The New Mexico men’s basketball team saw its eight-game win streak come to an end on Wednesday night with an 86-78 loss to Boise State at ExtraMile Arena. Despite a valiant effort, the Lobos (22-5, 14-2 MW) couldn’t overcome the Broncos’ strong second-half performance, dropping to 1st place in the Mountain West, while Boise State (18-8, 10-5 MW) improved to 12-1 on its home court this season.
Filip Borovicanin led New Mexico with a career-high 18 points, and Donovan Dent added 17 points and 11 assists for his fourth double-double of the season. Nelly Junior Joseph contributed 17 points, and CJ Noland scored 12 points off the bench.
The Lobos began the game strong, building an early 9-3 lead, but Boise State answered back with a 6-0 run to tie things up. After several lead changes, the Broncos held a slight 42-39 advantage at halftime. Joseph led New Mexico with 14 points in the first half.
In the second half, Boise State pulled away with an 18-2 run, pushing their lead to 64-45 with 12 minutes to play. The Lobos made a late push with a 9-0 run in the final minutes, but they couldn’t close the gap, and Boise State held on for the 86-78 win.
NOTES
- New Mexico’s eight-game win streak came to an end, marking their longest conference win streak since 2010.
- Donovan Dent became the first Lobo to record four 10-assist games in a season in Mountain West history.
- Dent also set a new record for the most eight-assist games in a season by a Lobo in the Mountain West era.
- Mustapha Amzil missed his second consecutive game due to injury.
QUOTABLE
“Our defensive disruption wasn’t where it needed to be tonight. We felt good going into halftime, but they came out strong in the second half. We made a run at the end, but it wasn’t enough. Credit to Boise State; they needed that win. Now, we’ll get some rest and get ready for San Diego next week.” – Richard Pitino
UP NEXT
The Lobos will have the weekend off before facing San Diego State on February 25. With just two home games remaining, New Mexico will host Air Force on March 1 and UNLV on March 7. Tickets are on sale now at GoLobos.com/tickets.
Lobo Women Pick up Win over San Jose State
Destinee Hooks led the Lobos with a game-high 18 points as New Mexico rallied in the fourth quarter to claim a 72-65 victory over San José State. The win improves the Lobos to 15-12 on the season, 8-6 in conference play, and 5-2 in Mountain West road games.
Five Lobos scored in double figures, with Nayli Padilla adding 13 points off the bench, Alyssa Hargrove contributing 11 points, and Joana Magalhães and Viané Cumber each finishing with 10 points. Hargrove also tied her career-high with three blocks, while Cumber and Magalhães each had three steals. Hargrove’s three steals marked her 12th game of the season with three or more steals.
On the boards, Hulda Joaquim led the Lobos with 11 rebounds, including six on the offensive end.
The Lobos started strong, using a 10-0 run in the first quarter to build an early 12-4 lead. During the run, UNM made five consecutive shots, highlighted by four points each from Hooks and Magalhães. The Lobos ended the first quarter up 12-8, with Joaquim, Hooks, and Magalhães all contributing four points.
In the second quarter, the Lobos continued to build their lead, pushing it to as much as 13 points. A three-pointer from Hooks gave UNM a 26-13 lead with 3:58 remaining. San José State cut the lead to just four points at 28-24, but a layup by Cumber gave the Lobos a 30-26 advantage at halftime. Hooks led all scorers at the break with nine points, while Magalhães had eight points and two steals.
The Lobos’ defense was active, collecting six steals in the first half and scoring 20 of their 30 points in the paint.
The game remained tight in the third quarter, with the Lobos maintaining a narrow 37-30 lead at the 6:34 mark. However, San José State battled back, tying the game at 40 with 2:49 remaining before taking their first lead of the game, 43-40. A post-up jumper from Cumber and a layup from Joaquim helped the Lobos regain the lead, 44-43, as the quarter ended in a 44-44 tie.
In the final quarter, New Mexico came out strong, scoring the first four points, including a layup from Hooks and two free throws from Padilla. A three-pointer from SJSU briefly put the home team ahead, 53-51, but Padilla answered with an and-one to put the Lobos back in front. A 6-0 run helped the Lobos build a lead, with Hargrove hitting a crucial three-pointer to extend the advantage to five points at 61-56.
With 3:21 remaining, a three from Hooks pushed the lead to 68-62, and the Lobos closed it out from the free-throw line. Cumber sealed the win with two free throws in the final seconds.
In the fourth quarter, New Mexico outscored SJSU 28-21, shooting 75% from the floor (9-12) and 66.7% from three-point range (2-3). The Lobos finished the game with 42 of their 72 points coming in the paint.
UP NEXT
New Mexico returns to The Pit on Saturday for Senior Day, hosting Utah State at 2 p.m.