Lobos Picked to Finish Third in MW Preseason Poll
LAS VEGAS, Nev. — The University of New Mexico men’s basketball team has been selected to finish third among Mountain West teams this season as voted by the conference media. The Mountain West announced the poll results on Tuesday prior to the 2019 Mountain West Men’s Basketball Media Day.
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The 2019-20 season marks the second straight that New Mexico has been voted to finish third after overcoming aninth-place prediction to finish third in head coach Paul Weir’s first season in 2017-18.
The Lobos return nine letterwinners from last season, in which UNM ultimately tied for seventh in the regular season before reaching the 2019 Mountain West Quarterfinals with a 78-68 victory over Wyoming in the first round of the tournament.
Included in the nine returning letterwinners is a trio of starters in redshirt-senior Carlton Bragg, redshirt-junior Vance Jackson and junior Makuach Maluach. Jackson finished last season collecting 13.1 points per game to go along with 7.0 rebounds and a 40.5 percent shooting clip. Jackson, a UConn transfer, heated up in the conference tournament posting a combined 51 points throughout the two games and earning All-Mountain West Tournament Team honors.
After sitting out for a season and a half, Bragg burst on the scene last December to also averaged scoring in double figures for the Lobos. Bragg registered 10.5 points per game while shooting 49 percent from the field. In addition, the 6-10 big man pulled in a team-high average of 8.8 boards per game.
The final starter, Maluach, returns for his third year at New Mexico after averaging 9.9 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game in his sophomore campaign.
The Lobos also return senior standout Corey Manigault from last season who averaged 9.0 points and 4.6 rebounds per game and redshirt-junior Keith McGee who posted 9.1 points and 1.8 assists in his first season at UNM in 2018-19.
Overall, the Lobos return five of their top six scorers from last season and over 50 percent of their production on the court. UNM is returning 54 percent of its 3-point production from last year after losing leading 3-point shooter, senior Anthony Mathis, however the Lobos return 63 percent of last season’s blocking power, 64 percent of their 2018-19 steals and 68 percent of their points, rebounds, assists and free throws.
The 2019-20 roster is evenly balanced with eight upperclassmen, seven of which are experienced transfers, and eight underclassmen, six of which started their careers at UNM and two of which have transferred in in Weir’s tenure.
Picked unanimously to finish first in the 2019-20 season was Utah State with 17 first-place votes for a total of 187 points, followed by San Diego State (150), New Mexico (141), Nevada (135), Boise State (128), Fresno State (103), UNLV (89), Air Force (76), Colorado State (59), Wyoming (36) and San José State (17).
The Lobos are set to open their 18-game home slate, the most home games in a decade for UNM, on Nov. 6 inside Dreamstyle Arena – The Pit against Eastern New Mexico at 7 p.m. The contest will mark the beginning of a four-game home stand that includes CSUN and a pair of contests as part of the 2019 Legends Classic.
Season tickets for the 2019-20 Lobo men’s basketball season are now on sale and mini packs are coming soon. To purchase season tickets or for more information, contact the Lobo Ticket Office at 505-925-LOBO (5626), purchase online at GoLobos.com/Tickets, or visit in person in Dreamstyle Arena – The Pit.