The New Mexico Lobos men’s basketball team had an excellent showing in the National Invitational tournament, winning three games at home against the Sam Houston State University Bearkats, George Washington University Revolutionaries and Saint Joseph University Hawks in The Pit by double digits. Their spirit was not enough to carry them to a complete victory in front of fans in Indianapolis, as they came up short in a close game, battling the University of Tulsa Golden Hurricanes in the semifinals 74-69.
The Lobos had early troubles to overcome, trailing by 19-12 midway through the first half. Soon after finding their rhythm, the Lobos went on a 12-3 run to retake the lead 24-22 with six minutes left in the half. Tulsa would close out on an 8-0 run to lead 36-29. Lobo guard Uriah Tenette led the Lobos in scoring with 8 points.
Guard Jake Hall struggled during the first half but had a comeback in the second, scoring 17 points and leading the team in scoring with 20 total points. The only other Lobo with double figures was center JT Rock, who finished with 14 points and 6 rebounds.
The Lobos went the entire second half without a lead, but were not blown out. The Golden Hurricanes scored the first basket and led by as many as 9. The biggest difference in the game was Tulsa shooting from beyond the arc, as they made 12 baskets from 3-point range while the Lobos only had 7.
With five minutes left, UNM tied the game, but their momentum once again faltered as the Golden Hurricanes went on another 8-0 run. The Lobos were able to cut the deficit to 3 with less than a minute to go, but they failed to get the stop or shot they needed.
The team had a lot of turmoil and change this past offseason including a new coaching staff heralded by Head Coach Eric Olen, who guided the team to 26 wins in his first year, along with a team spearheaded by a fiery trio of freshmen. Hall was named freshman of the year, and all Mountain West first team with 117 three pointers, averaging 16.3 points a game. Tomislav Buljan was named all Mountain West second team, averaging a double double with 12.2 points and 10.3 rebounds a game. Tenette averaged 10.6 points and started the last eight games of the season. UNM is one of two teams this season with three freshmen average over 10 points, the other being the University of Arizona Wildcats.
Alex Joe is a freelance videographer for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on X @DailyLobo
