Cumber's 27 Propels Lobos to OT Win Over Boise State 88-83

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Vianè Cumber took a pass from Alyssa Hargrove on a broken play and drained a game-clinching three-pointer with 6.7 seconds left to cap off a career-high 27-point scoring outburst as New Mexico bounced back after five straight losses with an 88-83 overtime win.  That win moved UNM into a fourth place tie with five games remaining in the regular season.

Overall the Lobos moved to 14-12 overall and 7-6 in the Mountain West, tying UNM with Fresno State.  Boise State, which would have forced a five-way tie for fifth with a win, tumbled into eighth place at 15-11 overall but just 5-8 in the conference.

The Lobos led for all but 2:12 of the final 31:06 of the game, but Boise State never went away. UNM led by as many as eight at 36-28, and had a 38-33 halftime advantage, but the two teams traded blows throughout the second half, with Boise State creeping into within a point several times, only for UNM to will themselves back in front.

A Hulda Joaquim putback with 5:16, one of UNM’s 17 offensive rebounds in the game, gave the Lobos a 65-58 lead, but Boise State quickly whittled that back to just two after a three-point play by Abby Muse and a Josee Steadman basket.  Joaquim gave UNM a 71-68 lead with 2:40 to go on a free throw, but after a Destinee Hooks basket gave UNM a 73-70, the Broncos finally tied the game at 73 on a Natalie Pasco three-pointer, one of BSU’s seven on the night.

Two Joana Magalhães free throws with 41 seconds left gave UNM a brief lead again, but Steadman hit two of her own, the first two free throws of the season for her.  BSU got the ball back for a final shot but Joaquim force a tie-up, and the arrow went to UNM with 8.6 seconds left, but UNM Hooks left a shot short at the buzzer, and to overtime the game went.

And that’s where Cumber donned the hero cape.  She entered OT with 22 points, and was quiet the first four minutes, with Magalhães twice hitting acrobatic shots to break ties.  Up 83-81, Joaquim drew a charge and on the ensuing possession, Cumber took advantage of one last offensive rebound to hit a short jumper in the lane with 1:02 left on an assist from Hargrove to give UNM a cushion at 85-81.  Boise State answered with a basket with 34.7 to go and elected to play defense.

That decision looked good when Hargrove fumbled the ball just inside the key with the shot clock winding down, but she calmly picked up the ball, flipped it to Cumber and drained a straight-on three as the shot clock wound down for a nail-in-the-coffin triple and an 88-83 lead.  UNM’s defense didn’t even let Boise State get a shot off in the final 6.7 seconds, clinching the win.

Cumber, who had scored 25 in a game three times during the season, was 10-of-22 from the field and hit 5-of-13 from beyond the arc.  Hargrove had career-highs in rebounds and assists for a double-double of 11 and 10, despite scoring just three points on the night.

Joaquim had a key 11 points on 5-for-7 shooting and Magalhães came off the bench for the just the second time all season but poured in 15 for the winners.  Amhiya Moreland, who fouled out in the fourth quarter, put in yeoman’s work with eight points, most coming over a 10-0 run in which UNM took the lead that it would never fully relinquish.

NOTES: The overtime win was UNM’s first Mountain West overtime win since February 8, 2020 when UNM defeated Wyoming in Laramie 74-71 … the win ended a five-game Mountain West losing streak, and it also ended a four-game losing streak to Boise State … Nayli Padilla scored nine points and added three assists in her first career start … the lineup was just the fifth different lineup for UNM this season … Cumber now has 72 three-pointers on the season, and she will tie for ninth on the single-season list with her next one … she is 32 from the all-time single-season record of 102 by Tesha Buck (2017-18) … Cumber is now nine threes away from tying LaTascya Duff’s career record of 239 … UNM outrebounded Boise State 51-35 … after shooting just 22.2% in the first quarter (4-of-18), UNM shot 50% in every subsequent quarter, and then 60% (6-for-10) in overtime.