Feb. 5, 2009
The Pit Parking Update for Feb. 7
Lobo Men’s Basketball Notes vs. UNLV
The second half of the Mountain West Conference season gets underway Saturday when New Mexico (14-9, 5-3 MWC) entertains UNLV (17-5, 5-3 MWC). Tip-off is 6:05 p.m. Mountain Time from The Pit / Bob King Court. This the Lobos’ last home game until San Diego State visits on Feb. 21. UNM plays at Air Force next Wednesday and at BYU on Feb. 17.
Saturday’s game will be televised live nationally in high definition by CBS College Sports, which is channel 274 on Comcast cable in Albuquerque, channel 613 on DirecTV and channel 152 on Dish Network. Tom Hart and Sean Farnham will call the game.
At the halfway point of the MWC season, a logjam still exists as just one game separates the top five teams. San Diego State and Utah lead the pack at 6-2 while the Lobos, BYU and UNLV are all 5-3. San Diego State and Utah still have to play the Lobos in Albuquerque.
On Tuesday, Chad Toppert equaled his season high with five three-pointers and scored 17 points to lead the Lobos to an 86-57 victory over Wyoming. UNM held the Cowboys to a season-low point total. New Mexico never trailed and got off to an 11-3 lead. Although Wyoming cut it to 11-10, UNM outscored the Cowboys 30-10 the rest of the way before half time.
The backbone of the stretch was the long-distance shooting from Toppert. He nailed four three-pointers over a four-minute period in a 14-2 surge that extended the Lobos’ lead to 29-14. New Mexico finished off the half with three-pointers from Roman Martinez, Toppert and Jonathan Wills en route to a 41-20 advantage at the break. The Lobos had a strong shooting night, hitting 30-of-58 from the field while limiting Wyoming to 17-for-48. UNM went 11-for-22 from behind the three-point arc and converted 15-of-17 from the foul line.
UNLV dropped a 68-66 overtime game to San Diego State Tuesday in Las Vegas. Wink Adams led the Runnin’ Rebels with 16 points.
TURN IN YOUR OLD CELL PHONES SATURDAY
Verizon Wireless and UNM Athletics invite fans to go `green’ and help curb domestic violence in our community. Fans attending Saturday’s game against UNLV can donate their used wireless phones and accessories to the Verizon Wireless HopeLine phone recycling and reuse program. Drop boxes will be located inside The Pit at the northeast and southwest corners.
“We are proud to team up once again with the Lobos to help raise awareness of this epidemic,” said Tony Heyman, regional president for Verizon Wireless. “Together, we can help curb domestic violence and do a good thing for the environment.”
SPONSORS / RECOGNITION
Game Sponsors are Verizon Wirelesss, 93.3 KOB FM, NewsRadio 770 KKOB and KRQE News 13. There will be a pregame recognition of American Indian tribal leaders and the 2009 Lobo baseball team will be introduced at halftime.
THE NEW MEXICO-UNLV SERIES
The Lobos and Runnin’ Rebels meet for the 38th time. UNLV has a 24-13 advantage, including a 60-58 win at the Thomas & Mack on Jan. 3. UNLV has won 5 of the past 6 meetings overall and is 13-4 against the Lobos since 2002. New Mexico has a 9-7 advantage in The Pit and has taken 3 of the past 4, including a 59-45 decision last year.
SCOUTING THE RUNNIN’ REBELS
UNLV is the top 3-point shooting team in the MWC in all games, averaging 7.86. That figure is even better in conference play at 8.5 a game. The Rebels also have the best number for turnover margin at +3.82. Senior Rene Rougeau leads the league in offensive rebounds at 2.73 a game. He is fourth in rebounding at 7 a game.
GRANGER SELECTED TO NBA ALL-STAR GAME
Former University of New Mexico All-American Danny Granger (2003-05) was chosen as a Eastern Conference reserve for the 58th NBA All-Star Game Feb. 15 in Phoenix. Granger is in his fourth year with the Indiana Pacers. He was a 1st-round draft pick in 2006.
