Nov. 11, 2011
New Mexico Lobos 2011-12 Season Preview
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The teams warmed up, the fans shuffled in, the anthem was sung and the starting lineups were announced. And as soon as the ball was tipped, the Lobos were off and running–and they didn’t stop until the final buzzer, claiming a commanding 92-40 victory over New Orleans in New Mexico men’s basketball 109th season opener in front of 14, 011 fans in The Pit.
“I am really pleased with this forty minute effort,” Lobo head coach said. “We had six guys in double figures and showed good balance. We have depth and are able to throw a lot of variances in how we play.”
led the pack with 14 points, and each notched 13 and , and all added 12 apiece.
Bairstow had a career night in both points and rebounds, tallying 13 and eight, respectively. The junior bested his previous marks of nine points and seven boards.
“I feel a lot more confident this year,” Bairstow said. “It really does help having Drew and A.J. there teaching me along the way and showing me the ropes. With Alex (Kirk) being injured, I’ve kind of had to step it up a bit, knowing there’s only three bigs.”
Gordon had his 15th career double-double, notching 14 points and 13 rebounds. The senior also had two blocks with no fouls and no turnovers.
Alford spoke highly of Gordon.
“He is a double-double guy and that’s what we need out of him,” Alford said. “His focus has been defense. He’s going to be the focal point for us as we continue to move forward. He’s going to be in everyone’s scouting report. Drew has to do a good job and his teammates have to help him to stay out of foul trouble and do the things that he does. We need him on the floor and to stay out of foul trouble.”
“Drew is an animal,” fellow senior said. “I love playing with him. We’ve got to box him out too, because he tries to take our rebounds.”
In addition to his dozen points, Williams dished out a game-high seven assists and picked the pocket of New Orleans three times, all in a matter of 23 minutes of play. McDonald, who came off the bench for the Lobos, scored all nine of his first-half points from beyond the three-point line. The senior hit one more trey in the second half, making him a perfect 4-of-4 with the longball.
Hardeman added seven rebounds to his 13 points, with seven of his points coming from the free-throw line. The senior tied his career high with seven free throws made.
Walker was a spark plug off the bench for New Mexico, grabbing four rebounds and dishing out three assists along with his 12 points in 19 minutes of play. Freshman also came off the bench and contributed with six assists, four points and two steals.
New Mexico shot a scorching .692 from the field in the first 20 minutes of play, hitting 18-of-26 attempts as a team. Overall, the Lobos were 33-of-56 from the floor (.589) while holding the Privateers to a frigid .255 shooting from the floor (14-of-55). The .255 shooting set a UNO record for futility. Their previous lowest percentage was .260 against Virginia on Jan. 10, 1980.
The last time New Mexico held an opponent to under 30% shooting from the field was on Dec. 18, 2008 against San Diego (15-of-55). The Lobos allowed the fewest points since defeating Weber State, 62-32 on Dec. 23, 2007.
The Cherry and Silver dominated in nearly every category–rebounds, 50-25; turnovers, 14-17; assists 26-5–the only thing the Privateers topped New Mexico on was blocks, swatting four attempts compared to the Lobos’ three.
New Mexico jumped out to a 9-0 lead, while the Privateers missed their first five field goals and committed five turnovers before UNO’s Antonio Wertz hit a jumper at the 15:16 first-half mark.
The Lobos ran the floor–scoring 16 fast-break points and New Mexico dominated inside, recording 42 points in the paint.
New Orleans was led by Lenny Harmon, who had 11 points, nine of which came from behind the arc.
Rio Grande rival New Mexico State comes to The Pit on Wednesday, Nov. 16. The Lobo-Aggie contest tips off at 8 p.m.
New Mexico will have to refocus, as the Aggies are a different caliber of opponent than the Privateers.
“The scouting report was already up on the board in the locker room tonight, and when I got in there six of our guys were huddled around, looking at it,” Alford said. “This team is driven.”
The Lobos are 112-92 all time against New Mexico State, winning the last seven encounters.
