Nov. 17, 2004
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The University of New Mexico completes a four-game season-opening homestand Friday when it takes on Western New Mexico. The Lobos and Mustangs tip at 7:05 p.m., from the The Pit/Bob King Court in Albuquerque.
After sweeping the NABC Classic last weekend, UNM is 3-0 for the first time since the 1998-99 team began 8-0 en route to a No. 11 national ranking. Western New Mexico opened its season Monday with an 80-67 setback at Colorado State-Pueblo.
A victory over the Mustangs would equal the best start for a Ritchie McKay-coached team. His 1997-98 Portland State squad and 2000-01 team at Colorado State each began 4-0.
The Lobos hit the road for the first time Monday when they venture to Eugene, Ore., for a clash against Oregon. UNM is looking to halt a 26-game road losing skid. Coincidentally, that’s the Ducks’ current winning streak in non-conference home games heading into Friday’s season opener against Idaho State. UO’s last loss at McArthur Court outside the Pac-10 was Dec. 11, 1999, when it fell to Cal State Northridge 79-77.
UNM VS. WESTERN NEW MEXICO – UNM has an 18-2 lead in a series that started 89 years ago. The first game was Feb. 13, 1915, with WNMU winning 39-13 in Silver City. New Mexico has won 11 straight since 1933. The Mustangs won in 1915 and again in 1932.
The two in-state schools meet for the second time in Ritchie McKay’s tenure as head coach. UNM won 107-49 in The Pit on Jan. 22, 2003.
NABC RECAP – New Mexico used a hot shooting hand and balanced scoring to get past North Carolina A&T, Santa Clara and Duquesne in the NABC Classic. The Lobos shot 56.5% in the three games, including a salty 47% (31-66) from 3-point. Five Lobos averaged in double figures.
Eleven Lobos had 26 turnovers against North Carolina A&T, but 11 players also scored and combined to shooot 63.4% (26-41) from the floor in the 75-59 victory. Senior forward Danny Granger and junior forward David Chiotti each tallied 18 points.
The 3-point stroke was in full force in the 93-59 victory over Santa Clara. UNM connected on a school-record 20 shots from behind the arc, including 13 of 20 in the first half as it raced to a 46-23 lead at the break. The previous mark was 18 on two occasions. Seven different Lobos knocked down a trey. Granger made 5 of 6, Alfred Neale all 4 of his attempts and Mark Walters 4 of 7 on his way to a game-high 19 points. Granger added 8 rebounds.
Neale’s 3-pointer midway through the first half gave UNM a lead it never lost in the 82-74 triumph over Duquesne. Neale was again 4 of 4 from 3-point, scoring 17 points and grabbing 8 boards off the bench. Walters and point guard Kris Collins posted game-high scoring honors with 19 apiece. Collins scored 15 in the second half, including a nice drive with 8:37 left that provided the Lobos with their first double-digit lead.
If there was an MVP of the Classic, it might have gone to Walters. Looking fully recovered from a knee injury that limited his mobility and production most of last season, Walters made his presence felt all over the floor. He averaged 14 points, scoring in double figures in consecutive games for the first time since the last three games of his freshman season. Walters made 70% (16-23) of his shots, had 9 assists versus just 2 turnovers, plus 3 blocks and 6 steals.
HEAD COACH Ritchie McKay – Ritchie McKay begins his third season in charge of Lobo hoops and his ninth year as a collegiate head coach. He was named UNM’s 18th head coach on March 28, 2002.
McKay had previous two-year stops at Portland State (1996-98), Colorado State (1998-2000) and Oregon State (2000-02). He has a career record of 110-121, 27-32 at New Mexico. McKay is 27-11 at home, 18-12 in non-conference games and 18-6 in non-league games at The Pit.
While at Mountain West Conference member Colorado State, McKay led the Rams to the NIT in 1999. McKay is the son of the late Joe McKay, who was a three-year letterman at guard for the Lobos from 1961-63.
