ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico men’s basketball team (10-6, 3-0 MW) stayed undefeated in Mountain West Conference play, defeating the Utah State Aggies (9-6, 1-3 MW), 77-59, Saturday in WisePies Arena.
“I thought my team came out and played the way I wanted them to play,” said head coach Craig Neal. “They really came out with a lot of energy and a lot of effort. They did what I asked them to do the first four minutes of the game, taking a really, really good Utah State team out of their rhythm, and just really played well in the first half.”
The win sealed the second 3-0 conference start in Coach Neal’s three seasons as head coach and tied his best mark. They were never behind against the Aggies, and in three league games, have only trailed for a total of 3:43 seconds.
The Lobos were led by Tim Williams, who logged team bests with 21 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. He shot 9-for-13 from the floor and 3-for-5 from the free throw line. Cullen Neal was the team’s leader in assists with six, paired with a career-high four steals. He scored 12 points and brought down five boards. Elijah Brown scored 18 points on 6-for-10 shooting to go along with six rebounds and five assists. He was 4-for-4 from the foul line, stretching his free throw streak to 31 made over four games.
Much like their previous conference games, the Lobos jumped out to a big lead and controlled the action down the stretch. The Aggies looked to keep pace with the hot shooting home team, and only trailed 10-7 four minutes into the game. After a quick 9-5 run to build separation, the Lobos held Utah Stat scoreless for over eight minutes, scoring 14 points of their own in the process. It marked the third straight time the Lobos had held their opponent scoreless for more than a five minute stretch in the first half.
“It was really big to start that fast, we could’ve came out slow after the long week off, but we just tried to remember the Fresno State game,” said Williams. “If we can come out and get going like that we have a real good chance to win.”
Jalen Moore scored six straight points to end the drought, but the Lobos outscored Utah State 12-5 over the last five minutes to take a 43-18 lead at the break. It was the second time this season that the Lobos held an opponent under 20 points in a half. The defense held Utah State to 7-for-29 shooting, 3-for-16 from distance, before halftime.
“I think the biggest thing was that we started going inside out and we were driving the ball to get to the free throw line,” said Coach Neal. “I thought that was huge for us. If we’re able to get out and get stops in transition like we did in the first half, and get to the line, we can score some points.”
Utah State put up a strong fight in the second half, but never threatened the Lobos’ lead. New Mexico outscored Utah State, 25-21, over the first 12:30 of the second to secure its largest lead of the game at 68-39. The Aggies continued to fight down the stretch, but the final deficit of 18 points would be as close as they could come in the second half.
The Lobos finished the game at an even 50 percent (29-for-58) shooting, along with a mark of 73.7 percent (14-for-19) from the foul line. Utah State shot 34.3 percent (23-for-67) from the floor and 20.7 percent (6-for-29) from deep. Once again, the Lobos won the battle on the glass, 44-35, with 13 offensive rebounds.
Sam Logwood shot a perfect 3-for-3 to score eight points with two assists. Obij Aget secured six points and rebounds apiece. Jordan Hunter led five bench scorers with four points to go with career highs of three steals and three rebounds.
The Lobos will return to the road Tuesday to face UNLV at 8 p.m. MT at the Thomas & Mack Center.
(1/9/2016) MBB v. Utah State
Strong First Half Pushes Lobos Past Utah State 77-59
