LAS VEGAS - The No. 8 Colorado State women's basketball team gave the No. 4 UNM women's basketball team as much as it could handle in the second round of the Mountain West Conference Tournament.
The Lobos pulled away late for a 62-48 win in a game that saw poor shooting. UNM and CSU each shot less than 34 percent from the field, but the Lobos made the baskets when it counted.
With the win, UNM will move on to play No. 1 seed Utah on Friday in the MWC semifinals.
UNM head coach Don Flanagan said the Rams forced the Lobos to take bad shots early and often in Wednesday's game.
"They appeared (like) they didn't have anything to lose," Flanagan said. "They came out and played that way. Their defense in the first half bothered our offense. We missed a lot of shots because of their pressure."
UNM went on a 12-to-3 run over 3:46 late in the first half, giving the Lobos a 25-20 lead. The Lobos were up 34-31 at the half.
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For the first 35 minutes UNM couldn't pull away, and the Rams' dream of an upset was still alive.
But Amy Beggin blew out the candle on CSU, scoring 14 of her 20 points in the second half.
"She is a gamer," Flanagan said. "I think she got double-figure rebounds if I am not
mistaken. She gets 10 rebounds, 20 points, takes care of the press, defending their toughest kid. Later on she's going to cook supper for all of us."
With a poor shooting performance from both teams, it was only a matter of time before something bounced some way for either team. The teams combined for 88 rebounds, and the Lobos' 45 rebounds are the second highest in the history of the MWC tournament.
With 4:41 left, the ball bounced Beggin and the Lobos' way.
A 3-pointer at the top of the key by Beggin bounced off the back iron. The shot flew straight up in the air above the rim before floating down into the hoop and - in a game that was nowhere near being graceful - elegantly tickled the net.
"It kind of felt good to get a bounce go our way," Beggin said. "Seemed like we haven't had one of them in a while. I was struggling a bit with my shots. My teammates stuck with me, just stuck with that shot and we got a lucky bounce."
The 3-point shot put the Lobos up 49-43, and for the final four minutes it was all UNM.
Beggin's three points were also part of a 16-5 run to close out the game and CSU's season.
"For a long period of time there was a pretty darn competitive game," Flanagan said. "Colorado State played an excellent game."
The win gives the Lobos eight straight MWC Tournament wins, and UNM is 3-1 against the Rams in the postseason.
UNM has defeated CSU 13 straight times and has knocked off the Rams 15 of the last 16 times the two have tangoed.
"New Mexico is an extremely good team," CSU head coach Kristen Holt said. "They hurt us definitely on the boards."
Women's basketball at the Mountain West Conference Tournament
No. 4 UNM vs. No. 1 Utah
Friday, 1 p.m.
Thomas and Mack Center
Las Vegas
