New Mexico ended its two game road trip on a high note after a 70-60 victory on Wednesday night.
Beating the Broncos on the road is significant as the Lobos are still in the hunt for a finish among the top five teams in the conference and a first round bye in the MW tourney.
“We’ve still got a long way to go,” head coach Yvonne Sanchez said in a postgame radio interview. “We’re still playing for a spot in the tournament.”
A long way to go, but a step in the right direction for Sanchez’s squad that has had its ups and downs all season.
The Lobos improved to 13-11 on the season, going 6-7 in MW play and putting them just one half game behind UNLV for the fifth in the league. There are still five games left in the regular season and the Lobos will have to have some help as they don’t play the Lady Rebels in the final five games, but UNM’s head coach said she was thrilled with the team effort on Wednesday.
“We wanted to make a statement,” Sanchez said. “We’ve never beat Boise at Boise… Everybody that played contributed.”
UNM’s offense put together one of its best performances of the season shooting 42 percent from the field, led by Bryce Owens with the team high 13 points. The senior guard certainly had some help as the three other players broke the double-digit scoring plateau.
A huge part of the game came at the glass as New Mexico outrebounded the Broncos (16-9, 9-5 MW) by a 36-27 margin. For the Lobos, it was the damage they did on the offensive boards that led to the success. Boise State only mustered six rebounds on the offensive glass while UNM snatched 13 o-boards.
Not only was Sanchez’s club able to dominate down low, the Lobos were able to force 20 turnovers, scoring 28 points of Broncos’ mistakes.
New Mexico was unable to reach the team goal of 75 percent shooting from the charity stripe, but the team made sure to get to the line in the second half.
After just four foul shots in the first half, UNM pressed the issue by getting to the line 14 times in the final 20 minutes of play, something Sanchez said was a difference maker in the second half.
Another point of emphasis was her player’s ability to play with poise against a good Boise State team, she said.
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“That’s why you have to stick with players regardless of what’s happened,” Sanchez said. “You’ve got to keep teaching, you’ve got to stay positive, you’ve got to continue to learn from different things and I think we’re doing that.”
Getting her players to play smart and with self-assuredness has been a common theme in Sanchez’s press conferences this season.
Though the Lobos have yet to put together more than three straight wins, Sanchez said she likes how her squad is playing. The head coach has recently implemented a thinner rotation, something the coach said has instilled some life for those on the court.
“It’s taken awhile for these kids to get some confidence, especially the younger ones,” Sanchez said in the interview. “This is a statement win against a very, very good Boise team.”
Next up for the Lobos will be the Pink Game against Air Force, Saturday at 2 p.m. at WisePies Arena.
Liam Cary-Eaves is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He covers volleyball, women’s basketball and baseball. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @Liam_CE.
