UNM women’s head coach Don Flanagan wants the Lobos to remain patient in the face of Texas Tech.
The Lobos (5-2) will need all the offensive patience in West Texas on Saturday when UNM heads east to duel with the Lady Raiders on Saturday.
“We have been successful when we’re patient,” Flanagan said. “I think our man-to-man offense, at this point right now, has been pretty successful if we make a few passes.”
The Lady Raiders (6-1) are in the midst of a seven-game home stretch at the United Spirit Arena in Lubbock, Texas.
This is the 13th head-to-head matchup between UNM and Texas Tech. The Lobos have won two of their last three games against the Lady Raiders, including a 54-48 victory in Albuquerque in December 2008.
UNM sophomore Lauren Taylor said she is ready to take another short road trip after a win (92-85) over in-state rival New Mexico State on Wednesday.
But Taylor said playing at an opponent’s arena can be a little nerve-wracking.
“Especially for the freshmen,” she said. “They don’t know what is going on necessarily. Even for the older girls — how are we going to do on the road, and are we going to set some precedence?”
The Lobos are going to need to have more success under the basket, and get more production from the center position, Flanagan said.
“One of the things that we have to do is have Val (Kast) in there for a period of time,” he said. “Because she can score, it’s extremely important. We need more point production out of that position. Now defensively, we have to make sure she gets back on defense. That is one of the things that we are working on — her transition defense.”
UNM will need to get a strong defensive performance from its post players against the Lady Raiders, too.
TTU sophomore Kierra Mallard leads the Lady Raiders in scoring, averaging 16.1 points per game. Senior Ashlee Roberson is second in scoring on TTU with 11.1 points per game. Mallard and Roberson combine for 11.4 rebounds a game.
Taylor said making adjustments will be key in beating Texas Tech.
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“They always have good players, whether it’s a post or a guard,” Taylor said. “They have got a pretty good post that we have to match up against. They’re quick and they have great girls at every position, and we are just going to have to go out and play great defense at every position.”
*
Women’s
Basketball vs.
Texas Tech
Saturday
1 p.m.
Lubbock, Texas*
