ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.— The Lobos held Utah State to single digits in three of the four quarters on Saturday afternoon and led for 37:15 in the 58-33 decisive win.
The 33 points are the fewest allowed in the series with the Aggies, was the fewest points allowed by the Lobos since 2018 (33 points against Stephen F. Austin) and the fewest points allowed by the Lobos in a Mountain West game since 2016 (33 against Air Force). The last time a MW school was held below 35 points prior to Saturday was Feb. 23, 2023 (Utah State, 32 points against UNLV).
Cacia Antonio led the Lobos with 12 points to go with two steals, joined in double figures by Nayli Padilla with 10 points who also had two blocks, two assists and a steal.
The Lobos outrebounded USU 48-30, led by a game-high 12 from Jessie Joaquim, six of which were offensive. Joaquim has led the team in rebounding in eight games this season and three times in the last four games.
UNM also held the edge in paint points (32-24), points off turnovers (15-6), second-chance points (13-2) and bench points (25-9) with Padilla leading the bench in scoring for the seventh time this season.
After Utah State opened the scoring, the Lobos scored the next nine points and ultimately made six consecutive field goals to take a 17-7 lead with 2:29 left. The Lobos closed the quarter on a 6-0 run to lead 19-7, the 12th game holding an opponent to below 10 points in a quarter and the sixth time in the first quarter.
UNM outshot USU 46.7% to 15.4% in the first 10 minutes, led by five points from Antonio and 10 points in the paint and seven points from the bench.
Two free throws by Destinee Hooks to start the second extended the lead to 14 with the margin growing to 16 at 26-10 on a Padilla three-pointer 3:46 into the quarter. A Laila Abdurraqib steal led to another Padilla three-pointer to stretch UNM’s lead to 18 points with 2:24 remaining with the margin holding at the half at 36-18.
It marked the fifth time holding an opponent below 20 points in the first 20 minutes, the second time in conference play.
Padilla scored eight points in the quarter as UNM outscored USU 17-11, with the Lobos shooting 41.9% from the floor through the first two quarters while the Aggies shot 25.0% and went 1-9 from behind the arc in the first 20 minutes.
USU scored the first six points of the third quarter before an Alyssa Hargrove pass led to an Emma Najjuma layup in a quarter that both teams struggled to find offense. The Aggies outscored the Lobos 9-4 in the quarter to cut the margin to 13 at 40-27 with Najjuma accounting for all four Lobo points.
Five quick points from a Hooks’ layup and Abdurraqib three-pointer to open the fourth quarter stretched the Lobo lead back to 18, with the Lobos later using a 10-0 run to expand the gap to 26 at 55-29 with 3:10 left to play. The Lobo defense held the Aggies 5:26 without a point during the run and without a point in the final 1:55. A Kaia Foster three-pointer closed the scoring for the 25-point victory.
The Lobos outscored the Aggies 18-6 in the final quarter with Hooks scoring seven of her nine points in the quarter, and held the Aggies to 15 points in the final 20 minutes.
UNM improves to 15-7 and 7-4 in the Mountain West ahead of a two-game road trip, starting at Wyoming on Wednesday.