Lobos Edged by UNLV in Final Minutes
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Tied with just six minutes left to play, The University of New Mexico men’s basketball team struggled to close out Saturday evening’s game against UNLV, falling by a final score of 78-73. The Lobos were just 5-for-12 from the free throw line over the final four and a half minutes to allow the Runnin’ Rebels to claim the edge. The loss marks just the second for UNM this season inside Dreamstyle Arena – The Pit
The Lobos (17-10, 6-8 MW) were led by junior Makuach Maluach who registered his 50th consecutive start on the night and tied his season-best 19 points going 6-for-7 from the floor, 1-for-2 from 3-point range and 6-for-10 from the stripe. Maluach was one of three Lobos to rack up double figures on the night including senior Corey Manigault (17) and redshirt-junior Keith McGee.
The Runnin’ Rebels (13-14, 8-6 MW) were led by four players scoring over 15 points apiece including their top three scorers on the season heading into the match.
“I thought [the game] got away from us early there in the second half,” head coach Paul Weir said. “We expended a lot of energy … to get back [in the game]. We took the lead there for a second. We were right there and then of course at the end I just think we just ran out a little bit of gas. We didn’t seem to play with a ton of energy tonight.”
The Lobos led by one at the half, 41-40, but UNLV came out of the break on an 11-5 run to take a five-point lead at the 14:55 mark, 51-46. The Lobos came back with an 11-4 run that included a Manigault dunk and a three from redshirt-junior Zane Martin to tie it back up at 55-55 – before Maluach reclaimed the UNM lead with a dunk from Martin, 57-55 Lobos, with 10:53 left to play. Martin finished the night with eight points, five boards and a game-high eight assists.
Maluach’s DUNK on this sweet pass from Martin gives the Lobos a 2-point lead, 57-55. #GoLobos pic.twitter.com/Apys7usVK0
— Lobo Basketball (@UNMLoboMBB) February 16, 2020
The teams went back and forth until the final tie on a 4-0 Lobo run that included a pair of free throws from redshirt-junior Vance Jackson and a fast-break layup from Martin to make it 66-66 with 6:03 left on the clock.
UNLV went on a 6-1 run over the next 2:51 to once again get out to a five-point advantage, 72-67, but the Lobos responded and cut it back to one with 1:28 left on a 4-0 run by redshirt-sophomore Vante Hendrix that included a pair of free throws and a layup, 72-71 Runnin’ Rebels.
While UNLV put the Lobos in the double bonus early, with 10:11 left to play, UNM failed to capitalize in the final minutes, going just 2-for-5 from the stripe over the final 1:28 with the game in the balance.
With the Lobos down by just one with 46 seconds left, 74-73, UNLV finished 4-for-4 from the line for the five-point final score as New Mexico worked to stop the clock. UNM attempted one last shot down by three with four seconds left in which Martin let it fly from the top of the arc to tie it, but it bounced off the backboard before a Lobo foul set up another pair of free throws for UNLV.
“When I let it go it was four seconds [on the clock], the defender was on his heels,” Martin said. “Last time I drove, I lost the ball. I had a defender on his heels, we were down by three, I felt like that was the best shot possible, instead of forcing something.”
UNLV outshot the Lobos 50.0 – 44.0 percent on the night including a 43.8 – 26.1 mark from 3-point range. UNM was just 6-for-23 from behind the arc on the night. Neither team shot particularly well from the stripe either as UNLV was 7-for-14 (50 percent) and the Lobos finished 23-34 (67.6 percent).
Saturday’s contest featured 17 lead changes and 10 ties while the Lobos’ biggest lead was three and UNLV led by six early in the first half. The Runnin’ Rebels led for 23:42 while the Lobos led the game for just 11:57.
UNM returns to action on Tuesday, Feb. 18 as it hosts Nevada in one of the most anticipated games of the season. The Lobos will host former UNM head coaches Steve Alford and Craig Neal, now the head and associate head coach at Nevada, respectively, on ESPNU at 7 p.m. MT.