ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The New Mexico men’s basketball team began its run in the 2026 NIT on Wednesday night with a 107-83 victory over Sam Houston in the opening round at The Pit – Powered by Nusenda. The Lobos (24-10) advance to the second round of the tournament, while the Bearkats season ends at 22-12.
Tomislav Buljan had 22 points and 10 rebounds for his 16th double-double of the season, while also recording a career-high six assists, to lead New Mexico. Uriah Tenette scored a career-high 20 points, becoming the sixth different Lobo to reach the 20-point mark this season. Deyton Albury had 15 points and a career-high six steals, while Jake Hall scored 14 points on a night he set the UNM single-season 3-point record. JT Rock had a career-high 14 points off the bench, while Antonio Chol scored 13 points, all in the second half as UNM had six double-figure scorers for the third time this season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lobos jumped out to an early 8-2 lead over the opening two minutes and pushed the margin to 14-7 with 16:20 left as Buljan scored eight of the first 14 UNM points. The lead grew to 28-13 with 12:00 left before UNM held a 30-18 lead at the midway point of the half. UNM led 38-22 with 7:45 left before a 6-0 Sam Houston run cut the margin 38-28 with 6:00 left. Another 6-0 Bearkat run cut the margin to 42-34 with 4:00 to go and Sam Houston would close the margin to 44-37 with 2:30 left. The Lobos took a 51-39 lead into halftime as Buljan scored 14 first-half points to lead New Mexico.
In the second half, the Lobos pushed the margin to 62-43 over the opening three minutes of play. The lead reached 20 at 67-47 with 15:30 left before the Bearkats cut the lead to 15 at 69-54 with 14:00 to go. The lead grew to 79-59 at the midway point of the half and a 10-0 UNM run pushed the score to 89-61 with 7:55 left. A 9-0 Lobo run gave UNM a 103-71 lead with 4:00 to play, but Sam Houston answered with a 7-0 run to cut the margin to 25. The Lobos would close out the 24-point win over the final minutes.
LOBO NOTES
• UNM’s 107 points were its most ever in regulation of a postseason game (conference, NIT or NCAA), eclipsing the 103 vs. San Jose State in the 1st round of the 1997 WAC Tournament (UNM scored a postseason record 117 points in a triple OT loss to UNLV in the 2002 Mountain West Tournament, but had 96 points at the end of regulation of that contest)
• New Mexico set program NIT records of 107 points, 39 field goals, 13 three-pointers, five turnovers (fewest), and a 24-point margin of victory
• UNM’s 21 turnovers were its most in a game with five or fewer turnovers since 2018 (23 asst/5 to vs. San Jose State)
• Hall set the UNM single-season three-point record, making four to give him 109 on the season, breaking the previous record of Anthony Mathis (106 in 2018-19)
• Hall’s 109 threes now rank T-8th all-time among Division I freshmen (most by a freshman in four years)
• Buljan had two offensive rebounds to give him 132 on the season, tying the UNM single-season record (and Mountain West freshman record) set by JT Toppin in 2023-24
• Buljan’s 16 double-doubles are tied for seventh most in a season by a Lobo
• Buljan had his seventh double-figure rebounding game in a row, tied for the second-longest streak in program history (Tied with Drew Gordon in 2011, trailing only Willie Long’s nine-game streak in 1969)
QUOTABLE
“Congratulations to Sam Houston on a really good season. That is a good basketball team. I’m sure they don’t think they played their best. I thought our guys had a really mature approach to this. They came ready to go and that is what we will need to continue to do to advance. We are excited to keep playing basketball and look forward to Saturday.” – Eric Olen
UP NEXT
New Mexico will host George Washington in the second round on Sunday. Game time will be 6 p.m. and the game will air on ESPN+. Ticket information will be announced soon at GoLobos.com and on UNM social media channels.