July 20, 2007
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University of New Mexico men’s basketball head coach Steve Alford announced the Lobos’ 2007-08 non-conference schedule today. The slate for the upcoming season will feature match-ups against regional rivals Colorado, UTEP and Texas Tech, home-and-home games against New Mexico State and Hawai’i, five non-conference road games and a four-team tournament hosted by New Mexico. The Lobos will play a total of 15 non-conference games, with five games away from The Pit for the second consecutive season. It is the most true non-conference road games for UNM since The Pit opened in 1966.
“We were able to put together a competitive schedule considering we got off to a very late start,” stated Alford. “We are playing four games against teams that went to the NCAA Tournament and another on the road against an NIT team from last year. We fell this schedule will help prepare us for a tough Mountain West Conference.”
The Lobos will play three games in the Basketball Travelers Tournament from Nov. 16-18 at The Pit. St. Bonaventure, Presbyterian (S.C.) and Loyola Marymount will participate in the round-robin format. The Basketball Travelers Tournament is an exempt event, giving UNM 31 games during the regular season. The 16-game Mountain West Conference schedule is expected to be released by Aug. 1. The 2008 MWC Tournament is March 11-15 in Las Vegas.
The Lobos start the season at home on Nov. 2 with an exhibition against Eastern New Mexico before opening the regular season at Colorado on Nov. 9. The regular season home opener is set for Nov. 12, but New Mexico’s opponent for that date is still to be determined.
UNM hosts Hawai’i on Nov. 21 following the Basketball Travelers Tournament. The game against the Warriors starts a stretch of nine straight contests against teams that posted a winning record in 2006-07. Eastern Washington and Southern Utah visit Albuquerque on Nov. 25 and Nov. 28, respectively, closing out the month of November.
The Lobos’ December schedule will be a tough one with five of the six contests against teams that won 20+ games and saw action in the postseason in 2006-07. UNM hits the road against Ole Miss on Dec. 1 and New Mexico State on Dec. 4. Both the Rebels and Aggies were postseason participants in 2006-07. Ole Miss posted a 21-13 record while advancing to the second round of the NIT. New Mexico State, the 2006-07 WAC Tournament champs, went 25-9 and made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
After the exam break, New Mexico hosts Texas Tech in a Teacher vs. Pupil showdown on Dec. 15. The Red Raiders went 21-13 and made the NCAA Tournament field of 65 under head coach Bob Knight. Knight was Alford’s coach at Indiana when the new Lobo coach was a Hoosier from 1984-87. The Lobos get a return visit from in-state rival New Mexico State on Dec. 19 before hosting Weber State on Dec. 23. The Wildcats went 20-12 last year, winning the Big Sky and appearing in the NCAA Tournament. New Mexico closes out 2006 with a trip to Hawai’i on Dec. 27.
The final non-conference game of the season will be at UTEP on Jan. 2. It is the Lobos second straight trip to El Paso to face the Miners.
One omission from the 2007-08 schedule that was a staple for New Mexico over the last 41 years is the Lobo Invitational. The fifth oldest in-season tournament will not be played for the first time in the history of The Pit.
Renewals for season tickets will be mailed out on Monday, July 23, with the deadline for renewals on Wednesday, Aug. 22. Season tickets go on sale to the general public on Monday, October 1. Season tickets will be mailed out during the week of Oct. 8-12 and single-game tickets will be available to the general public on Monday, Oct. 29.
2007-08 Lobo Men’s Basketball Non-Conference Schedule
| Day | Date | Opponent | 2006-07 Record | Final RPI* |
Fri.Nov. 2Eastern N.M. (Ex.)12-14 – DII
Fri.Nov. 9at Colorado7-20240Mon.Nov. 12TBA**
Fri.Nov. 16Presbyterian (S.C.)#20-9 – DII
DI in 2007-08
Sat.Nov. 17St. Bonaventure#7-22277
Sun.Nov. 18Loyola Marymount#13-18187
Wed.Nov. 21Hawai’i18-13102
Sun.Nov. 25Eastern Washington15-14185
Wed.Nov. 28Southern Utah16-14211
Sat.Dec. 1at Ole Miss
(NIT 2nd Round)21-1353Tues.Dec. 4at New Mexico State (NCAA)25-9 (NCAA)70Sat.Dec. 15Texas Tech (NCAA)21-1361
Wed.Dec. 19New Mexico State (NCAA)25-970
Sun.Dec. 23Weber State (NCAA)20-1214
Thurs.Dec. 27at Hawai’i18-13102Wed.Jan. 2at UTEP14-17210
*Source – ESPN InsideRPI
** Date subject to change.
# Basketball Travelers Tournament – The Pit
Important Dates For Men’s Basketball Season Tickets
Monday, July 23 – Season Ticket Renewals Mailed Out
Wednesday, August 22 – Season Ticket Renewal Deadline
Monday Oct. 1 – Season Tickets on On Sale to the General Public
Oct. 8-12 – Season Tickets Mailed Out
Oct. 29 – Single-Game Tickets Available