| Broadcast Information | |
| WATCH: Mountain West Network |
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| RADIO: Lobo Radio Network | |
| (KNML 95.9/ 610 AM flagship in Albuquerque) | |
| Play-by-Play: | J.J. Buck |
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.– It is conference time for the New Mexico Lobos as the team hosts San José State for an early afternoon conference opener on Tuesday at 2 p.m. in The Pit.
Starting with Tuesday’s game, there will be a change in the entry requirements for all events in The Pit. Lobo fans will have three ways to come and enjoy Lobo Basketball in The Pit. The simplest will be for patrons to provide proof of vaccination status. Proof of vaccination status means having two shots of Pfizer or Moderna, or one shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine (or AstraZeneca for international fans), with the last shot received two weeks prior to the date of event entry. The second way to enjoy Lobo basketball at The Pit would be to provide proof of a negative COVID test. A PCR test must be within 72 hours and an antigen test must be within 24 hours of the event. Home COVID tests are not valid for this type of entry. The third way to enjoy Lobo Basketball at The Pit is to be under 12 years old, as fans up through age 11 will be admitted without proof of vaccination.
Patrons to all events at The Pit must additionally adhere to all other state health regulations, which currently include wearing a mask in any indoor venue or setting.
UNM enters the game after nine days off, having won its last game against UTEP on Dec. 19. LaTascya Duff led the Lobos with 20 points, matching her season high with five three-pointers, with Shaiquel McGruder contributing 18 points, LaTora Duff 17 points and Jaedyn De La Cerda 11 points. The game marked the third time this season that LaTascya has led the Lobos in scoring as well as her third game with 20 or more points.
LaTora tied Paula Reus with six assists for the team high, with Reus leading the team with a season-high four steals. McGruder tied her career high with five blocks.
As a team, the Lobos finished with 10 three-pointers on the night, the sixth time this season that the Lobos finished in double figures, with LaTascya accounting for half and LaTora recording three to continue their streak of three-pointers.
The Lobos also registered their best shooting effort of the season with 53.3 percent from the floor (32-for-60) and their second-highest three-point percentage of the season at 43.5 percent (10-for-23). UNM held a 21-4 advantage in fast-break opportunities in the game, with McGruder scoring 12 of her 18 points on fast-break chances.
While being tested in non-conference play, the Lobos have maintained balanced scoring with four Lobos currently averaging 10-plus points per game in McGruder (13.8), LaTora Duff (13.5), Jaedyn De La Cerda (11.9) and LaTascya Duff (11.4). In addition, the Lobos have had seven different leading scorers in the 13 games this season.
UNM is outscoring its opponents 972-827 with the largest margin in the first quarter (253-183, 70 points). The greatest point output is in the fourth quarter with 261 points, an average of 20.1 points per game in the quarter. In addition, the Lobos are outscoring their opponents in every quarter but the third quarter.
Entering conference play, New Mexico leads the MW in five statistical categories, field-goal percentage (46.4), three-point field-goal percentage, blocked shots (54, 4.2 per game), assists (213, 16.4 per game) and made three-pointers per game.
As a team, UNM leads the Mountain West in made three-pointers per game at 9.3, with Colorado State second at 7.9 per game, as well as in three-point field-goal percentage at 37.5 percent, with San Diego State second at 36.1 percent. UNM has also taken a conference-high 323 three-pointers, with the second-highest 265 by Nevada (shooting 28.7 percent and making 6.3 per game). LaTora and LaTascya Duff are the top-two leaders in three-pointers this season, with LaTascya making a team-high 31 and LaTora making 30, with the duo averaging 2.6 (LaTascya) and 2.3 (LaTora) per game. They have both taken the same amount of three-pointers on the season (72), with LaTora shooting 41.7% from behind the arc (30-for-72) and LaTascya at 43.1% (31-for-72). LaTascya leads the MW in three-point percentage and made three-pointers per game, with LaTora third in made three-pointers per game.
When it comes to Tuesday’s game, the Lobos enter the game with the series lead at 12-4, 5-1 at home against the Spartans, with the last time the two teams met back in January 2020. UNM is 7-0 at home this season with SJSU 1-5 on the road and having lost its last five games. Further, the Lobos are 4-1 in conference openers under Coach Mike Bradbury.
San José State enters conference play 3-8 on the season and having lost its last five games. The Spartans have wins over Eastern Washington (77-67), Pacific (71-60) and Academy of Art (62-49), and losses against Washington State (86-56), Sacramento State (75-65), Santa Clara (67-58), Saint Mary’s (79-71), UCLA (112-33), UC Irvine (74-66) and UC Santa Barbara (81-51).
The Spartans’ leader in scoring, rebounds and blocks is Cydni Lewis, who is averaging 12.2 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. Ellie Boni leads with 31 assists on the season, an average of 3.4 per game and Ella Ogier leads with 24 steals, averaging 2.2 per game. Stephanie Torres has made a team-best 15 three-pointers, shooting 35.7 percent from distance, with A’Tyanna Gaulden at 14 made threes and a 36.8 percentage. Ogier is the most accurate from behind the arc at 37.9 percent, making 11 of 29 attempts, while Torres has taken the most attempts with 42. Ogier also leads the Spartans from the free-throw line with a team-high 37 made free throws and a team-high 44 attempts. Torres is the most accurate from the line with 22 makes on 24 attempts (91.7 percent).
As a team, SJSU shoots 76.0 percent from the line (ranked 44th in the NCAA) and 28.8 percent from distance, making 12.1 free throws per game and 6.7 three-pointers per game. However, opponents are shooting 32.7 percent from three and 7.6 makes per game, as well as taking more free throws. Opponents are also shooting 44.0 percent from the floor.
The conference opener will also be Youth Day with all youth 8th grade and under gaining free admission to the game.