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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico men’s basketball team will open Mountain West play on Wednesday by hosting the Fresno State Bulldogs inside WisePies Arena – The Pit at 7 p.m. MT. The game will be available on ESPN3.
It’s a fresh start for the Lobos on Wednesday. They come into the game with an overall record of 7-5 after finishing up non-conference play at No. 18 ranked Arizona last week. They fell 77-46 to the Wildcats in Tucson.
Inside The Pit this season, the Lobos are undefeated and will look to stay that way Wednesday night. In Mountain West openers inside The Pit, the Lobos are 7-0 and have won the last five straight Mountain West openers.
On the season, the Lobos are shooting 46.8 percent which is third in the Mountain West. They are averaging 74.8 points per game and are grabbing 33.8 rebounds per game. Tim Williams continues to lead the squad at 18.1 ppg, which is second best in the conference. He also leads in rebounds at 6.8 per game. He leads the conference in shooting percentage at 60.9 percentage. Elijah Brown is second on the team in scoring, averaging 16.1 ppg.
Fresno State enters the match up with an 8-4 record. They have won three of their last five games, including an overtime victory over Pacific on Dec. 17. Most recently, they fell to Oregon in Eugene on Dec. 20, 75-63.
The Bulldogs have two starters returning from last year’s squad and four players averaging double digits. Paul Watson is leading the way with 13.6 ppg. He is shooting 44.4 percent from the three. Jaron Hopkins is second in scoring at 12.8 ppg.
ABOUT THE COACHES
Craig Neal is in his fourth season as head coach of the Lobos. He owns a career record of 66-43. Against Fresno State, Neal is 4-2. Rodney Terry is the head coach of the Bulldogs and is in his sixth season. His career record stands at 93-88.
ABOUT THE SERIES
New Mexico and Fresno State will face off for the 24th time in program history. It will be the 11th time the two teams have faced each other inside The Pit. The Lobos are 14-9 against the Bulldogs all time and are 9-1 inside WisePies Arena. The Lobos first loss to the Bulldogs in The Pit came last season as they fell 92-82.
The past two seasons, the two teams have split the season series, each winning at home in 2014-15 and each winning on the road in 2015-16. The home team has largely dominated during the series as Fresno State is 8-3 in Fresno and the Lobos are 9-1 in Albuquerque.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
The game will be available on ESPN3. Click here to watch the game. For fans tuning in on the radio, Robert Portnoy will give the play-by-play action alongside analyst and Lobo great Hunter Greene on 770 KKOB, the flagship station of the New Mexico Lobos. This feed will also be available via the TuneIn Radio App.