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The UNM men’s basketball team didn’t exactly shoot lights out at San Diego State on Saturday.
In fact, the Lobos scored a season-low 34 points in a 55-34 MWC loss to the Aztecs at Viejas Arena in San Diego.
The Lobos’ 34-point total was their lowest since Jan. 31, 1976, when they scored 32 against Utah.
At 25 percent from the field (11 of 44), the Lobos posted perhaps their worst shooting percentage on record. In the second half, UNM made just four field goals out of 22 shots. SDSU, meanwhile, connected on 23 of its 57 shots for the game.
Junior guard Kendall Williams hit five of his nine attempts, leading UNM’s scorers with 14 points. No other UNM player scored double figures. Junior guard Tony Snell added seven points.
Sophomore guard Hugh Greenwood, scoring five points, was the only other Lobo with more than two points.
League-leading UNM (17-3, 4-1 MWC) had a two-game edge over SDSU and Colorado State in the league standings. By snapping the Lobos’ four-game win streak, SDSU (16-4, 4-2 MWC) won its last two outings after back-to-back losses a week ago.
UNM head coach Steve Alford said the loss was not the result of his team’s resting on its laurels.
“There is no letup in us,” he said. “Our guys practice extremely hard and practice very, very well. Everybody picked (SDSU) to win it. We know what kind of team we were playing today, and I thought they played very well.”
Saturday wasn’t a good day for ranked teams. No. 3 Syracuse, No. 5 Louisville, No. 11 Kansas State, No. 12 Minnesota and No. 19 Virginia Commonwealth lost to unranked opponents. In all, there were 15 games where a ranked team lost to a lower-ranked or unranked squad last week.
UNM’s post presence was kept in check. San Diego State had four times as many points in the paint as New Mexico. The 32-8 difference is the widest margin the Lobos gave this season. UNM’s post players, sophomore center Alex Kirk and junior forward Cameron Bairstow, were a combined 1-of-12 on field goals.
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Earlier in the week, Alford said Kirk saw limited time in practice because he was dealing with flu-like symptoms. Kirk’s contribution in Wednesday’s home win against Colorado State was also low; he finished that game with three points.
SDSU also won the rebounding battle with 41 boards. UNM pulled down 26 and has been out-rebounded by at least 29 over its last two games. The Aztecs also converted 16 Lobo turnovers into 15 points, although UNM had 13 points off turnovers.
Sophomore forward J.J. O’Brien tallied 12 points and 10 rebounds to lead SDSU. Junior guard Jamaal Franklin added 10 points.
“I think most of the teams with two losses were happy when they saw that score,” SDSU head coach Steve Fisher said at his postgame press conference. “Now the potential for a league race is here.”
