Lobos face first road test in MW play at Nevada
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| NEW MEXICO LOBOS 11-1 (1-0 MW) |
NEVADA WOLFPACK 4-8 (0-1 MW) |
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Saturday, January 4 | 3 p.m. (MT) |
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Tipping Off
Off to a great start in Mountain West Conference play, the University of New Mexico women’s basketball team is set to take to the road for their next two league games as both will take place in the Silver State. First up among that duo of games is in Reno this Saturday as the Lobos will take on the Wolfpack of Nevada.
The Wolfpack are overall 4-8 on the season and recently suffered a double-overtime defeat to the hands of Utah State in their MW opener. The double OT game was the second-straight game that was not decided in regulation for the Wolfpack as they came away with a 79-78 win in single overtime against Hawai’i to close out their non-conference slate.
Of their four wins this season, three have come at home, the site of Saturday’s game against the Lobos. On the season, the Wolfpack are averaging 65.0 points per game to rank sixth in the MW. Defensively, Nevada is allowing the second-most points among conference teams at 72.1 ppg. On the other end of the court, the Lobos possess the league’s top-scoring offense at 79.2 ppg and have allowed the second-fewest points at 59.7 ppg.
The Wolfpack have two players averaging double figures with Terae Briggs leading the way with 16.8 ppg, ranking her second in the MW. The Lobos still have three players averaging double figures and are led by Jaisa Nunn at 15.3 ppg, but just off that pace is Aisia Robertson at 14.9 ppg.
1-0 To Open MW Play
Mountain West Conference started this past Wednesday and the Lobos got off to a great start with a 78-57 win over Air Force at home. It was the second-consecutive season that the Lobos have opened league play with a lopsided win over the Falcons. Last year, UNM beat Air Force on the road, 88-59.
Lobo Invitational Champs
For the second-straight year, the University of New Mexico women’s basketball team claimed the title in their own invitational. Last year, UNM went 3-0 with wins over Wichita State, UC Irvine and Illinois. This year, the Lobos were a dominant 2-0 as they out-scored Sacramento State and Stephen F. Austin by a combined 36.5 points.
Rio Grande Rivalry Sweep
In their second game against New Mexico State, the Lobos pulled away late from their in-state rival to earn the season sweep over the Aggies. Both wins were by 25 points each and the +50-point margin was the largest point spread in a season sweep for the Lobos over the Aggies since 2012 (+47). Additionally, the season sweep for UNM was the 22nd all-time against NMSU and the 16th since the 1998-99 season.
Lobo Flag Left Flying in Flagstaff
In their game at Northern Arizona (12/8), the Lobos used a second half scoring surge and lockdown defense to come away with an 84-55 victory. The Lobos led by seven at halftime, but quickly grew the lead out 18 points thanks to an 11-0 run to start the third quarter. UNM continued to build on that lead and led by as many as 30 late in the fourth quarter. Defensively, the Lobos limited the Lumberjacks to just 15.6% shooting overall and 0.08% from three-point range in the second half as NAU made 5-of-32 field goals overall and 1-of-13 from long distance over the final two quarters.
Digging Out of a Hole Against the Miners
In the game against UTEP (12/5), the Lobos got off to a slow start offensively and found themselves trailing 15-2 with 4:29 left in the first quarter. The 13-point deficit was the largest faced by the Lobos to this point of the season. UNM rallied back, however, and went on to out-score the Miners 67-36 over the remainder of the game and secured a 69-51 win. It was the Lobos third game won by double digits this season.
Back-2-Back-2-Back MW PoW
For the second time in as many seasons, the University of New Mexico women’s basketball team has had three-straight Mountain West Player of the Week honorees. Last season, the Lobos were the first to achieve such as feat since San Diego State did in 2008-09 as Cherise Beynon, Jaisa Nunn, and Tesha Buck claimed the first three weekly conference awards.
This year, Nunn started the run of MW Player of the Week honors as she had a monster double-double in UNM’s 72-65 win over Hartford. In that game, Nunn scored 32 points and hauled in 11 rebounds. A week later, Aisia Robertson matched that double-double and even added to it by posting a triple-double in the Lobos’ 89-84 double OT win at Houston. In that game, Robertson scored 28 points and had 11 rebounds and 11 assists.
