Feb. 23, 2009
Lobo Basketball
What: Lobos vs. TCU
When/Where: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday — The Pit
On The Air: 770-AM KKOB
Online: GameTracker; Live video on GoLobos.com
By Richard Stevens — Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
The excitement of being in a Mountain West Conference race that is bursting toward a dramatic finish is nothing new for Steve Alford’s Lobos. They were in it last year, didn’t grab the brass ring, but learned a few things from the chase.
Alford is hoping his Lobos learned what it takes to be a champion.
“It’s exciting for us,” said the second-year Lobo coach. “But going through it last year helps us this year. We are excited, but our guys are focused on the challenge. We have to go out there and be ourselves and do what we do best.”
One thing the Lobos have done extremely well this season is take care of business in The Pit by protecting that home turf. UNM is 6-0 in University Arena in MWC games with victories fueled by tenacious defense and opportunistic offense.
That’s the mission tonight (Tuesday) when the TCU Horned Frogs step onto Bob King’s court. The Frogs are not in the MWC race, but they are jumping at their chances to be spoilers. TCU also has games with frontrunners San Diego State, and Utah.
The Lobos’ shot at a MWC title probably, and realistically, leans on UNM winning out the season and then getting some help from the enemy. That means Pit wins against TCU and Utah and road wins at Colorado State and Wyoming. That road isn’t an impossible one to traverse, but Utah might not be the biggest pothole on the trail. Wyoming is 12-1 at home overall and 5-1 in MWC play. CSU took Utah into overtime last week.
“This league has a lot of balance,” said Alford. “I think even Air Force is going to get someone.” The Falcons only shot at a contender is a game at BYU. The Cougars are the only contender — Utah 10-2, BYU 8-4, SDSU 8-4, UNM 8-4 — with a home loss. BYU had a hiccup in the Marriott Center losing to UNLV.
If the Lobos do win out and finish 12-4, it’s not that difficult to see them pulling into the gate with a share of the regular-season title.
A 12-4 mark means that the Lobos will beat Utah in The Pit. The Utes also have to play at BYU. Utah has a tough game Wednesday at home against visiting UNLV and, at times, the Rebs have looked to be the best team in the league. Utah finishes at home vs. TCU. It’s not difficult to envision the Utes finishing 12-4 or 11-5 if they lose to the Rebs.
The SDSU Aztecs host BYU tonight (Tuesday) in a Mountain telecast that follows the Lobo/TCU game. If the Aztecs beat BYU, their path to a 12-4 finish then includes a visit to TCU and home games with Colorado State and always-tough UNLV. The Aztecs should be favored in each of those four games, but the status of Billy White, injured Saturday vs. UNM, could be huge in the Aztecs’ run to the wire. Still, if SDSU gets past BYU, you have to figure the Aztecs will run the table.
After its visit to SDSU, BYU hosts Utah, visits Wyoming and ends the season with a home game in Provo vs. Air Force. The Cougars are looking at three tough games and then a cakewalk vs. Air Force.
So, if Utah loses at BYU and at New Mexico, there is a good chance the 2009 MWC champ will finish 12-4 and there could be two or three teams sharing that mark. The Lobos look to be one of them.
“This is really the time of the year you can’t look past anyone,” said Lobo senior Daniel Faris.
The Frogs (14-13, 5-8) probably don’t look too fearsome to the Lobos, who stomped TCU 69-52 in Fort Worth on Jan. 24. The Lobos also are coming off an annihilation of San Diego State, 75-49 on Saturday.
The Horned Frogs have dropped seven of their past eight games and are looking at one of the meanest defenses in the MWC and one of the nastiest teams in the league when it comes to defending the home court’s honor. The Lobos have won at home by an average of 20.1 points and have held BYU (62), CSU (50), Wyoming (57) and SDSU (49) to season lows in the points column.
The last time UNM went undefeated in league games was a 7-0 mark posted in 2005.
“That’s something we want to establish,” said Alford. “We want teams to know that it is very difficult to come into The Pit and beat the Lobos.”
Editor’s Note: Richard Stevens is a former Associate Sports Editor and sports columnist for The Albuquerque Tribune. You can reach him at rstevens50@comcast.net. Previous articles are available at The Richard Stevens Corner