Wednesday: Northern Arizona at Lobos, 7 p.m., The Pit
On The Air: 770-AM KKOB, Lobo Radio Network
Online: GameTracker, game story on GoLobos.com
Up Next: Creighton at Lobos, 7 p.m., Saturday
By Richard Stevens – Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
The buzz is here and growing louder. The Steve Alford Lobos are nationally ranked and the talk of the town. “There’s a buzz,” said senior Roman Martinez.
But as point guard Dairese Gary puts it: “You can’t get a big head about it. You still have to go out and take care of business.”
So far, taking care of business hasn’t been a problem for this young team of University of New Mexico Lobos. They are undefeated at 10-0, undefeated outside The Pit at 4-0, and taking care of business is why they are ranked No. 19 in the nation.
Surprise – the Lobo team picked to finish fifth in the Mountain West race, the team returning one senior and one junior – is the only MWC team ranked.
“The guys are fired up,” said Alford of his team’s ranking.. This is a pretty exciting time right now.”
It’s a good time to be a Lobo basketball fan, too. Lobo fans get two shots this week to see the No. 19 team in the nation play in The Pit: Wednesday vs. Northern Arizona, Saturday vs. Creighton. Heck, toss out a couple of more wins and the Lobos just might crack the Top Ten.
“We knew we had a special team,” said Gary. “We just had to go out and prove it. We knew we had this kind of potential. It was all about how hard we were willing to work, what we were willing to put forward.”
Some of what the Lobos have put forward has been pure, natural, athletic ability – plus the ability to score points. Alford had added a few splashes of that coaching stuff: fundamentals, teamwork, honest effort and – of course – defense, defense, defense.
There have been many keys to the Lobos’ success so far in 2009-10, but buying into Alford’s belief in defense and the inside presence of A.J. Hardeman have been huge.
“I think the one (surprise) variable has been A.J. Hardeman,” said Alford. “He has improved vastly in one year and is doing so much for us. It’s like somebody has put a new motor inside him.”
The strong and athletic 6-foot-8 sophomore definitely has made an impact inside in scoring, in rebounding, and as an intimidating defensive presence. “He’s always there for help (defense),” said Martinez. “We’re really fortunate to have him on the team.”
The Lobos’ inside play clearly was a question mark entering the season. Hardeman, Will Brown and Matt Staff have give Alford some depth in the paint.
The UNM perimeter is loaded with guards and wings, which score in so many ways. Mainly, they just gun you down.
The Lobos have run way from teams behind that dead-eye shooting. At times, they have gone punch-for-punch, like they did down the stretch in their 84-81 win over then-No. 16 Texas A&M.
But even when they have let teams cut into their leads, these young Lobos, as Alford says, “Have found a way.”
The Lobos’ “Way” has been multiple and it has been impressive. As much as any Lobo, Martinez has been the one to show his teammates the “Way.” He has done it with effort and scoring and leadership. If there is a poster boy for what a coach expects out of a basketball player, Martinez is the guy.
And if ever a coach needed a senior to step up in a big way, it’s this season for Alford. UNM is the third-youngest team in the nation out of 346 D-I schools. UNM had only three upperclassmen and Darington Hobson, a junior, is in his first year at the D-I level.
“The young players have grown up a lot because they see what their leader does,” said Alford. “Nobody works harder on every given play in practice than Roman Martinez.
“Our leader does everything on every possession at a high level. Ro is more than doing it. He’s leading like crazy. He does it all.”
Said Gary: “He’s hit a lot of big shots for us.” Yeah, Martinez has hit some big ones. Ditto for Gary, who has the power, and the savvy, to drive the basket and produce in clutch situations.
The Lobos’ “Way” also has been fortified by the all-around play of Hobson. This junior transfer has lived up to his billing. He is scoring at a 17.2 pace, just behind Martinez’s team-leading 17.3 average. He also leads the team in rebounding at 7.6 and has 40 assists to Gary’s 41.
Another huge part of Hobson’s play? He knows how to get to the line. He has shot 64 free throws this season. Gary is second with 51 attempts. These kind of points are critical in a game’s end and probably will be even more critical during the MWC wars.
UNM’s perimeter play has shown a lot of balance and variables. Phillip McDonald averages 11.8 points and has hit some huge shots for UNM this season. Sophomore Nate Garth and freshman Jamal Fenton have contributed big minutes and big plays and give the Lobos different looks, different threats at that position.
Alford also has gotten quality minutes off the bench from Chad Adams and Curtis Dennis, who are in their first year on the court as D-I players. They should improve as the season wears on.
“Our young guys have done a lot of good things,” said Alford. The toughest thing for all Lobo players on the bench is that the starters have played so well.
“This is a fun team. This is a team I really enjoy watching,” said Alford. “They just find different ways to win.”
It’s too early to talk about NCAA play, but there is no question that UNM is doing what it needs to do in non-conference games to raise its RPI and get national attention. This buzz is a good thing. But the Lobos still have solid tests on the way from Northern Arizona, Creighton, Oral Roberts, Texas Tech and Dayton.
And there are things that need to improve prior to the Lobos’ Jan. 5 MWC opener at San Diego State – like defense.
“Our defense is nowhere near where I think it can be with our athleticism,” said Alford. “There aren’t going to be a whole lot of teams we pair up against who are going to be as athletic as we are. That only tells me how good we can be defensively.”
The Lobos’ coach said he gave his players some time to enjoy what they earned and what they deserve – a national ranking. He said there will be less “patting on the back and a little more chewing,” in his Lobos’ future, but “they know that.”
Alford’s Lobos know that because they are ranked because of “chewing” (coaching) and because of focused, hard work. Alford also says the nation didn’t know about the Lobos before, but “now they know.”
That also means that teams will be coming at the Lobos even harder. Especially those MWC teams that were supposed to be better than the Lobos, were supposed to finish higher than Alford’s team of baby-faced gunners.
Gary said of the ranking: “It’s all fun. I like the attention. But you can’t get a big head about it.”
“We got to get better,” said Alford.
Said Martinez: “Being ranked 19th is a big deal for us. But it’s just a number and any given night it could be taken away from us. We still have a lot of work to do.”
What that means now for the Lobos is they have to earn what they have earned. Alford’s pups no longer are unknowns, no longer flying under the radar. They have a target on their backs and the target will become bigger in 2010.