Game Recap: New Mexico 89, Nevada 55
New Mexico slams Nevada by 34 points at home Sunday night.
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The Lobos achieved their first win over the Wolf Pack in five years, in convincing fashion.
Albuquerque, NM–A conference rivalry like no other. Two programs that share a similar mascot, a lopsided series record as of late & a shared appreciation for Steve Alford. The latest installment of that rivalry, was also the lone Mountain West game on Sunday night.
Meaning there were plenty of fans, regionally & bystanders nationally tuned in to see if New Mexico was the real deal & if Nevada was going to be the team to expose them.
Richard Pitino’s group put peddle to the metal against their visitors Sunday night, opening things up with a 10-0 run and not really looking back. Receiving contributions from seven Lobos in the first twenty minutes of action, New Mexico took the lead from the get go and never let go of the reins. Heading into half-time up 38-24, after what was an 18-point Lobo lead was chipped away by Nevada in the closing minutes.
It was a team effort in the first half, but New Mexico was led by 10 points, 6 rebounds & 2 blocks from Nelly Junior-Joseph. While Pitino’s trio of guards went for 17 of his squad’s 38 points, shooting 7-14 from the floor. Stud freshman JT Toppin was sidelined early with 5 points & two fouls, but it didn’t matter, not tonight.
Nevada struggled to knock down shots, looking for their first bucket for nearly five minutes into the game & trailing the rest of the way. Their best chance came with around 12:57 left to go in the second-half. As a Nick Davidson dunk sparked a 7-0 Wolf Pack run, which helped Nevada shrink their deficit to just nine points (their smallest all night).
That momentum was short lived as New Mexico responded with back-to-back three pointers, which livened the crowd inside the Pit. The home team’s lead reached 20-points soon after and only got larger as time went on.
As the final nail in the coffin coming in the form of a 7-0 run around the five minute mark, the Lobos had done it. Earning their first win over Nevada since January of 2019. Not to mention their first win over Steve Alford since his return to the Mountain West.
It was an impressive display from the Lobos and much needed after what Kenan Blackshear did inside that arena just a year ago. The win was also their fifth straight, all by double-figures & by an average margin of victory of 20.8 PPG. Also placing them in sole possession of second place in the Mountain West, behind No. 18 Utah State, whom the Lobos have already beaten once this season.
Player Spotlights
New Mexico G-Jaelen House
Stat line: 21 points, 6 steals & 6 assists on 7-13 (53.8%) shooting, including 4-8 (50%) from deep
House had one of his most impressive games of the season. Which seems like something I’ve written multiple times this season. But Sunday’s performance had flair, passion & efficiency to boot. Shooting a monster 53.8% from the floor & knocking down shots from everywhere on the floor. Thanks to a huge second-half, where he had 14 of his 21 points.
Not to mention a 2:1 assist to turnover ratio and a dominant defensive performance on the perimeter with six logged steals & countless other disruptions. House has always had poise and confidence but shooting 50% on a night with four other Lobos reaching double-figures was what was needed to send the Wolf Pack home in convincing fashion.
Nevada F–Tylan Pope
Stat line: 5 points, 4 rebounds & 1 block in just 12 minutes on the floor
Maybe the toughest player spotlight choice of the season, as no Wolf Pack player’s performance stood out. A player who played hard during his time on the floor & didn’t look intimidated by the score was Tylan Pope.
Nevada Sports outlets have been praising the Tulane transfer for his play off of the bench as of late. I see why after this dunk through traffic that the Nevada Twitter account doesn’t have a video of.
Tylan Pope … you are UNREAL 📸 #BattleBorn | #PackParty pic.twitter.com/avjV1cK6jt
— Nevada Basketball (@NevadaHoops) January 29, 2024
Three Takeaways
- This Nevada loss was bound to happen sometime during Alford’s tenure in Reno. An undefeated record against his old employers is nothing to snuff at, but Sunday’s bombardment likely changes the power dynamic between these two programs for now. It wasn’t the most dignified way to lose (34 points and all), but New Mexico is one of the hottest teams in the country at the moment. Not to mention they’ve already done the same to Utah State & San Diego State this season.
- Back in early January when UNLV handed the New Mexico their second loss in conference play I said things needed to change in the Lobo locker room. They couldn’t have an amazing non-conference performance just to fold in conference play like they did last year. Someone in that locker room felt the same way and since New Mexico has looked like a different team. One with confident stars playing in rhythm and role players like Junior-Joseph & Amzil thriving to give Richard Pitino one of the more dangerous squads in the country. Anything short of a No. 20 ranking come Monday would be a bit of an insult.
- This Lobo team is playing with a passion, energy & confidence that I haven’t seen in maybe over a decade. One of the moments that I feel perfectly encapsulates this idea, is one of the many Lobo fast breaks of the night. A defensive stop from a mix of House, Junior-Joseph & Dent that led to all three of those players well ahead of any Wolf Pack player, which resulted in House rising in support of a then Dent slam dunk. It’s great to see, a revitalized fan base, student section & along with players inside the program.
✈️ Donovan Dent cleared for takeoff! #GoLobos
📺 @FS1 pic.twitter.com/LeU06KSE3O
— Lobo Basketball (@UNMLoboMBB) January 29, 2024
Next Up:
The Lobos take their win and continue their two game homestand against a struggling but always dangerous Boise State squad. The two sides split their home and home series last season, but each team defended their home courts. That 8:30 PM MT tip-off can be seen on FS1 as the sole MWC game of the night.
While Nevada return home to host San Jose State on Friday February 2nd inside the Lawlor Events Center. The Wolf Pack look to return to their winnings ways after dropping four of their last five. That 8:00 PM PT tip-off can be seen on the FS1.
Larry Muniz covers college basketball as a writer for Mountain West Wire and WAC Hoops Digest. Also as a co-host of the college basketball podcast “Hoops Talk W/Jay & Larry”. He is also a USWBA Member.
