New Mexico Lobos
Mountain West (27-6, 10-4)
New Mexico dropped off the national radar after losing a couple early games. After that they lost a couple early conference games and fell behind in the Mountain West standings. Those did not amount to many losses, but it did keep the Lobos playing catch up with San Diego State and UNLV for the entire season, but eventually they did catch up.
Big Wins: 12/31 Saint Louis (64-60), 2/15 at San Diego State (77-67), 2/18 UNLV (65-45
Bad Losses: 11/16 New Mexico State (53-62), 11/24 vs Santa Clara (76-79), 2/25 at TCU (64-83)
Coach: Steve Alford (5 seasons at New Mexico)
Why They Can Surprise:
New Mexico is turning into a perimeter orientated team, but they are still great on the glass thanks to senior forward Drew Gordon. Gordon took the conference by storm last season after spending some time at UCLA. This year he is not as dominating of a scorer, but he does make UNM a major threat on the glass almost by himself. The scoring roles on the perimeter have been taken over by Tony Snell and Kendall Williams. Snell is a big 6-7 wing who can score in bunches. He is a very consistent three-point shooter, but will also use his size to get to the basket. Williams has proven to be a good passer and defender, but he also emerged this season as a scorer and not just a shooter. Those three will do a majority of the scoring for the Lobos, but Phillip McDonald is a bomber off the bench and Jamal Fenton is another shooter who can handle the ball.
Why They Can Disappoint:
New Mexico is not opposed to using their speed and running up and down the floor, but they still commit too many turnovers. In March every possession counts and losing out on three or four per game due to careless turnovers could make a huge difference. Freshman Hugh Greenwood has not done much scoring this season, but he has taken care of the ball. Fenton and Williams have also proven to be capable passers. It is tough to blame the ballhandlers for the turnovers, but lacking a true leader at the point guard position is not helpful. Coach Alford has plenty of players he can rely on to bring the ball up the court, but they are either young or better off playing off the ball. The other possible concern is the depth in the frontcourt. A.J. Hardeman is an experienced senior with plenty of size, but he is not a scorer. Cameron Bairstow is the only other forward who sees any significant playing time. With Gordon, those are three fine big men, but they need to stay out of foul trouble. Fortunately, Snell can play the four spot without much of a problem, but against a bigger team, Snell would get outmuscled by most opposing power forwards on the defensive end.
Probable Starters:
Hugh Greenwood, Freshman, Guard, 6.3 ppg, 2.5 apg
Kendall Williams, Sophomore, Guard, 11.9 ppg, 4.1 apg
Tony Snell, Sophomore, Guard, 11.0 ppg, 2.4 apg
A.J. Hardeman, Senior, Forward, 4.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg
Drew Gordon, Senior, Forward, 13.4 ppg, 10.9 rpg, 1.0 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Cameron Bairstow, Sophomore, Forward, 3.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg
Jamal Fenton, Junior, Guard, 6.6 ppg, 2.4 apg
Phillip McDonald, Senior, Guard, 6.0 ppg, 1.7 rpg
Demetrius Walker, Sophomore, Guard, 7.3 ppg, 1.8 apg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 73.2 (56th in nation, 2nd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 58.6 (12, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.3 (53, 3)
Field-Goal Defense: 37.8 (4, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.7 (51, 2)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 38.6 (25, 2)
Free-Throw Percentage: 69.3 (163, 5)
Rebound Margin: 6.7 (17, 1)
Assists Per Game: 16.5 (9, 2)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.5 (167, 6)
Last Five Postseason Appearances:
New Mexico 2011 NIT First Round win over UTEP
New Mexico 2011 NIT Second Round loss to Alabama
New Mexico 2010 NCAA Round of 64 win over Montana
New Mexico 2010 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Washington
New Mexico 2009 NIT First Round win over Nebraska
New Mexico 2009 NIT Second Round loss to Notre Dame
New Mexico 2008 NIT First Round loss to California
New Mexico 2007 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Texas
*all team stats through 3/4
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
