Coach cites lack of effort despite Air Force win

The UNM women’s basketball team’s stroke was off against Air Force, but it threw up enough shots that it didn’t make the least bit of difference.

UNM pasted the Falcons, 3-14 overall and 0-4 in the Mountain West Conference, by 62-42, at The Pit on Wednesday. Jessica Kielpinski scored 10 points and snared nine rebounds. At the tip, Amy Beggin took a 3, which missed the mark. The Lobos, 11-6 overall and 3-2 in the Mountain West Conference, rebounded. Beggin, who finished with just six points on 2-of-12 shooting, took another shot from behind the arc that rimmed out. UNM rebounded, and eventually Sarah Halasz converted an easy put-back.

That was the story of the game.

The Lobos were hardly bothered by Air Force’s defense — at least in the first half.
“They play a match-up zone, which is unusual,” said head coach Don Flanagan. “We were getting the shot we wanted, but, at the same time, we weren’t hitting it. That is the difference right there. All we need to do was hit a few more 3s.”

Even with the Lobos mediocre shooting percentage (42.2 percent), they had more than enough opportunity to put up points. Still, they grabbed 19 offensive boards, which led to 16 second-chance points, compared to Air Force’s four.

Halasz did most of the scoring in the first 10 minutes of the game. She had 10 of the Lobos’ first 14 points, four of them coming off offensive rebounds and six of them coming off fast breaks. On the back of Halasz, the Lobos bolted to a 14-0 lead before Air Force’s Liz Dunsworth ended the streak with a 3-point play.
But the Falcons never really threatened.

“It was just focus and competitiveness — just wanting it more than the other team,” said Halasz, who finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds, most of which came in the first half. “But that has to carry from the first half to the second half, and that is something I have got to work on.”

Down 16-5 with 9:30 left in the first half, the Falcons employed full-court pressure, forcing a Lobo turnover, which Desiree Wilson finished with a layup. UNM burned Air Force on the next play, and the Falcons press was largely ineffective for the remainder of the night, forcing head coach Ardie McInelly to scrap it.

But the Lobos outscored Air Force 33-12 in the first half, and the Falcons were on track to score their least amount of points this season.

That was until the second half rolled around.

Not that it mattered to the outcome of the game, but the Falcons outscored the Lobos 30-29 in the second half.

Fortunately, the Lobos were playing a 3-13 team. Another opponent might have capitalized on UNM’s six-and-a-half-minute cold stretch. During that second-half period, the Lobos didn’t make a point. The drought, however, was hardly noticeable as the Falcons only put up three points.

“It looked like we played down,” Flanagan said. “It looked like we played to their level. The thing is, they are not as skilled as we are, nor as talented. But they are going to give effort. And their effort was better than our effort in the second half.”