Anthony Mathis scored a team-high 17 points and Joe Furstinger continued his streak of double-doubles with 10 points and 10 rebounds as the Lobos came just short of an upset win over the Wolf Pack in Reno on Saturday afternoon.
In what could have been a statement game for head coach Paul Weir in his first season at the helm of the UNM program, the Lobos played arguably their best game of the year against a heavily favored 13-3 Nevada squad.
Junior forward Caleb Martin led the Wolf Pack in scoring with 24 points on 9-15 shooting from the floor, and junior guard Jordan Caroline added 21 points and a team-high 10 rebounds.
Turnovers by UNM proved to be the difference in an otherwise even game, with both teams shooting about the same from the field (43%) and from behind the arc (34%). But the Lobos turned the ball over nearly three times more than the Wolf Pack (14-5), and Nevada shot almost three times as many free throws (29-11).
Antino Jackson gave the Lobos their first lead of the game with a three-point jumper on UNM’s first possession of the game. Caleb Martin would respond with the first of his three treys of the day to give Nevada a 5-3 lead on the next possession.
The two teams would exchange baskets for the next ten minutes before the Wolf Pack opened up a 10 point lead with just over nine minutes to play in the half. Hallice Cooke hit a pair of free throws with 24 seconds left in the first period to give the Wolf Pack a 42-34 lead at the break.
Nevada continued to lead the game until the 4:55 mark when Mathis hit a big three-point basket to tie that game at 70. It appeared as though the Lobos had all the momentum and Weir’s team looked primed to complete the upset.
But the Lobos failed to score another basket for more than three minutes, as the Wolf Pack pulled away for the eventual 77-74 win.
With the loss, the Lobos fall to 6-9 on the year and 1-1 in conference play, while the Wolf Pack improve to 13-3 and 2-0 in MWC standings. Although th