Losers of three-straight games, including a near-record setting collapse in the final minute of regulation at home to Nevada, the University of New Mexico Men’s basketball team broke out of their losing streak with an 84-71 win against CSU on Saturday afternoon.
Elijah Brown led all scorers with 25 points on 6-12 shooting from the floor and 4-6 from behind the arc, while forward Tim Williams added 15 points and nine rebounds.
Senior guard Gian Clavell led the Rams in scoring with 22 points on 7-4 shooting, with sophomore guard Prentiss Nixon contributing 19 points of his own.
But the real action occurred with just over two minutes left in the game when UNM forward Joe Furstinger injured J.D Paige with a blind screen. A scuffle ensued between the two teams, and UNM assistant coaches Terrence Rencher and Chris Harriman were both ejected for leaving the bench.
While leaving the court Rencher and CSU forward Emmanuel Omogbo exchanged heated words that carried over in a confrontation outside Moby Arena. Geoff Grammer of the Albuquerque Journal captured the confrontation in a video that made national news on ESPN.com. The video shows CSU head coach Larry Eustachy restraining a visibly upset Omogbo, who was allegedly threatening Rencher.
No punches were thrown, but according to Grammer, both teams have been contacted by the league office.
in an article by ESPN’s Jeff Goodman, Eustachy claims that Rencher was the instigator, while UNM head coach told Grammer in an interview at the Albuquerque Sun Port that he believes his coach did nothing wrong.