SAN DIEGO, Calif. — No controversy this time.
Elijah Brown scored a game-high 22 points and Tim Williams chipped in 12 points with four game-clinching free throws late to help power the University of New Mexico men’s basketball team to a come-from-behind, 68-62 win over San Diego State on New Year’s Day.
After dropping a controversy-filled game in their last trip to Viejas Arena in San Diego, the Lobos (9-5 overall, 2-0 Mountain West) avoided the drama on Sunday vs. the Aztecs (8-5, 0-1), rallying from a double-digit deficit to earn their first win at San Diego State since 2012.
“It’s just tough [to win here],” UNM head coach Craig Neal said after his first win at SDSU as head coach. “Look at their percentages. They’ve won so many games in here in the last seven or eight years. It’s a tough place to play. … But I think our guys experienced what they did last year and I think they were hungry to come in here and get a win. I’m happy for them.”
Brown paced the Lobos Sunday, scoring his 22 points via a 4-of-6 performance from beyond the three-point line and a flawless 8-of-8 showing at the free-throw line.
He has converted 22 straight free-throw attempts to open MW play.
Williams (12 points, nine rebounds, four assists) was the only other Lobo to score in double figures, but freshman Jalen Harris (nine points, two rebounds, two assists) and the duo of Dane Kuiper (eight points, eight rebounds) and Xavier Adams (eight points, five rebounds) also contributed.
“Obviously, any win we can get is huge,” Brown said. “But this one, this was a special one. … For us to be going up and down as we’ve been as a team this year and then having a game like this. This was a huge win and it took a lot of maturity. I couldn’t feel any better after this one.”
Overall, New Mexico shot 41.2 percent (21-for-51) from the floor, just a shade below San Diego State’s 41.5 percent clip (22-for-53).
But the Lobos shot significantly better from three-point range, converting half of their shots (6-for-12), and making 20 of 26 free throws (76.9 percent), including 10 of their final 11 attempts.
New Mexico also rode strong advantages in rebounding (38 to 27) and bench points (22 to 9).
The Aztecs opened the game with a 9-4 lead through three minutes, forcing an early New Mexico timeout. San Diego State would then roll out a 12-2 run to extend its lead to 17-6, but Brown responded with a trey to cut the margin to eight at 17-9.
A Williams’ layup and a Kuiper three-point basket made it a 19-14 game, and back-to-back buckets by Adams — a tipin and a fast-break dunk — and a Connor MacDougall layup put UNM within two points at 22-20 with 7 minutes, 32 seconds left in the first half.
However, a 9-2 run gave SDSU a nine-point lead at 31-22 at the final media timeout of the opening half. The Lobos would tack on three points at the foul line, but the Aztecs would match their largest lead of the half at intermission, up 36-25.
Brown opened up the second half with a three, but SDSU answered with a three a few possessions later to retake a double-digit lead at 39-29. Brown responded with consecutive triples to bring UNM to within seven points, 46-39, at the 13:36 mark of the half.
The Lobos stayed within seven points for the next few minutes, maintaining contact with San Diego State through the under-12 timeout. New Mexico would then make it just a six-point affair after a Damien Jefferson slam.
After the Aztecs regained a nine-point lead, the Lobos posted a quick 7-2 run to cut the SDSU lead to four points at 56-52. Williams then converted a pull-up jumper to make it a two-point game, 56-54, with 4:32 left.
Jalen Harris connected on a elbow jumper to cut it to just one point, 59-58, at 3:02, and two free throws by Adams at the 1:50 mark gave UNM its first lead, 62-61, since the 19:34 mark of the first half.
San Diego State tied the game up at 62-all on a free throw, but Williams converted four free throws to give the Lobos a 66-62 lead with 30.5 seconds left. After Kuiper forced a turnover, Harris skied for a dunk to post the final 68-62 score.
The Lobos held the Aztecs without a field goal for the final 4:18 of the game.
“We just kind of chipped away, chipped away, chipped away,” Neal said. “[We] went on a 14-4 run at the end. I thought we got some really big defensive stops and I thought we made some crucial plays making free throws and making shots.”
Despite only leading for all of 1:57 of the game, the Lobos managed to open MW play 2-0 for the fifth-straight year. They’ll look to make it three straight wins on Wednesday as they head to Logan, Utah, for a 9 p.m. MT matchup vs. Utah State. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU with radio coverage at 770 KKOB-AM.