points on 6-of-22 shooting. Salter was the only Horned Frog to score in double-digits and shot 3-of-7 from the 3-point line.
UNM head coach Steve Alford said the Lobo defense was able to take TCU's go-to players out of their game.
"I thought the defense was there throughout the entire game," he said. "We hold Langford to no field goals. Salter gets 13 (points) on 11 shots. I thought we really did a good job on Hackett as well."
