ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — There was once a time when practicing five-on-five was not a possibility for Craig Neal’s Lobos. But that was last year. Just one look on the court can show anyone that this year is most definitely not last year.
This year 17 bodies are running around the Davalos floor. That doesn’t count the coaches, or the managers or even the support personnel. That’s just the players. That’s three full teams. Plus two subs. That’s a lot of players. Lobo fans will get to see all 17 in action for the first time on Friday, October 16 at the Annual Lobo Howl. The doors will open at 6 p.m. with the women’s team taking the floor at 7 and the men’s team going at 8 p.m.
Craig Neal, entering his third season at the helm of a program he has been a part of for nine seasons, is ready for hit the practice courts, and he is ready to see what his team holds.
The Lobos will get 30 practices over a 42-day period heading into the season opener on Friday night, November 13 against Texas Southern at 5:30 p.m. That will be the first of 13 non-conference games, seven of which are at home. Those non-conference games include a home-and-home series with New Mexico State, a home game with a top 10 team from a year ago in Northern Iowa, a road game at Purdue, and the 2015 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. UNM will need those 13 games in order to get ready for the rigors of Mountain West play, and Craig Neal knows the league will be tough as always.
“Our out of conference is going to be a challenge. Anytime you play Northern Iowa, which we get them at home, and then at Purdue, at USC, that’s definitely challenging,” said Craig Neal. “I think the conference is going to be really good. I think some of teams lost a lot of guys but it’s going to be really good.”
UNM’s conference schedule is interesting in two regards. Colorado State doesn’t visit WisePies Arena aka The Pit and UNM traditionally has had success against Colorado State in the Pit to the tune of a 44-5 record. UNM conversely doesn’t make one of the league’s tougher road trips as UNM will not play at Wyoming this season.
Having the opportunity to start practice on October 2 instead of the traditional October 15th weekend has been beneficial, especially with eight new players on the roster. “It’s good to get started early and it’s good for teaching. You still have to regulate what you do so that you don’t wear them out early.”
UNM returns three starters from last year in rangy small forward Sam Logwood, center Obij Aget and power forward Devon Williams. Not counted among that group is guard Cullen Neal who missed all but three games with an ankle injury.
For Logwood, it’s been a long time coming to get back on the court, officially putting the 2014-15 season to bed. “We are ready to get back after it,” said Logwood. “We all have a bad taste in our mouths after last year and we are just ready to get going.” Logwood said the 15-16 record last season has weighed heavy. “It’s something we had on our shoulders, what happened last year. Everyone felt it, even the guys that redshirted and the guys that didn’t play much. We all realize that we have a lot of ground to cover.”
For Cullen, it’s been even longer. The good news for him is that there are no trips outside of the United States scheduled this season after suffered a ruptured appendix in 2013 in Australia and then the severely sprained ankle in Puetro Rico in 2014. But much like Logwood, who has increased his strength under the work of coach Jeremy Anderson, Neal has filled out his 6-5 frame to just over 200 pounds.
“I don’t even think about my ankle anymore,” said Neal. “I don’t even notice it. There’s no pain.”
While Neal will be able to add considerably to UNM’s offense in terms of just his own scoring (he was 8-for-16 on threes before the injury), his return is just one of many pieces to the Lobo puzzle that were not available last year.
“We’re deeper,” said Cullen. “We have a lot more scorers, and more shooters. All four of the new freshmen can really shoot the ball, even big Nic.”
One of those shooters is freshman Anthony Mathis, who Craig Neal said might be the best shooter on the team. That was news to Cullen. “That’s disrespectful,” said Cullen, who brought a hearty laugh from those in the media conference last week. “But, all of us can really shoot the ball, so I don’t know who the best shooter is. We’ll have to see the numbers when the season plays out.”
While the offense should take care of itself with Craig Neal calling the plays and new pieces like Tim Williams and Elijah Brown that have a year of practice in the system behind them, the head coach knows it’s the defense that will once again be needed to win games.
“We’ve always been able to defend, and I think it’s because of our principles,” said Craig Neal. “My expectations are just that they are going to play hard and do everything they can to win games. It’s yet to be seen defensively what we are able to do but with our principles I think we will still be good.”
What Lobo fans, and more to the point, what the Lobo players are looking for, are wins. The wins that puts the program right back at the top of the Mountain West and in the national picture.