A fiery second quarter propelled UNM in a 58-36 rout over Air Force during New Mexico’s breast cancer awareness game.
Though the entire game was far from pretty, the Lobos 25-4 run in the last ten minutes of the first half proved to be the difference as the Lobos have now put together two consecutive wins.
“The first quarter, we kind of got shoved around a little bit and Air Force did a nice job,” Lobos head coach Yvonne Sanchez said. “Second quarter we went to the press and I really like what we did in the press.”
Once Sanchez put the Lobos into full-court press mode, the Lobos looked like a different team than when they initially came down the ramp.
UNM couldn’t get anything inside against the Falcons (1-25, 1-14 MW) in the first quarter and weren’t getting the kind of open looks the squad would find in the second period.
“When we went to the press, that’s when the energy really picked up,” forward Khadijah Shumpert said. “I think that was the game changer for us.”
This change was a huge benefit for forward Alexa Chavez, who scored a season-high nine points.
“It definitely changed the momentum,” Chavez said. “Once we got going, it just took off from there.”
The Lobos were able to score 18 points off of turnovers in the first half alone, alongside 26 points in the paint. New Mexico was able to trot up the ramp with a comfy 37-15 lead after guard Bryce Owens put her head down and drove straight to the basket for the final bucket of the half.
After a successful first half, the Lobos backed off of the press with their comfortable lead and couldn’t find that same spark in the game’s final 20 minutes.
“They’re a very physical, physical team,” Sanchez said. “They really give you a lot of physicality in there and we might not have handled it the best, but you know we came out of there with a 20 point win.”
Sanchez went deeper into the bench than she had in recent games because she wanted to give some of her players some rest with no more bye weeks. She said that her squad is a little banged up, just like the rest of the conference, which is why she remarked that she felt good about allowing some of her players to watch from the bench.
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“The second half was just a grind and sometimes you just have to win games that way,” Sanchez said. “It’s okay. At this stage of the game, you can’t get frustrated. You like wins, and a win is a win.”
Shumpert said it’s hard to play with such a big lead because it takes the intensity out of the game. However, she said that the Lobos can’t afford to relax and that they will need to learn from Saturday’s contest.
“Games like this are hard because when you’re up, you kind of want to slack and that was something we had an issue with,” Shumpert said. “But it wasn’t too bad. There’s always something to work on.”
Though Chavez was able to put together her best performance as a scorer, the forward said there is still work to be done as the Lobos (14-11, 7-7 MW) are fighting for that fifth spot in the league, to give the team a first round bye in the Mountain West tournament.
“I think I have a little more in me and I’m just going to keep pushing until I get there,” Chavez said. “We’ve got some more things to accomplish and we’re going to get there.”
Sanchez said she will enjoy the win for “10 hours,” but will be back at work as she prepares for the Colorado State game on Wednesday. The Rams (24-1, 14-0 MW) remain as the only undefeated team in the conference following the squad’s 62-57 victory over Wyoming on Saturday afternoon.
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.
