Lobos Open MW Play 1-0, Top Air Force 65-58
USAF ACADEMY, COLO. — The University of New Mexico men’s basketball team extended its Mountain West opener win streak to eight on Wednesday night with a 65-58 victory over Air Force on the road. After being held scoreless throughout the first half, senior Anthony Mathis led the Lobos with 17 second-half points.
With the win, UNM improves to 7-6, 1-0 MW, while Air Force slips to 5-8, 0-1 MW.
The Lobos had four players register double figures on the night including Mathis, who scored 13 straight points, redshirt-sophomore Vance Jackson (14), sophomore Makuach Maluach (12) and senior Dane Kuiper (10). Redshirt-junior Carlton Bragg finished with a season-high nine rebounds while Maluach was second on the squad with seven.
Air Force junior Lavelle Scottie led the Falcons with 20 points.
In a strong defensive showing, the Lobos and the Falcons kept it close at the onset, tying the game three times over the first 10:34, the final time at just 15-15 with 9:26 left in the first half. During that stretch, the Falcons got out to a five-point lead, 13-8, on a 9-0 run that included a trio of jumpers from Lavelle.
Kuiper tied it up with a jumper at 15 apiece before a Falcon layup gave the home team a one-point advantage. Kuiper followed it up with a three to put UNM back up by one, a lead the Lobos would not relinquish. Kuiper went right back at it on the other end of the floor with a steal and a couple of quick passes up the court which allowed junior Corey Manigault a slam dunk for a three-point lead.
Dane Kuiper with the STEAL and a quick toss up for a Corey Manigault DUNK! Lobos lead 20-17 and have made five of their last seven shots. 8:21 on the clock, Air Force calls a TO. #GoLobos pic.twitter.com/OJZ3tcKqzu
— Lobo Basketball (@UNMLoboMBB) January 3, 2019
The Lobos continued on an 11-0 run to extend the lead to nine with 6:20 left. UNM got out in front by as many as 11 points during the remainder of the half but went into the locker room on top by nine, 29-38.
At the break, the Lobos were outshooting Air Force 46.7 – 35.3 percent from the floor and 35.3 – 16.7 percent from behind the arc. Jackson led UNM with 13 points in the first half, followed by Maluach who posted 10, each with a pair of threes.
The Lobos added 27 points in the second half, 17 of which were from Mathis who exploded in the second frame. The senior went 3-for7 from behind the arc and 5-for-10 from the floor. The nationally-ranked free-throw shooter also went a perfect 4-for-4 from the stripe. Bragg racked up six of his rebounds in the second half while collecting a pair of blocks.
After getting ahead by 13 points with 13:20 left to play, UNM’s lead was overcome by another Air Force run as they cut the Lobos’ lead to just four with 5:47 left and then to three with 1:05 left on the clock (61-58).
A foul by Air Force’s Ryan Swan with 23 seconds left forced Mathis to take a pair of clutch free throws, increasing the Lobo lead to five, 63-58. Mathis then turned Air Force’s Sid Tomes over with 12 seconds left on the wing and held on for the foul. He netted two more points from the stripe to clinch the 65-58 victory.
The Lobos turned the ball over 19 times while forcing 14. Air Force held an advantage in points in the paint (38-18), points off of turnovers (20-14) and fast-break points (8-2).
On the night, UNM outshot the Falcons 43.4 – 38.1 percent while holding Air Force to just 13.3 percent from behind the arc (2-for-15) and shooting 34.6 from 3-point range (9-for-26).
The Lobos are back in action on Saturday when they host No. 5/6 Nevada at Dreamstyle Arena – The Pit at 6 p.m. on ESPNU.