Granger is 5th in the league in scoring, averaging more than 25 points a game. Only Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki are scoring at a higher clip that Granger. Granger is the first former Lobo to play in an NBA All-Star game. Mel Daniels (1965-67) was a 7-time ABA All-Star, ironically, six times when he played with the Indiana Pacers.
NOTES TO KNOW BEFORE THE GAME
The Lobos’ 5 conference wins have been by an average of 21.6 points while their 3 losses have been by a combined 8 points, or 2.7 points
In the last 4 home games, New Mexico has held Air Force (53), BYU (62), Colorado State (50) and Wyoming (57) to their lowest scoring totals of the season
In MWC games, Chad Toppert leads the league in FT% (96%, 22-23) and in 3-point accuracy (52.8%, 19-36)
Toppert needs two 3s to pass Utah’s Johnnie Bryant for 3rd place on the MWC’s career list..Toppert has 244, which is also 3rd at UNM behind Clayton Shields (285) and Ruben Douglas (264)…Toppert is 1st at UNM and 3rd in MWC history with a 3-point accuracy of 45%
The past 4 games, New Mexico is shooting 51.5% (101-196) from the floor and 50% (29-58) from 3-point
The Lobos are shooting 39.4% from 3-point this season, but a league-leading 43.8% in MWC contests
UNM head coach Steve Alford is 27-4 all-time in The Pit, 10-2 in MWC games
The Lobos are 9-1 this season – with 9 consecutive wins – when junior Roman Martinez plays more than 30 minutes a game…the only loss was at Creighton on Nov. 16
FG% defense has been a strength of UNM teams under Steve Alford…last year, UNM held opponents to 41.0%, the 4th-lowest by a Lobo team in the past 43 years…it’s even better this season at 39.6%, which currently ranks 1st in the MWC…the last time New Mexico held the opposition to under 40% for an entire season was 1964-65 (36.7%)…opponents have shot just 40.4% (1,132-2,798) in 56 games against Alford’s Lobo teams
Only one time in the past 28 games has an opponent made 50% of its FG tries against the Lobos…San Diego State hit an even 50% (23-46) on Jan. 21, 2009
The Lobos have won 28 straight games when allowing less than 60 points, and they are 48-2 in such games since 2004-05
Woeful from the FT line for most of the season, UNM has made 77.2% (149-193) of its FTs the past 8 games (75.1% in MWC games) increasing the season average to 69.3%
Senior Tony Danridge became the 25th member of New Mexico’s 1,000-point club when he scored 14 points at San Diego State…he has 1,053 points for his career to rank No. 22 on the all-time list…Ike Williams is No. 21 with 1,086 points
ALL 3 LOBO SENIORS TO GRADUATE IN MAY
All three New Mexico three seniors – Tony Danridge, Daniel Faris and Chad Toppert – will graduate in May with their bachelor’s degree. Danridge is majoring in University Studies, Faris in Mass Media/Communications and Toppert in Business. All three have participated in more than 112 games in their careers at New Mexico: Danridge (118), Toppert (116) and Faris (112).
UNM-UNLV JAN. 3 IN LAS VEGAS
UNLV’s TreVon Willis had 15 points to lead the Rebels to a 60-58 victory against New Mexico in the Mountain West Conference opener for both schools. UNLV trailed 52-50 with 4:23 to play before going on an 8-1 run to take the lead for good. Willis had six consecutive points in the rally as the Rebels won their eighth straight game. New Mexico’s Jonathan Wills hit a 3-pointer with 16 seconds to play to cut New Mexicos deficit to 58-56. But Willis connected on 2-of-4 fouls shots to seal the victory.
The Lobos had a chance to take the lead or tie the game in the final seconds, but Chad Toppert missed an open 3-point attempt and Tony Danridge could not convert a short follow. Joe Darger had nine points and 10 rebounds for UNLV, and Rene Rougeau added nine points and seven rebounds. New Mexico got a game-high 19 points from Daniel Faris. Danridge had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Lobos, and Nate Garth added nine points.
