FORT COLLINS, Colo.— Laila Abdurraqib led the Lobos with seven three-pointers and a game- and season-high 25 points off of the bench as New Mexico defeated Colorado State 66-59 on the road Wednesday.
The freshman went 4-4 from three-point range and 4-4 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter, with her 25 points the eighth-most points off of the bench by a Lobo and the most since 2020. In addition, her 25 points are tied for the 12th-most points by a freshman in a game in program history.
Abdurraqib was joined in double figures by Cacia Antonio with 11 points and Destinee Hooks with 10 points. It was the fifth time that Abdurraqib has scored double digits with the Lobos now 5-0 when she does, the 10th time for Antonio and the 15th time for Hooks.
UNM had the edge in rebounds (42-34), points off of turnovers (18-6), second-chance points (11-4) and bench points (34-2) and made 11 three-pointers, outshooting the Rams from behind the arc 42.3% to 23.8%.
Wednesday’s win was the second straight win in Fort Collins for the Lobos, the first time with consecutive wins since winning in 2022 and 2019, and the third win in the last four games in the series against the Rams.
CSU got out to a 6-0 lead with the Lobos missing their first four shots before free throws by Antonio put the Lobos on the board two minutes in. The Rams made four of their first five shots, and following two three-pointers by the Rams, UNM was in an early 11-2 deficit. An Abdurraqib three was UNM’s first made basket in six attempts with Joana Magalhães hitting a three-pointer from the wing and Hooks a straightaway three for the 17-11 deficit with 2:46 left.
The Lobos trailed 22-13 at the end of the first but caught fire in the second, scoring seven points in 1:06 to cut the deficit to two at 22-20. Five consecutive points from Alyssa Hargrove gave UNM its first lead of the game at 23-22 and the run extended on an Abdurraqib three. Antonio split a pair of free throws midway through the quarter, Abdurraqib made her third three-pointer and Antonio got her own rebound for a layup to make it a 19-0 run and a 32-22 Lobo lead.
CSU went scoreless until there was 46 seconds left in the quarter, with the Lobos outshooting the Rams 41.2% to 7.1% in the second quarter for the 32-24 lead at the break. UNM made seven three-pointers in the first 20 minutes with Abdurraqib 3-4.
It was the ninth game, and the third consecutive game, holding an opponent to under 10 points in a quarter in a game and the fewest points allowed in a quarter this season. The 19-0 run also marked the second-largest run this season.
CSU used a 10-2 run to tie the game at 34 in the third quarter with a Nayli Padilla layup giving the Lobos the lead back and an Antonio drive to the basket extending the lead to four midway through the quarter. However, a 5-0 CSU run put the Rams up one with 2:21 remaining. Two free throws by Hooks with 1:26 left put UNM back in front and Hooks in double figures, and an Emma Najjuma offensive board and putback extended the lead to three at 42-39 with 42 seconds left. CSU closed the quarter with a layup for the one-point Lobo lead at the end of the third with two ties and two lead changes in the quarter and UNM leading for 7:56.
The Rams used a 7-0 run to start the fourth quarter to take a 48-42 lead with 8:25 left. The Lobos matched that with a 7-0 run of their own behind an Antonio layup, Abdurraqib’s fourth three that cut the margin to one and an Antonio layup all in the span of 49 seconds. UNM made six consecutive field goals in what amounted to a 14-2 run over a span of 3:22 to give the Lobos the 56-50 lead with Magalhães capping the run on consecutive layups. CSU made a three-pointer to cut the lead in half, however Abdurraqib made a three-pointer to restore the six-point margin.
CSU closed within two at 59-57 with 1:39 remaining and once again, Abdurraqib had the response with her seventh three-pointer to put UNM in front 62-57 with 1:07 left. The Rams were forced to foul the Lobos five times to extend the game, sending Abdurraqib to the free throw line with 21 seconds left with the freshman making both. Following a CSU layup, the Rams fouled Abdurraqib again with the freshman making two more with 15 seconds left. A missed three-point attempt by CSU led to a Magalhães rebound and a jump ball called with possession UNM to close out the game.
UNM shot 72.7% from the floor in the fourth quarter and 66.7% from three-point range with Abdurraqib scoring 16 points and the Lobos outscoring the Rams 24-18.
With the win, the Lobos improve to 12-4, 4-1 in the Mountain West and return home to host Nevada on Saturday at 1 p.m.