Despite a wanting offensive, the men’s basketball team still beat Wyoming on “Old School Saturday” at The Pit.
UNM is now in a three-way tie for first place in the conference, alongside UNLV and San Diego State.
The team (20-4, MWC 6-2) beat the Cowboys 48-38 in front of 15,140 fans.
“Tonight, we just couldn’t get in the flow at all for 40 minutes offensively, and yet we found a way to win,” head coach Steve Alford said.
Seven days after its last game, against Boise State, UNM seemed rusty. It missed easy baskets, including a dunk attempt from senior forward A.J. Hardeman.
Five minutes in, each Lobo starter had one turnover as the team trailed 10-4.
At the half, nine of the 10 Lobos who played had a turnover.
Wyoming’s physical play and slow-paced offense, along with the 1-2 combination of Francisco Cruz and Luke Martinez, helped the Cowboys take a four-point lead into the half.
“They took us out our game a little bit in the first half because of the bumping and the physicality,” Hardeman said. “But in the second half, we got it together.”
Cruz and Martinez were a two-man show. The two combined for 18 of Wyoming’s 23 first-half points and were the only two Cowboys with points until Adam Waddell’s jumper with 2:40 left in the half.
The 19 Lobo points were the fewest scored in a first half since Feb. 1, 1999, when the Lobos trailed Utah 34-18 at the break.
“That was probably one of the worst halves we’ve ever played,” freshman guard Hugh Greenwood said. “But we knew that we couldn’t play any worse. We could only go up from there.”
The second half was all about defense for the Lobos.
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Wyoming scored four points in the first 12 minutes of the second half as UNM slowly began to take control of the game.
After back-to-back blocks from Hardeman and senior forward Drew Gordon, and a 3-point bucket from senior forward Phillip McDonald, The Pit went into a frenzy as UNM took a 29-25 lead.
“Our defense was spectacular,” Alford said. “I thought A.J. was our MVP tonight.”
Hardeman finished with nine points, eight rebounds and two blocks.
Earlier in the week, Alford said the 13-day challenge he presented his team resulted in a deep team. He said that challenge was the difference.
“I thought our bench eventually wore them down,” Alford said. “Our depth in that last 10 minutes really took its toll.”
The Lobos held the Cowboys to a season-low 25.9 shooting percentage from the field.
Only four Cowboys scored in the game, and Cruz and Martinez scored a combined five points in the second half.
“We knew (Cruz and Martinez) were going to play a lot of minutes and eventually wear down,” Greenwood said.
The Lobo bench outscored Wyoming’s 14-0.
UNM finished the game, making 16 of 41 shots, for 39 percent.
Sophomore guard Tony Snell went scoreless and didn’t take a shot the entire game.
“Offensively, it was a tough night for all of us, but obviously a tough night for Tony, too,” Alford said.
Sophomore guard Kendall Williams led the Lobos in scoring with 10 points. Gordon recorded 13 rebounds.
The Lobos have won at least 20 games in all five seasons under Alford.
With a three-way tie in the conference, a rematch with the Runnin’ Rebels and the Aztecs is looming, a game that is on Hardeman’s mind.
“Oh, we can’t wait,” Hardeman said. “It’s going to be a big revenge game.”
