The University of New Mexico men’s basketball team hosted their final game at The Pit for the 2026 season and lost 82-74 to the Colorado State University Rams.
This was also the final game at The Pit for seniors Milos Vicentic, Chris Howell, Tomislav Buljan, Tajavis Miller, Deyton Albury and Luke Haupt, but it won't be their final game this year wearing silver and cherry.
The game began with Colorado State forward Carey Booth getting the Rams on the board first. The Rams built an early lead, but the Lobos answered and the game became a back and forth affair early. Miller sent The Pit into a frenzy with a three-pointer that tied the game at 10.
Unfortunately for the Lobos, the Rams were able to build a new lead with an 18-8 run late in the first half, when Colorado State center Kyle Jorgensen’s three-pointer gave the Rams a 17-14 lead and they never looked back.
In the first half, Colorado State shot an impressive 62.5% from the field to New Mexico’s 40%. The disparity in efficiency was especially apparent from beyond the arc, as the Lobos were just 2 of 11 from the three-point line compared to the Rams’ 7 of 16.
The beginning of the second half looked just as dire for the Lobos. The Rams continued their run and the Lobos found themselves down by as many as 19 points, but they did not go quietly, going on a 14-4 run to get back in the game. They used this momentum to get as close as within 6 points in an effort to mount a comeback.
At the forefront of this comeback attempt was Albury, who despite taking a hit to the eyes the prior game against San Diego State University, had no issue with his court vision, wearing a pair of protective sunglasses. He had a game-high 22 points, with 20 of them coming in the second half as he tried to get the Lobos back in the game.
“(This game) meant a lot – I’m blessed to have the opportunity to play in front of these great fans, they helped us come back – it was just sad that we couldn’t finish it,” Albury said.
However, it was too little too late. The momentum shifted back when Haupt was charged with a cylinder foul.
“Basketball is a bang, bang, game, and I thought I got elbowed, but they saw it differently,” Haupt said.
Both teams scored 13 points in the final minutes after that foul, which was enough for Colorado State to ice the game.
The regular season finale is on Saturday, March 7 in Logan, Utah against the Utah State University Aggies. If the Lobos win that game, they will clinch a share of the Mountain West regular season title.
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“There’s no time to feel sorry for ourselves. Obviously everybody’s disappointed but we gotta bounce back because we’re playing for a championship on Saturday,” Head Coach Eric Olen said.
Marley Herndon is a beat reporter for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on X @Dailylobo
