Sports

Sports

Women's Basketball: Lobos complete comeback bid against Utah State to improve to 3-0 in MW

Matthew Narvaiz | January 5

The Lobo women’s basketball team was faced with adversity Wednesday night against Utah State, but it pushed past it and came out victorious for another conference win. New Mexico (7-6, 3-0 MW) overcame a five point halftime deficit to defeat Utah State (8-6, 1-2 MW) by double digits, 78-67. The outcome of the game wasn’t necessarily representative of how the game was played for much of the night though. The teams found themselves in a shootout, with Utah State getting the better end early on.

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Sports

Basketball: Lobos face another conference road test against Utah State

Isabel Gonzalez | January 4

After pulling off an upset over San Diego State in sunny California, the Lobos will try to make it three in a row in the much colder location of Logan, Utah against the Utah State Aggies. New Mexico (9-5, 2-0 MW) have started well in Mountain West Conference play, winning its first two games. But its opponent hasn’t been so fortunate, as Utah State (6-7, 0-2 MW) is mired in a three-game losing streak. In their most recent games, the Lobos got by the Aztecs, 68-62, while the Aggies lost 78-73 to Air Force. Although two Utah State players scored more than 20 points, Koby McEwen with a career-high 22 points and Jalen Moore with 21, their efforts were not enough. The Falcons controlled the game, leading for all but 20 seconds.

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Sports

Basketball: Lobo women eye third straight Mountain West victory

Matthew Narvaiz | January 3

The UNM women's basketball team will attempt to start 2017 off the same way it ended last year—seeking another conference win at home Wednesday night. New Mexico (6-6, 2-0 MW) posted back-to-back wins for the first time since opening the season 2-0 and can improve to 3-0 to open conference play with a win over Utah State (8-5, 1-1 MW). The Lobos lead the all-time series over Utah State 13-6, in a rivalry that dates back to the 1974-75 season. Last season, the two teams split the conference series with each team winning on its own home floor. Utah State took round one, 72-59, in Logan, Utah, but New Mexico exacted revenge by taking a 73-70 win at WisePies Arena.

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Sports

Basketball: Defense and free throws help Lobo men complete second half comeback

Isabel Gonzalez | January 2

The new year started on Sunday, and the UNM men’s basketball team wasted no time getting new results in 2017. New Mexico (9-5, 2-0 MW) hadn’t been successful in getting a win against San Diego State since March 15, 2014. But on Sunday afternoon, the team walked away with a 68-62 comeback victory. The result snapped the Aztecs’ four-game winning streak and helped the Lobos jumped out to an early 2-0 mark in Mountain West Conference play.

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Sports

Basketball: Women crush Aztecs to open MW play at 2-0, improve to .500 on season

Matthew Narvaiz | January 2

The Lobo women’s basketball team finished 2016 in the best way possible, dominating the San Diego State Aztecs, 85-42 on Saturday evening. New Mexico (6-6, 2-0 MW) improved to .500 on the season with the victory over San Diego State (5-7, 0-1 MW). It is the first time the Lobos have started 2-0 in conference play since the 2008-09 season. Junior guard Cherise Beynon headlined a supercharged performance. She had 23 points – the fifth time this season she’s scored over 20 – nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals. She finished just one rebound shy of a double-double, but probably could’ve pushed for a triple-double had she not have been taken out midway through the fourth quarter.

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Sports

Basketball: Men look to go 2-0 in conference play

Isabel Gonzalez | January 1

The Lobos finished 2016 with a bang and are looking to start the new year the same way. The UNM men’s basketball team is heading to "the Golden State" to face the San Diego State Aztecs (5-7, 0-1 MW), a team that has had a hot hand in a four-game winning streak. New Mexico (8-5, 1-0 MW) has several ups and downs so far during the 2016-17. It managed to stay undefeated at home with a 7-0 record, but have picked up some painful losses on the road including a 77-46 one to the Arizona Wildcats.

