This is the last stop.
Saturday's game at Wyoming marks the end of the regular season and Mountain West Conference play for the UNM men's basketball team.
This game has huge implications for UNM. If the Lobos win, they will have a share of the regular-season title for the first time since joining the MWC.
"We're getting senior night," head coach Steve Alford said. "Three of their top four scorers are seniors. Obviously, (Brandon) Ewing has been there a long time and has an incredible career in this league. So, we know how hard senior nights are. It was difficult (at) Colorado State, and it was obviously hard for Utah with the seniors we had. We are going to get that same thing in Laramie."
Picked to finish fifth in the MWC preseason poll, the Lobos struggled through nonconference play and finished the month of November 3-4. But UNM has put it together in league play.
Undoubtedly, with eight of nine MWC teams playing on the final Saturday of the regular season, there will be drama, and a few games will determine the MWC regular-season champions.
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If UNM, BYU and Utah win their remaining game, the three schools will share the regular-season top spot.
There is also a scenario where there could be a four-way tie for first place.
If San Diego State beats UNLV at the Cox Arena, and the Lobos, Cougars and Utes lose, all four would finish with 11-5 records.
The Lobos can win the title outright, but Utah and BYU would need to lose their final game. UNM would finish with a 12-4 league record, and Utah and BYU would finish with 11-5 records.
Wyoming is a lock for the sixth seed in the MWC Tournament, but the Cowboys are still playing for a spot in the postseason.
In the last 11 trips to the Arena-Auditorium, the Lobos have won just once, coming away with a 99-92 victory in double overtime.
"It was a long, long time ago. I can hardly remember that game," Alford said. "We were down a lot at half and made a great comeback. Obviously, J.R. (Giddens) was a big part of that. I think a lot of things have changed. The team is totally different than what it was a year ago. They have been dominant in there."
On Feb. 3, the Cowboys were squashed at The Pit 86-57.
Wyoming could have used a fire extinguisher that night. The Lobos hit 50 percent of their 3-pointers. Chad Toppert went 5-of-7 from beyond the arc and led the Lobos with 17 points.
"Chad can go off like that any night," Daniel Faris said. "If they are going to play a zone and give him that many wide-open shots - shoot, I'll let him take 20 3s if he is open. I mean, he is one of the best shooters at UNM ever. Of course I want that guy to get shots."
But things have changed since then, Alford said.
"Wyoming is more confident," he said. "They were playing pretty well when we hit them the first time. (But they're) a little bit more confident and one win away from being .500 in the league. It is a game that has a lot of meaning for both sides."
Men's basketball at Wyoming
Laramie, Wyo.
1:30 p.m.
