New Mexico Upsets Utah To Claim MWC Championship
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March 12, 2005
DENVER (AP) – The selection committee can stop worrying about New Mexico. A lot of NCAA tournament teams out there probably ought to start, though.
The Lobos made their invitation to the NCAAs a formality Saturday night, getting 28 points, 11 rebounds and four straight clutch free throws from Danny Granger in a 60-56 victory over No. 15 Utah in the Mountain West Conference championship game.
Playing as though their season was at stake – even though it probably wasn’t by this point – the second-seeded Lobos (26-6) jumped on Andrew Bogut and the top-seeded Utes (27-5) early and kept them an arm’s distance away most of the way.
And when Bogut (19 points, 16 rebounds) triggered a 9-2 run that gave the Utes a 49-48 lead with 3:35 left – their first since midway through the first half – New Mexico responded. Alfred Neale slammed home a miss for a 50-49 lead. David Chiotti made a move that felled Bogut and led to an easy layup.
After two Utah free throws made it 52-51, Granger made two huge baskets, forcing a shot over a defender under the basket for one score, then dribbling to the baseline and shaking loose from defender Marc Jackson for an open 15 footer that he buried for a 56-51 lead.
Bogut responded with a 3-pointer with 21 seconds left, but Granger countered by sinking four free throws down the stretch to keep it a two-possession game.
When the buzzer sounded, center Bambale Osby sprinted off the bench and did two handsprings – cheerleader style – then the Lobos went into the crowd to celebrate along with the thousands who followed them up Interstate 25 to watch them earn their first NCAA bid since 1999. The win capped off a day that began when New Mexico beat Utah for the women’s championship.
For the men, it was the ninth straight win and 12th in the last 13. Two of those wins have come against Utah, the league’s regular-season champ, which will almost certainly earn an at-large bid for its fourth straight trip to the NCAAs.
But the Mountain West’s biggest threat could very well be the Lobos, who won their first conference tourney since 1996 – when Dave Bliss was coach and they played in the Western Athletic Conference.
New Mexico forward Danny Granger (33) comes down on top of Utah guard Marc Jackson as he goes after the ball. |
They were on the tournament bubble because of their low RPI rating (85th) and ultra-weak strength of schedule (298), but have more than put to rest all those misgivings over a torrid stretch that began with a win over UNLV at The Pit on Jan. 29.
Granger scored 18 of his points in the first half and well outplayed Bogut, who was “held” to just 19 points by a defense that fronted him with Chiotti, then brought help from the back-side forward.
Despite that success, the Lobos couldn’t build their lead into double digits and when the Utes shut down Granger through most of the second half, it was clear this one would come down to the wire.
It did – but it was Granger, not Bogut, who wound up holding the trophy and being named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.
The Lobos, who were serenaded by chants of “Never Rated!” from Utah fans in the pregame warmups, stayed around to cut down the nets. And by then, it was Lobo fans doing the chanting – shouting “Overrated!” and “NIT!” to the Utes, who were in their locker while coach Ritchie McKay and the rest were on the ladder with the scissors.