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Sports

Basketball: Women take down Fresno State in conference opener, now shift focus to San Diego State

Matthew Narvaiz | December 31

The Lobo women's basketball team clinched their first road win of the season in the team’s conference opener at Fresno State, 80-54 on Thursday evening. New Mexico (5-6, 1-0 MW) got a balanced performance, especially on the offensive end. Only six players scored in the game, but half of them registered double-digits scoring early and often. Junior guard Cherise Beynon – who has struggled with her shot at times this season – put up a team-high 20 points. She also dished out six assists and brought down nine rebounds, one shy of achieving her fourth double-double of the year.

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Sports

Basketball: Men's basketball opens conference play with a win over Fresno State

Isabel Gonzalez | December 29

The UNM men’s basketball team opened up Mountain West Conference play on Wednesday night on a good note. The Lobos took down the Fresno State Bulldogs 78-73 increasing their undefeated home record to 7-0 at WisePies Arena aka the Pit. The victory marked New Mexico’s sixth consecutive in Mountain West openers and eighth straight when opening conference play at home. Head Coach Craig Neal said he thought it was a good game for his players, who were bouncing back from a painful 31-point loss at No. 18 Arizona last week.

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Sports

Basketball: Women's team begin conference play at Fresno State

December 29

The Lobo women's basketball team will get back to business Thursday in its first conference game after nearly a week off during the holidays. The Lobos (4-6) and Fresno State (7-4) have played each other very evenly in the series history, but last year the Bulldogs earned a sweep over the Lobos. Fresno State won its first matchup 69-65 at WisePies Arena and then won again later in the season 51-43 on its home court. The pair of wins gave the Bulldogs a 10-9 overall advantage and improved their home record to 7-1 against the Lobos. New Mexico has not won a road game all season (0-3) and will likely be eager to buck that trend.

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Sports

Basketball: Conference play could be a fresh start for Lobos

Robert Maler | December 28

Many teams view conference play as marking the start of a new season—which could be a good thing since the Lobos will likely want to put their subpar start behind them. New Mexico (7-5) has been underwhelming so far this season during non-conference play, but has a chance for a new beginning when it faces Fresno State (8-4) Wednesday night. The Lobos have played well at times this season, but an injury to a key player and some streaky performances seem to have the team still searching for some answers.

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Sports

Basketball: Women's basketball misses opportunity to improve to .500 on season

Matthew Narvaiz | December 22

The Lobo women’s basketball team couldn’t end its non-conference schedule with a win, losing to the Marquette Golden Eagles by a score of 62-52 Wednesday afternoon. Marquette improved to 9-2 on the season, while New Mexico dropped to 4-6 heading into its conference schedule next week when it travels to face Fresno State on Dec. 31. The Golden Eagles took an early lead in the first quarter, going up 22-15 on a Danielle King layup. But a UNM junior guard Cherise Beynon layup with 38 seconds trim the lead to five. She later had a chance to make it a single possession game, but missed a jumper at the end of the quarter.

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Sports

Basketball: Lobos get thumped by No. 18 Arizona in a lop-sided road loss

Isabel Gonzalez | December 22

The No.18 team in the nation overpowered and the Lobo men’s basketball team on both ends of the floor Tuesday night at the McKale Center. New Mexico (7-5) suffered a 77-46 loss to Arizona (11-2) in the team’s final non-conference game of the season, and it appears the Lobos have a lot to take care of before it hosts Fresno State in the Dec. 28 conference opener. In the days leading up to the game, UNM head coach Craig Neal said the Lobos needed to guard the ball well and create good scoring chances to have a chance to win. But there wasn’t much of either going on for the Lobos Tuesday night.

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Sports

Basketball: Women's hoops travels to Marquette to wrap up non-conference schedule

Matthew Narvaiz | December 20

The Lobo women's basketball team will travel to Milwaukee, Wisconsin Wednesday to play the Marquette Golden Eagles in the final non-conference battle on the schedule. New Mexico (4-5) was supposed to be Eastern Illinois (4-7) on Sunday, but the Panthers were unable to travel due to inclement weather. The game has officially been postponed, though no makeup date has been announced yet. The Lobos went 2-1 in the previous three games, all played at WisePies Arena aka The Pit. The team notched wins over Southern Methodist and UTEP, but dropped a close one to Minnesota in between. Marquette (8-2) enters Wednesday's tip-off following a pair of wins over Wisconsin, 81-75 on the road, and 85-74 over Milwaukee at home.

