Last season, the New Mexico Lobos came into the year with a lot of questions surrounding them. Those questions were quickly answered by new head coach Eric Olen and his squad, exploding onto the scene, posting a 26-11 record and finishing third in the Mountain West while making a deep run in the NIT tournament before ultimately losing to the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. The immediate success from the team earned Olen a contract extension after the season. 

Now, coming into the 2026-27 season, there isn’t quite as much uncertainty surrounding the team, but rather a single question: Can the Lobos build off of last year’s success?

During the offseason, the Lobos were only able to retain three players from last season: guards Jake Hall, Uriah Tenette and Chris Howell. Hall returns to the Lobos coming off of his historic freshman season. The Mountain West Freshman of the Year appeared and started in all 37 games for the Lobos, averaging 16.4 points per game on 47.9% shooting. 

Tenette appeared in 36 games for the Lobos, starting in 8 of them. Tenette was a huge contributor off the bench, averaging 10.6 points per game on 40.5% shooting, along with averaging 1 steal per game. The 5-foot-11 guard also showed off his capacity to jump out of the arena, demonstrating his explosive leaping ability throughout last season. 

Howell appeared and started in only 11 games for the Lobos last season due to an injury that sat him out for the rest of the last season. During those starts, Howell averaged 5.5 points, 3 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. 

Hall, Tenette and Howell will undoubtedly be the key contributors to the Lobos’ success this season and retaining them was huge. The other players brought in by Olen and his staff will be looked to to make an impact as well. Among those players, three new names to watch out for this season will be guards Hudson Mayes and Dax Hall, along with forward Tunde Vahlberg Fasasi. 

Mayes, the 6-foot-5 sophomore from Olen’s previous coaching stop — UC San Diego — averaged 11.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game in his freshman year with the Tritons. Mayes should be looked at as someone who can make an immediate impact for the Lobos. 

Freshman guard Dax Hall is the  brother of Jake Hall and joins the Lobos after averaging  27 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.3 assists in his senior season at Santa Fe Christian in Solana Beach, California. His numbers speak for themselves, and his on-court chemistry with his brother will definitely be something to keep an eye out for during this season. 

Fasasi, the 6-foot-7 senior forward from William & Mary comes to New Mexico after averaging 11.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per game in his junior year. Like Mayes, he should be looked at to make an immediate impact for the team. 

The Lobos however did lose key contributors over the offseason, with the two most notable being forward Tomislav Buljan and guard Deyton Albury. Buljan was a walking double-double for the Lobos, averaging 13.1 points and 10.3 rebounds per game in 35 starts. Buljan took his talents to Maryland, where he will suit up for the Terrapins this upcoming season. Albury averaged 11.7 points and 3.7 rebounds per game in the 35 games during his senior season before graduating from UNM. 

Other key losses include Antonio Chol, who entered the transfer portal, and Tajavis Miller, who also graduated from UNM in May. 

Despite losing these players, the current roster overall — on paper — looks like they can compete at a high level while bringing the same intensity as last year’s team. 

Taking a look at the Lobos’ schedule, there are a few games that should be circled this upcoming season. The first one will be against UNM’s in-state rival, the New Mexico State Aggies. Last season, the Aggies beat the Lobos 76-68 in Las Cruces. The Aggies will take a trip to Albuquerque this time around on Dec. 5, and Olen will be looking to claim his first victory over the heated rival. Another rematch to look forward to is against the Santa Clara Broncos, who the Lobos decimated 98-71 at home last season. The Lobos will go to their house this season on Nov. 14. Lobo fans should also  look out for the  season series against a Mountain West foe, the Grand Canyon Antelopes. While the Lobos did sweep the Antelopes in the season series last year and demolished them in their first meeting, the Antelopes gave the Lobos a fight in the team’s second go-around. That competitive nature could make it an interesting series this season. 

With an exhibition coming up on Oct. 11 at Oklahoma State, and the season set to really begin in an at-home battle with Utah Tech on Nov. 2, all eyes are on the Lobos to put that one last question to bed. 

Rodney Prunty is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo.com or on X @rprunty05