Top-Seeded Lobos Meet San Jose State in Mountain West Quarterfinal Thursday

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M – The Mountain West regular season champion New Mexico Lobos will begin its defense of the Mountain West Tournament title on Thursday with a quarterfinal matchup against San Jose State. Game time at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas is 1:00 p.m. MT (noon PT) and the game will air on CBS Sports Network and the Lobo Radio Network.

New Mexico (25-6, 17-3 MW) is the tournament’s No. 1 seed after winning its first regular season title in 12 seasons, tying the Mountain West record with 17 conference victories. The Lobos are led by Mountain West Player of the Year Donovan Dent, the only player in conference history to average 20 points and six assists in league play, and fellow first-team all-conference selection Nelly Junior Joseph, who is the only player in the league averaging a double-double this season.

San Jose State (15-18, 7-13 MW) is the No. 8 seed and advanced to the quarterfinals with a 66-61 victory over Wyoming on Wednesday. Donavan Yap, Jr. led the Spartans with 19 points in their first round win.

The Lobos lead the all-time series 22-6, including both previous meetings in the Mountain West Tournament. The teams split the season series, each winning at home, as New Mexico won 83-77 at The Pit in December and the Spartans posted a 71-70 win in San Jose in January.

The winner of the game will play the winner of the San Diego State/Boise State quarterfinal on Friday night. The championship game is Saturday afternoon in Las Vegas.