Lobo Comeback Falls Short in Preseason Finale

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The New Mexico men’s basketball team concluded its preseason schedule Sunday afternoon with a 91-86 loss to Arizona State in The Pit – Powered by Nusenda in the final game of the Power Ford Tip-Off Series. The Lobos trailed by 23 points midway through the second half but rallied to cut the margin to four in the final minute before their comeback fell short.

Jake Hall led UNM with 19 points while Hudson Mayes and Uriah Tenette each scored 17 points. Dax Hall added 11 points and a team-high four assists off the bench.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The game remained close early, with the Lobos holding a 7-5 lead after four minutes of play before taking a 12-5 advantage with 12:30 in the half. UNM held a 16-12 lead at the midway point of the half before ASU used a 16-0 run to take a 28-19 lead with 6:45 left. The Sun Devils held a 32-23 lead with 3:45 left before pushing the margin to 41-28 at halftime. Mayes had seven first half points to lead UNM.

In the second half, ASU extended the lead to 55-35 with 17:00 to play with an 8-0 run and held a 58-37 lead with 15:45 to play. The Sun Devils led 71-52 at the midway point of the half before UNM used a 17-0 run to close to 75-69 with 5:45 to go. The run grew to 21-2 as UNM closed to 77-73 with 3:40 left, but ASU took an 85-76 lead with 2:05 left. A Mayes layup cut the margin to 88-84 with 36 seconds to play, but that was as close as UNM would get as ASU closed out the 91-86 win.

LOBO NOTES
• Arizona State made 16 3-pointers, which would have been T-3rd most by a UNM opponent in a regular season game
• UNM fell to 70-8 all-time in exhibitions (went 2-1 this season, winning at Oklahoma State and defeating Washington State at home prior to today’s game)

QUOTABLE
“Last night was an incredible night for our fans at the football game and we appreciated them coming out today to support us after a late night. We could definitely feel them in the second half. Today was another chance to get a lot of reps against a quality opponent in the preseason and that will only help us as we get ready for the start of the regular season.” – Eric Olen

UP NEXT
The Lobos will begin the 2026-27 regular season on Monday, Nov. 2 by hosting Utah Tech. Game time is 7 p.m. and the game will air on MW+ and the Lobo Radio Network. Tickets are available online at GoLobos.com/tickets.