The UNM women’s basketball team needed every second on the clock — and then some — to claw to its second victory of the season.
In a double-overtime duel, the Lobos outlasted California 63-54 on Saturday at The Pit in a game where both teams combined for 41 turnovers.
“We had an opportunity to win it in regulation,” head coach Don Flanagan said. “I don’t think we shot our free throws particularly well, nor do I think we ran our offense very well, but we persevered, and that’s extremely important to win games like that.”
The Lobos had chances to win it in the final moments of regulation.
Guards Amanda Best and Lauren Taylor consecutively turned the ball over and allowed Cal to get back in the game with 30 seconds left.
Soon after, Best missed a layup, and forward DeNesha Stallworth’s layup tied the game at 44 with 19 seconds left.
On UNM’s ensuing possession, forward Jessica Kielpinski was fouled and had a chance to give the Lobos the win with six seconds left. Kielpinski missed both shots from the charity stripe, and the game went into overtime.
California and UNM mustered a combined eight points in the first overtime, but the Golden Bears sputtered in the second overtime, and Best scored five of her game-high 16 points, including a 3-pointer with 3:21 left, to give the Lobos the edge.
“That was really big, especially at that time of the game,” Flanagan said. “That gave us a cushion where we could relax a bit and run our offense a little better.”
It took UNM nearly five minutes to score its first points of the game. UNM took control with a 21-3 run spanning 10 minutes in the first half.
The Lobos took a 14-point lead into halftime, holding the Golden Bears to 15 first-half points.
But the Lobos could not hold on to the lead in the second half. UNM was confused by Cal’s full-court press, which forced two shot-clock violations and caused the Lobos to turn the ball over seven times in the first seven minutes.
“That was one of our problems. They were making us take 15 to 18 seconds to get the ball past half court,” Flanagan said. “Then you only have eight seconds to get a shot off, so we did not particularly do a good job at that.”
In the end, forward Porche Torrance said, the Lobos came together. Torrance, one of three Lobos in double figures, finished with 10 points.
“We needed this win to boost our confidence,” she said. “We can take this win, and hopefully, we can proceed and do well.”
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