Perhaps it’s worth mentioning that against great teams and the big boys of the conference, the UNM men’s basketball team is simply mediocre.
That much was proven on Saturday at The Pit.
Playing at home against No. 6 San Diego State, the Lobos showed a small glimpse of brilliance but were paralyzed by missed opportunities and outplayed by a stronger, faster opponent.
SDSU came into The Pit with the nation’s longest winning streak, a record the Aztecs extended to 19 after their 87-77 win.
“I think this is as good a defensive team as we have played all season,” head coach Steve Alford said. “That’s what makes them scary. You have to be able to score and make some shots, but you also have to be able to defend. The do both very well.”
UNM, which dropped to 13-5 overall and 1-2 in the Mountain West Conference, held a seven-point lead early in the game but could not keep up once the Aztecs put on their shooting specs and went on a 12-0 run. During that stretch, UNM missed five consecutive shots, en route to 29 percent first-half shooting.
The Lobos improved their field goal percentage in the second half. They finished the game shooting 37 percent from the field. SDSU shot 49 percent and 52 percent from beyond the arc.
“I thought our guys did a tremendous job,” Alford said. “I thought our bigs worked awfully hard inside.”
Drew Gordon was brilliant for UNM. He finished with a career-high 23 points and 14 rebounds, and completed half his team’s shots in the opening half. Gordon was the go-to shooter in the paint, and for the first time this season, played up to the expectations he brought with him from UCLA.
However, the Aztecs had a complete team effort, something the Lobos lacked.
SDSU’s D.J. Gay electrified. He scored a career-high 30 points, including a half-court shot at the buzzer to end the first half. All seven of his made field goals came from beyond the arc.
SDSU grew its lead in the second half to as much as 18. UNM came to within 10, but SDSU answered each time to maintain its lead.
Dairese Gary had 23 points, and Kendall Williams joined the pair in double digits with 11.
Phillip McDonald did not make a field goal during the contest, but scored six points from the free-throw line.
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“Some of our younger kids got intimidated by a top-10 team,” Gordon said. “They did all right for the first time being in this type of environment, but we need to play harder. We need to execute better.”
