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Las Vegas, Nev. UNLV point guard Constance Jinks scored 22 of her game-high 29 points in the second half to lead the Lady Rebels to a 72-60 victory over the University of New Mexico on Saturday night at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nev. New Mexico led 38-25 at the half, but was outscored 22-8 by over the first seven minutes of the second period. UNM (15-5; 4-2 MWC) dropped into a second place tie with UNLV (16-3; 4-2 MWC) in the Mountain West Conference standings.
After building its 13-point lead, the Lobos were unable to respond to UNLVs mounting pressure. Despite holding UNLV leading-scorer Linda Frohlich to 11 points, UNM had no answer for Jinks, who scored 25 in a 62-53 UNLV win in Albuquerque earlier in the month. UNLV became the aggressor on both ends of the court, finishing with a 16-8 advantage in made free throws and forcing 19 New Mexico turnovers on the night. The Lobos did manage to rebound from a woeful shooting performance earlier in the month versus the Lady Rebels, shooting 47 percent from the field, including 4-9 (44%) from three-point land. UNLV, meanwhile, hit 46 percent of its shots from the floor, including 4-11 (36%) on threes, and shot a stellar 89 percent (16-18) from the free throw line.
The first half was a different story for New Mexico, which executed its game plan to near perfection in the first 20 minutes, shooting 57 percent and out-rebounding the Lady Rebels 20-9. Sophomore forward Melissa Forest, making her second start of the year in place of hobbled center Jordan Adams, had 12 points and grabbed five rebounds in the first half. Forest finished with 16 points, while junior Chelsea Grear added 15. Adams finished with just 5 points on the night.
New Mexico will face another challenging opponent on Thursday, Jan. 31 when it returns home to take on the MWC-leading and 19th-ranked Colorado State Rams in The Pit. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. (MST).