Most-recently, Ahlise Hurst garnered the award as she averaged 25.0 ppg and buried 12 three-pointers in UNM’s home wins against Oklahoma and New Mexico State. In the game against the Sooners, Hurst exploded for 39 points to set a new UNM and MW record for most points scored in a game by a freshman.
Hurst Sets Freshman Scoring Record
In just her fifth collegiate game and making her second start as a Lobo, true freshman Ahlise Hurst etched her name in the UNM and Mountain West women’s basketball record books against Oklahoma has she set a new freshman record for points in a game with 39. The previous record was 35 points by Yvonne McKinnon against Adams State in 1982.
Hurst, who had been averaging 5.8 ppg heading into the contest, heated up quickly as she surpassed her previous single-game high in scoring in just the first quarter as she had 12 points. For the game Hurst’s 39 points came on 14-of-24 shooting overall and 9-of-17 from three-point range.
Her nine three’s are the second-most makes from long distance in a game in school history.
Assists by Aisia
Through 12 games, redshirt junior Aisia Robertson has been an assist machine. With 97 total assists currently, Robertson has not had fewer than four dimes in a game, and against Oklahoma, Robertson set a new single-game record with 16 assists. Her assists per game are currently second in NCAA DI while her total assists are ranked fifth.
Block Party Hosted By McClure
Length and athleticism were projected to be a newfound strength of the 2018-19 Lobos and thus far, senior transfer Nike McClure has exemplified that on the court and is blocking shots at a high clip. In the season-opener against Texas State, McClure blocked six shots on her own as the Lobos would end the night with a new school-record 16. Against Oklahoma, McClure swatted nine shot attempts by the Sooners to set a new single-game high for herself as a Lobo. McClure’s 36 total blocked shots is currently 7th in DI, while her 3.0 blocks per game is sixth in the country. As a team, the Lobos lead the country in blocked shots per game.
3-x-1
In UNM’s road game at Houston, redshirt junior point guard Aisia Robertson did something only three other Lobo women’s basketball players have done, and that’s post a triple-double in a game. It was the seventh overall in program history and the first in the career of Robertson. Former players Cherise Beynon (3 times), Carol Moreland (twice) and Jean Rostermundt account for the other six
instances.
Nunn’s Climb Up the All-Time Scoring List
Senior center Jaisa Nunn became the 22nd player in school history to score 1,000-career points at the end of her junior season. She ended that year 19th on the all-time scoring list. In her senior season, Nunn has the chance to climb the ranks even higher. She is currently 11th with 1,212 points.
Lobos Picked 5th in Preseason MW Poll
The Mountain West recently released its annual preseason predicted order of finish ahead of the 2018-19 women’s basketball season and UNM was picked fifth behind preseason favorite Boise State, UNLV, Fresno State and Wyoming. The Lobos were just eight points back of Wyoming as UNM garnered 150 points in the rankings.
Nunn Named Preseason All-MW
Senior center Jaisa Nunn continues to solicit a lot of preseason attention and deservedly so based off of her stellar junior season. The most-recent accolade to come Nunn’s way is inclusion on the 2018-19 Preseason All-Mountain West Team.
Nunn Like Her
Jaisa Nunn set herself apart from many of her counterparts last season as the rising senior was the lone player in the Mountain West to average a double (points/rebounds). In her junior campaign, Nunn was the team’s leading scorer and ranked second in the MW with 17.0 ppg while also topping the team and league in rebounds at 10.2 Already a 1,000-point career scorer, Nunn is within striking distance of becoming a 1,000-rebounder as well. The most rebounds in a career is 982 held by Carol Moreland. Nunn is already in the Top-10 all time at UNM, ranking 5th with 757.
Nunn Named to Lisa Leslie Watch List
Prior to the 2018-19 season tipoff, UNM senior Jaisa Nunn been named to the preseason watch list for the 2019 Lisa Leslie Award. Entering its second year and named after the three-time All-American and 1994 National Player of the Year, the Lisa Leslie Award recognizes the top centers in women’s NCAA Division I college basketball and is a part of the larger Naismith Starting 5, honoring the best players at each position. Nunn is among 20 to be on the initial watch list, and is one of two from the Mountain West.