Lobos edged by San José State on Wednesday
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Fresh off of a well-deserved holiday break, the University of New Mexico women’s basketball team returned to Dreamstyle Arena – The Pit on Wednesday night and jumped back into Mountain West play against San José State.
The Lobos (9-7, 0-3 MW) were looking to get back to their winning ways and start 2020 off on a positive note, but a second half rally by SJSU and a lead change in favor of the Spartans (9-5, 3-0 MW) in the waining seconds resulted in an 81-80 loss for UNM. The loss drops the Lobos to 0-3 in league play for the first time since the 2011-12 season. Conversely, the win for the upstart Spartans improves them to 3-0 in the MW for the first time since 2015-16.
The second-half comeback by the Spartans was a necessity thanks to the start the Lobos got off to in the first half. On their initial offensive possession, the Lobos opened up scoring on a three-pointer by Antonia Anderson following an offensive rebound by Jayla Everett. The Spartans answered back on the other end, but a three-pointer by Everett kept the momentum with the Lobos.
At the 3:12 mark of the first quarter, a steal and a fastbreak finish at the other end of the court by Aisia Robertson gave the Lobos a double-digit lead, 19-8. In the second quarter, the Lobos remained out in front by a comfortable margin and swelled their lead as large as 15 points, 35-21, with 3:18 left in the half. By the end of the period, the Spartans had cut the Lobo lead down to 10 points, 39-29.
The turning point of the game came in the third quarter as the Spartans’ halftime adjustments saw them out-score their own first half total of 29 with a 35-point effort in the third quarter alone. That offensive outburst saw SJSU shoot over 63% (12-of-19) overall from the field, 46% from three-point range (5-of-11) and 75% (6-of-8) from the charity stripe. The Spartans were also able to turn a 10-point halftime deficit into a six-point lead at the end of the third quarter.
That six-point lead would be the largest of the game for the Spartans as the Lobos began to fight back into the game in the fourth quarter.
The Lobo comeback effort began at the 9:11 mark as Ahlise Hurst knocked down her first three-pointer of the game and cut the Spartan lead in half, 64-61. Prior to that make, Hurst was 0-for-10 from long range. Undeterred by that start, the initial make by Hurst sparked her to cashing in three of her next four. Hurst’s fifth trifecta of the fourth quarter broke what was a 74-all tie with 1:20 left.
That lead did not last long, however, as the Spartans countered with a three-pointer of their own on the ensuing trip down the court.
Tied at 77-all, the Lobos regained a lead on a split trip to the free throw line by Jordan Hosey. The lead quickly swung back to SJSU on a painted jumper by Fieme’a Hafoka with 32 seconds remaining. The Lobos forced their way back to the free throw line once more and this time Everett converted both chances putting the Lobos back up a point, 80-79, with 25 ticks left.
A shooting foul was called on the Spartans next possession and send the league’s top scorer in Ayzhiana Basallo to the line with eight seconds left. Basallo was true on both attempts flipping the one-point advantage back to the Spartans. The Lobos would have a pair of chances at the potential game-winning basket, but neither attempt fell in.
The Lobos had four of their five starters score in double figures and were led by Anderson with a career-high 23 points. Anderson hit from all parts of the floor as she was 9-of-15 overall from the floor, 2-of-3 from three-point range and 3-of-3 from the charity stripe. Behind Anderson in scoring was Hurst with 17 points. All but two of her point total came in the fourth quarter.
Jordan Hosey was next with 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting. Hosey also added a team-high 11 rebounds to notch her third double-double of the season. Jayla Everett rounded out double-figure scoring with an 11-point effort. Aisia Robertson paced the offense for the Lobos with a season-high 13 assists.
The Lobos will now reset and prepare for Fresno State. That game will take place on Wednesday, January 8 on the road at Fresno. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. (MT).