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Sports

Basketball: Lobos hope to take down top 25 Arizona in tough road test

Isabel Gonzalez | December 19

The Lobos took a 40-point victory against the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions on Saturday, but the competition will step up significantly as they face a nationally ranked opponent in Arizona. New Mexico (7-4) will travel to Tucson, Arizona to take on the University of Arizona Wildcats, a team that is ranked No. 18 in both the AP top 25 and the USA Today Coaches Poll. A release said the Lobos won the last meeting between the two schools. UNM took a 70-68, narrowly defeating then No. 2 Arizona on Dec. 21, 1999. On Tuesday evening, New Mexico will try to duplicate that result.

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Sports

Soccer: A pair of former Lobos receive invite to MLS combine

Isabel Gonzalez | December 19

Earlier this month, Major League Soccer released its initial list of Adidas MLS Player Combine invitees for the 2017 Adidas event. The University of New Mexico men’s soccer program received two of the 53 invitations for collegiate players across the nation. One was for forward Niko Hansen and the other for midfielder Chris Wehan. New Mexico was one of only 15 schools to have multiple players invited.

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Sports

Football: 2016 Gildan New Mexico Bowl encapsulated a season of perseverance for the Lobos

Robert Maler | December 19

Three Lobo football players used the words humble, blessed and exciting to describe the 2016 season—add perseverance to that list. New Mexico (9-4) capped the football season with a ninth win in the 2016 Gildan New Mexico Bowl, narrowly defeating Texas-San Antonio (6-7), 23-20. UTSA played a very disciplined game, filling the gaps on defense to force the run game outside and then showing good tackling ability. It forced Lobo junior Quarterback Lamar Jordan to make difficult decisions for much of the game regarding whether or not to make the pitch in the triple option. “It wasn’t our best offensive performance,” head coach Bob Davie said. “But I think UTSA obviously had a lot to do with that.”

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Sports

Football: Lobos win 9th game and cap season as bowl champions

Robert Maler | December 18

The Lobos had their hands full in the 2016 Gildan New Mexico Bowl, battling tough conditions and an even tougher opponent in a quest to win their first bowl game since 2007. With temperatures in the 40’s and an unrelenting wind, most probably believed the weather would favor the run-oriented Lobos. New Mexico (9-4) features the nation’s top rushing attack, but Texas-San Antonio (6-7) outrushed the Lobos by the narrowest of margins, 224 yards to 223. The Lobos got all it could handle from the Roadrunners, but did just enough to grind out a 23-20 victory to capture UNM head coach Bob Davie's first career bowl win, who was previously 0-4 in his head coaching career.

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Sports

Men's Basketball: UNM bounces back from loss to dominate Arkansas-Pine Bluff

Isabel Gonzalez | December 18

It wasn’t the Lobos’ prettiest game—but they probably didn’t want pretty—as the men’s basketball team showed no mercy taking down the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions 83-43 on Saturday night. Head coach Craig Neal said he felt good about the win and the effort his players showed. “I thought our guys did a really good job at the start the game,” he said. “Arkansas-Pine Bluff has been on a long road trip so I don’t know if they had the greatest of energy, but it was good to see our guys come out and get several stops in a row.”

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Opinion

Column: UNM Football has earned the right to expect more filled seats

Robert Maler | December 15

The New Mexico football program has pulled a 180 since hiring a new head coach five seasons ago. But despite putting a winning product on the field, attendance has inexplicably continued a downward trend. Head coach Bob Davie has the team reaching new heights after he took over a program that appeared to be in shambles, winning just three games in as many seasons before he took the helm. New Mexico (8-4) has a chance to triple that amount this season alone if it is victorious over Texas-San Antonio (6-6) in Saturday’s Gildan New Mexico Bowl.

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Sports

Football: Lobos to try for first bowl game win since 2007

Robert Maler | December 15

Lobo football looks to put an exclamation point on one of the most successful seasons in program history with a win at the 11th annual Gildan New Mexico Bowl on Saturday. New Mexico (8-4, 6-2 MW) stumbled out of the gate this season, losing leads in two of its first three games, resulting in an early 1-2 record. But the Lobos turned things around and found ways to win tightly contested games throughout the rest of the season. They earned bowl eligibility for the second straight year with several games remaining on the schedule.