HOT START FROM THE FIELD – As mentioned, the Lobos shot no lower than 51% in any of the three games of the NABC Classic and 56.5% for the weekend. The 63.4% accuracy against North Carolina A&T is UNM’s best since making 67.9% (36-53) at Air Force on Feb. 14, 1998.
New Mexico has not shot 50% or better from the floor in four consecutive games since a four-game stint between Dec. 29, 1999-Jan. 10, 2000, against Alabama State, St. Jospeh’s, Washington and Colorado State.
BOMBS AWAY – Part of the shooting efficiency was a record-setting performance from 3-point against Santa Clara. The Lobos nailed 20 treys against the Broncos, including 13 of 20 in the first half. To put that number in perspective, UNM made more than 13 in an entire game just three times last year.
The previous standard for 3-point proficiency was 18 on two occasions: vs. Holy Cross on Dec. 29, 1997, and vs. UTEP on Feb. 19, 1998. Both games were played in The Pit.
SHOOT BETTER AND WIN – The Lobos have won 19 straight games when shooting better than their opponent, including a perfect 12-0 in 2003-04. The last loss was at Tennessee on Jan. 4, 2003. UNM shot 45% (18-40) to the Vols’ 43% (22-51). The Lobos are 54-4 in such situations since 2000-01, 151-13 since the 1995-96 season.
SEASON NO. 102 – The 2004-05 season is the 102nd in school history. The Lobos first laced up the hightops on Feb. 2, 1900, when they lost 8-6 to the Albuquerque Guards. While this season is actually the 105th anniversary of that inaugural year, UNM did not field a team for various reasons in 1900-01, 1903-04, 1917-18 and 1920-21.
The Lobos have been on the hardwoods continuously since the 1921-22 season and have compiled an all-time record of 1,209-960 (.556). New Mexico was 418-495 (.458) from 1900-62, but has gone 791-465 (.632) over the past 42-plus seasons, an average of nearly 19 wins per year. The Lobos have made 26 trips to the postseason during that span, including 10 appearances in the NCAA Tournament and 16 showings in the NIT.
LOOKING AHEAD TO THE DUCKS – Oregon returns three starters and eight lettermen from last year’s team that finished 18-13 overall and 9-9 in the Pac-10, tying for 4th place. The Ducks, who advanced to the postseason NIT semifinals last season, are picked for a 4th-place finish in the league in 2004-05.
Oregon has no seniors on its roster. The top returnee is 7-foot junior center Ian Crosswhite, who averaged 12.5 points and 5 rebounds a year ago. The Ducks also list another 7-footer in their projected starting lineup in freshman Ray Schaefer.
UNM and UO meet for the first time since March 16, 1990, when New Mexico took an 89-78 victory in the first round of the NIT in The Pit. The Lobos have a 5-1 lead in the series with the only loss being 61-59 in Albuquerque on Dec. 6, 1969. Oregon is slated to come to The Pit next season. The Lobos have played in Eugene only once, resulting in a 64-60 win on Dec. 1, 1967.
Ritchie McKay, who had two-year stints as head coach at Portland State and Oregon State, is 1-5 in his career against the Ducks. He was 0-4 while at OSU and 1-1 during his tenure at PSU. The lone win came in Eugene, 56-54 on Nov. 25, 1997.
The Lobos are 109-138 against current members of the Pac-10. Most of those games have come against Arizona and Arizona State as UNM is 42-83 against the Cats and 46-37 versus the Sun Devils. New Mexico is 1-3 vs. Cal, 4-2 vs. Oregon State, 4-5 vs. USC, 1-2 vs. Stanford, 2-2 vs. UCLA, 2-2 vs. Washington and 2-1 vs. Washington State.
New Mexico has dropped its last four meetings against Pac-10 opposition. The last win was 78-52 over Washington on Jan. 2, 2000. The last road triumph was earlier that same season, a 70-68 upset at No. 2 Arizona on Dec. 21,1999.
Head coach Ernie Kent, a 1977 Oregon grad, is 225-161 in his 14th season overall, 135-81 in his eighth year with the Ducks.
Oregon assistant coach Scott Duncan was an assistant at New Mexico from 1980-90 under Gary Colson and Dave Bliss.