UNM-UNLV LAST YEAR IN ALBUQUERQUE
J.R. Giddens had 17 points and 15 rebounds, lifting New Mexico to a 59-45 win. The Lobos snapped a four-game losing streak to UNLV. Giddens was a force, collecting eight rebounds by halftime in his final homecourt appearance. He also had five assists and a steal.
UNLV point guard Wink Adams scored 12, four points below his average, but went scoreless in the second half. The Rebels shot 33 percent from the floor, hitting just 18-of-54. UNLV had won four straight over New Mexico, including a 79-60 decision in Las Vegas on Feb. 2 when UNLV opened with a 21-5 run. The Lobos refused to let it happen again, forcing a grinding pace for a 24-22 halftime lead.
From there, New Mexico turned the tables, starting the second half with an 11-0 burst that stretched the lead to 35-24. The Rebels missed their first four field goal tries and had three turnovers after the break, and the capacity crowd of 18,018 fans was at full roar as Chad Toppert hit a 3-pointer to force a UNLV timeout. After the Rebels cut the deficit to 43-33 at the 10-minute mark, Prentice threw a long pass to Giddens for a thunderous slam dunk that kept the fans standing and the crowd noise at full volume. Then, Roman Martinez collected a miss and banked it in to push New Mexico’s lead to 47-33 with 7:44 remaining, and UNLV trailed 51-37 with 5 minutes to go when Smith drew the fourth and fifth fouls on Rebels point guard Wink Adams.
POSTGAME NOTES FROM THE WYOMING WIN
New Mexico’s five MWC wins have been by an average margin of 21.6 points…UNM is 6-0 when scoring 80+ points this season
UNM held Wyoming to season-lows in points scored (57) and FGs made (17)…the Cowboys’ 20 points in the first half is their lowest total in any half this season
UNM shot a season-high 88% (15-17) from the FT line and has made 77.2% (149-193) of its attempts the past 8 games
UNM made 11-of-22 3-pointers and is now shooting 43.8% from 3-point in MWC games and 45.9% in the last seven league games…the overall season percentage is now 39.4%
New Mexico improved to 5-0 when committing fewer than 10 turnovers…the Lobos committed only 8
The Lobos outscored Wyoming 30-10 the final 10:51 of the first half, hitting 11 of 15 FGs…seven of those baskets were 3s, five by Chad Toppert
New Mexico held a 36-25 rebounding edge…Wyoming came into the game outrebounding opponents by 2 a game
New Mexico has won three in a row over Wyoming and 5 of the past 6…the Lobos have won six in a row over the Cowboys in The Pit
The Lobo bench outscored the Cowboys’ 37-7
Senior Chad Toppert
Game-high 17 points, 15 in the first half, on a season-high 6 FGs made…14th game with 10+ points this season…UNM is 4-0 when he leads them in scoring and 11-3 when he scores in double digits
Matched season-high with five 3-pointers, all in the first half…8-12 on 3-pointers in the past two games and shooting 52.8% (19-36) from 3-point in MWC games
Averaged 17.6 points in his last 3 games against Wyoming
Senior Daniel Faris
11 points, all in the second half, including UNM’s first seven points, and a game-high 8 rebounds
43 points (17-27 FGs) and 24 rebounds in the past three games
2 blocks for 12th game this season with multiple rejections
Senior Tony Danridge
3 dunks moving into fifth all-time at UNM with 72
11 points for 19th game in double figures this season
Shooting 84 percent (38-45) on FTs the past 8 games
Junior Roman Martinez
15 points on 5-10 FGs, 3-5 3-pointers while picking up five rebounds…14th game in double figure scoring
The Lobos are 9-1 when he plays more than 30 minutes
Freshman Nate Garth
Scored all 7 points in the span of 1:10 in the second half
Five assists for 10th game with 5 or more assists
UNM HEAD COACH Steve Alford
Steve Alford, 44, 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 coach is his career, has a 346-201 (63%) career record in his 18th season as a head coach, 38-18 at New Mexico. His teams have qualified for postseason play 12 times, produced 14 winning seasons and reached 21 wins on nine occasions.