Nov. 15, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
New Mexico Lobos at Creighton Bluejays
Qwest Center Omaha, Neb.
1:05 p.m. (M.S.T.)
Radio: KKOB 770 AM, www.770kkob.com, Lobo Radio Network
Online: GameTracker on GoLobos.com; Pay-Per-View Video Available on www.GoCreighton.com
Television: None
Series History: UNM leads 2-0
Last Time: UNM won 82-67 on on Dec. 28, 1967, in The Pit
It’s an early-season challenge Sunday afternoon when New Mexico hits the road to face Creighton. Tip-off is 1:05 p.m., Mountain Time from the Qwest Center Omaha in Omaha, Neb.
The Lobos opened their 106th season Friday by overwhelming Southeast Missouri State 102-59. UNM led just 26-22 less than eight minutes before halftime, but closed the first period on a 20-9 run, then blew it open early in the second half.
This is Creighton’s season opener. The Bluejays were picked to finish 1st in the Missouri Valley Conference as selected by the league’s head coaches, sports information directions and media in the preseason poll.
It’s a busy opening month for the Lobos as they play seven games over a 17-day span, culminating Nov. 29-30 in Cancun, Mexico.
The Lobos will be back in The Pit next Thursday, hosting Grambling in the first round of the Cancun Challenge. Game time is 7:05 p.m.
NO TV FOR CREIGHTON, BUT IT’S AVAILABLE ONLINE
There is no television coverage for Sunday’s game, but a live three-camera web cast with some replays is available at www.gocreighton.com. The cost is $6.95.
LOBOS. ALFORD VS. CREIGHTON
New Mexico has a 2-0 series advantage over the Creighton Bluejays. The last meeting was 41 years ago when UNM took an 82-67 decision in The Pit. The first game between the two schools was in Omaha on Dec. 21, 1966. Led by Mel Daniels, the Lobos were ranked No. 6 in the country and came away with a 79-68 victory.
Creighton is scheduled to play UNM in The Pit next season.
Steve Alford and Creighton head coach Dana Altman have faced each other 13 times with Alford holding a slight 7-6 advantage. In Alford’s four seasons at Southwest Missouri State (now Missouri State) between 1996-99, SMS won 6 of 11 meetings against the Bluejays. Alford, however, is just 1-4 against Creighton in games played in Omaha, 1-3 while at Missouri State and 0-1 when he was at Iowa.
Alford’s last game against the Bluejays was March 15, 2001, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Uniondale, N.Y. His Iowa team won 69-56.
Creighton was 22-11 last season and 10-8 in the Missouri Valley Conference, which was good for 4th place. The Bluejays lost to Florida in the second round of the NIT.
Three starters return led by 6-1 senior point guard Josh Dotzler (11.3 ppg) and the 2007-08 MVC Newcomer of the Year P’Allen Stinnett, a 6-foot guard who averaged a team-high 12.6 points as a freshman.
Creighton’s Dana Altman – a 1980 graduate of Eastern New Mexico in Portales – is 365-219 entering his 20th season as a head coach. Altman played basketball at ENMU for two seasons (1979-80). He is 282-152 in 14 seasons with the Bluejays, recording 11 consecutive postseason appearances (7 NCAA and 4 NIT) and 10 straight 20-win seasons.
Creighton finished 15th in the nation in attendance last year, averaging 15,333 fans a game. New Mexico was 18th at 14,361.
The Bluejays won their lone exhibition game last Sunday, beating Central Missouri State 78-65. A crowd of 15,048 – the largest ever for a Creighton exhibition game – witnessed the win.
Kenny Lawson Jr. had 16 points to lead four Jays in double figures. In addition, Booker Woodfox (15 points), Kenton Walker (14 points) and P’Allen Stinnett (10 points) scored in double figures. Creighton narrowly won the rebound battle, 39-38, paced by eight boards off the bench from Walker.
Central Missouri made just one of its first 21 three-pointers before hitting one in the final seconds. UCM shot 23-of-62 (37.1 percent) from the field.
SEASON TICKETS INCREASE
Lobo fans have purchased 10,395 season tickets for 2008-09. That’s the highest total in four years. UNM sold 10,598 in 2003-04. The number was 10,094 last year.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI RECAP
Senior Tony Danridge scored 16 points to lead New Mexico to a 102-59 rout over Southeast Missouri State on Friday. Junior Roman Martinez added his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Danridge missed last season after breaking his left leg in the preseason, but the time off didn’t show. He had several highlight reel dunks against the overmatched Redhawks.
Six Lobos reached double-digits in what marked New Mexico’s highest scoring game since it scored 106 points against Colorado in 2006. Jaycen Herring led the Redhawks with 21 points.
The Lobos opened the second half with a 22-3 run, quickly extending their 46-31 half-time lead to 68-34. Phillip McDonald scored eight of the points and Danridge had six.
