ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.— New Mexico used a 7-0 run in the third quarter of Saturday’s game against Grand Canyon to cut an 11-point deficit to 47-43, however, the Lobos were unable to complete the comeback in the 75-62 loss.
Destinee Hooks led the team for the third consecutive game and seventh time this season with 17 points, while Jessie Joaquim recorded her second double-double of the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Saturday was the sixth time Joaquim has led the Lobos in rebounding and fourth game with 10-plus rebounds.
As a team, UNM turned GCU over 23 times and created 14 steals, led by four from Nayli Padilla and three from Joaquim, a season high for Joaquim and the second time with four for Padilla.
The Lobos scored the first four points as Hooks made a jumper on UNM’s first possession 14 seconds in, and the defense forced two GCU turnovers on the Lopes’ first two possessions and five turnovers in the first three minutes.
A Joaquim layup put the Lobos in front 8-4 with the two teams trading three-pointers to maintain UNM’s four-point lead. GCU used a 5-0 run to take a 12-11 lead, its first of the game, with Joaquim getting an offensive rebound and putting it back up for the Lobo lead with 46 seconds left. A late GCU basket put the Lopes up by one at 14-13 through the first quarter with Joaquim accounting for four of UNM’s points and eight points coming in the paint.
After Hooks was fouled in the act of shooting a three-pointer 1:17 into the second quarter, the Lobo guard made the first two with Joaquim getting the rebound on the miss on the third, resulting in a layup and a 17-16 UNM lead. A Lope three-pointer put the visitors in front with a Joana Magalhães layup tying the game at 19. The two teams exchanged baskets for a tie at 21 and Joaquim gave UNM a 25-23 lead on a layup before GCU used an 11-0 run to lead 34-25 with 3:28 left. The margin grew to 10 at 36-26 with the Lobos trailing 41-30 at the break.
Hooks scored nine points in the second to lead the Lobos with 11 points at the half, going 7-9 from the free-throw line, and was credited with two steals.
A Magalhães layup started the third quarter scoring by either team with the margin closing to seven on a jumper from Hooks with 7:16 remaining. The Lopes pushed the deficit back to 11 with 6:11 on the clock before UNM mounted a 7-0 run behind a Padilla steal and Cacia Antonio fast-break layup, a Padilla three pointed and layup by Hooks to close within four points at 47-43 with 2:13 left in the quarter. However, GCU closed the final 1:39 on a 7-2 run for a 54-45 lead at the end of the third.
Padilla scored five points with three steals in the third with the Lobos scoring six points off GCU’s eight turnovers and 10 of the 15 points in the paint.
A 9-0 GCU run stretched UNM’s deficit to 18 with 6:30 left to play with Laila Abdurraqib ending the run on a jumper and added a three-pointer to make it a 15-point game. The margin grew to its largest point of 19 with 2:58 left before Kaia Foster hit a pair of three-pointers to get the gap back down to 15. An Abdurraqib layup with 12 seconds on the clock closed the scoring with the freshman scoring seven points in the final quarter and fellow freshman Foster scoring six points.
The Lobos (12-7, 4-4 MW) return to the road for their lone game of the week, set to face Air Force on Saturday, Jan. 24.