The Redbirds had an early lead, going up 16-11 seven minutes into the game. But the lead quickly evaporated and the Lobos built a 26-20 advantage within four minutes.
UNM shot 55% (39-71) from the floor while holding SEMO to 31% accuracy on 19 of 61 shooting, including only 27% (10-37) in the second half.
New Mexico had 26 assists against just 12 turnovers. Ten players saw at least 16 minutes of action with Martinez getting the most time with 26 minutes.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI POSTGAME NOTES
The Lobos scored their most points in a season opener in 12 years, since beating Simon Fraser 107-54 in 1996
UNM recorded its widest margin of victory (43 points) in a season-opening game since a 95-42 win over San Francisco State in 2002
New Mexico is now 599-142 all-time in The Pit
The Lobos are 75-1 in The Pit when scoring 100 points
Steve Alford is 113-10 in non-conference home games as a collegiate head coach
UNM is 77-29 in season openers, but 41-6 since the 1962-63 seasons…the Lobos are 77-25 in home openers and have won 43 of their last 47…the last time UNM lost a season opener in The Pit was Nov. 23, 2002, a 76-68 setback to Cal
All 10 players scored for the Lobos in the first half…the Lobos had six players score in double figures
Freshmen post players A.J. Hardeman (6-6 FGs, 5 rebounds) and Will Brown (4-5 FGs, 4 rebounds) combined to go 10-11 from the floor for 21 points and nine rebounds in their Lobo debut
Senior Chad Toppert tied a career-high with five assists
Senior Daniel Faris tied a career-high with eight rebounds…he scored 11 points on 2-6 shooting and 7-10 from the FT line…his seven FTs and 10 FT attempts are both career highs
LOBOS WERE SOLID ON THE ROAD LAST YEAR
After going 8-43 in true road games – played on the opponents’ home floor – the previous five seasons (2003-07), UNM went 8-6 in Steve Alford’s first season, tying a school record set three other times: 8-4 in 1972-73, 8-2 in 1977-78 and 8-3 in 1995-96. UNM finished the season with 4 straight conference road triumphs for the first time since a 5-game run in 1998.
The Lobos were 5-3 in MWC road games and 3-3 in non-conference affairs with wins at Colorado, UTEP and Hawai’i. The losses were at Ole Miss, New Mexico State and California.
New Mexico also equaled the MWC record for road wins in 2007-08. The mark was set by UNLV in 2006-07 and Air Force in 2003-04, and matched by BYU in 2007-08.
ROAD STREAKS SNAPPED
Three long losing streaks were broken in 2007-08. On Jan. 5, the Lobos won 99-92 in double overtime at Wyoming, ending a 10-game losing skid to the Cowboys in Laramie.
UNM had lost 7 in a row at Air Force before grounding the Falcons 68-51 on Feb. 20. Three days later, an unsightly 18-game drought came to a halt in Salt Lake City as New Mexico pulled off a 72-71 victory over Utah. It was the Lobos’ first win against the Utes at the Huntsman Center since 1989.
UNM HEAD COACH Steve Alford
Steve Alford, 43, is in his second season in charge of Lobo hoops and his 18th year as a collegiate head coach. He was named UNM’s 19th head coach on March 23, 2007.
Alford, who has never been an assistant coaching is his career, has a 333-192 (63%) career record in 17 seasons as a head coach, 25-9 at New Mexico. His teams have qualified for postseason play 12 times, produced 14 winning seasons and reached 21 wins on nine occasions.
Alford’s maiden voyage at New Mexico was something to behold:
A 24-9 record, tying the school mark for wins during the regular season and a 9-win improvement from the previous year
most wins by a New Mexico head coach in his rookie season
8-6 on the road after an 8-43 mark in five seasons before Alford arrived at UNM
a +7 in conference victories, the 2nd-greatest jump of all-time
Prior to New Mexico, Alford spent eight seasons at the University of Iowa where he compiled a 152-106 record, including a school-record seven consecutive winning seasons and six postseason appearances. The Hawkeyes won two Big Ten Conference tournament titles (2001 and `06).
Prior to Iowa, Alford posted a 78-29 record in four seasons (1992-95) at NCAA Division III Manchester (Ind.) College and a four-year (1996-99) record of 78-48 at Southwest Missouri State (now Missouri State). The Bears defeated Wisconsin and Tennessee to advance to the Sweet 16 of the 1999 NCAA Tournament before losing to top-ranked Duke in the regional semifinals. In 1997 Alford led the Bears to a 24-9 record (second in the Missouri Valley Conference) and a trip to the National Invitation Tournament.
Manchester advanced to the 1995 NCAA Division III championship game before suffering its first defeat in 32 games to place second in the nation. Alford was named Indiana Collegiate Conference coach of the year in 1993, 1994 and 1995 and his record was 74-13 over his final three seasons.