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Lobos Advance to Semi-Final Round |
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Written by Phillip Lopez
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Thursday, 08 March 2012 21:10 |
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Las Vegas, Nevada --
The Lobos cruised into the second round of the Mountain West Conference Tournament after a 15-point (79-64) drubbing of the Air Force Falcons.
UNM did so in an atmosphere that seemed reminiscent of those we are accustomed to at the Pit. The Lobo fan base traveled in big numbers to the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas.
"We all knew that the Lobos travel in packs, I guess," Falcons' Michael Lyons said about the contingent of Lobo fans present. "We played in their place before. We know how their fans get. We know they like to travel and they support their team to the fullest."
The win completed the Lobos' three-game sweep of the Air Force Academy this season.
Demetrius Walker shined for the Lobos in the first half. The sophomore guard poured in a game-high 14 points in the first by effectively drawing contact from defenders, thus getting him to the free throw line. He was great from the field as well on Thursday, as he converted on all three of his field goal attempts -- two of which came from three-point land.
"Yeah, I feel like I had a real good week of preparation and practice offensively and defensively, said Demetrius Walker, whose game has seen a vast improvement as of late. Why the big jump in production? "Just practice, man," he told me. "Coach is putting a lot of emphasis as far as trying to pick it up in practice. My teammates have been picking it up as well."
He wasn't the only Lobo getting to the charity stripe in the first half, as a team New Mexico went to the line 27 times, converting on 23 of those attempts.
New Mexico finished the game 31-of-37 from the free throw line. They were able to see early on that the referee's were calling a tight game and they did a terrific job of attacking the basket.
"When you look at conference-wise, we haven't been great doing that," Alford said about his team getting to the line in bunches. "But that was the game plan. We wanted to go inside, we wanted to drive the ball hard. We're obviously bigger than they are so we wanted to attack them inside. The guys did a very good job of doing that aggressively."
They went into the break leading the Falcons 45-31. The 14-point deficit was too much for Air Force to overcome.
Michael Lyons -- who played all 40 minutes of the game -- and the rest of the Air Force team would not give up without a fight, though. The Falcons battled in the second half to cut the Lobos' lead down to 9 points.
The Lobos, however, were able to respond and respond in a big way. Demetrius Walker drilled a corner three ball with 4:22 left in the game, which proved to be the dagger.
New Mexico will now look to face the winner of the UNLV/Wyoming game in the semi-finals tomorrow night.
They're (the Lobos) going to play for a couple more weeks; that team is talented," Air Force's Dave Pilipovich said.
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Twitter: @PhilABQsports
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Last Updated on Thursday, 08 March 2012 21:26 |
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Written by Phillip Lopez
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Sunday, 04 March 2012 10:34 |
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I got the chance to talk with 2013 five-star recruit Aaron Gordon on Saturday, as he was at the Pit in support of his brother Drew's senior night. We didn't have much time to talk, but he seemed very excited about the energy of the Pit. My other impression of this 6-foot-8 high school junior was his poise in answering questions -- a real trait of maturity. He wouldn't budge when asked if his unofficial visit was enough for him to commit to New Mexico, but he did answer a few questions.
Me: What are your impressions of today (Saturday)?
Aaron Gordon: "I mean, it's a really great gym. There is a bunch of people and I love the crowd and I love the intensity here."
Me: With Drew having to transfer, what has he told you to make sure you don't go through the same thing?
Aaron Gordon: "He said to just make a relationship with the coach. If you really know the coach as a person it will really work out for your benefit."
Me: Has Drew done his part in recruiting you to UNM?
Aaron Gordon: "Not really. He has just kind of says 'pick a school that's right for you'. He just kind of lets me do that."
To elaborate on Aaron's comments about his older brother not pushing him to play for UNM, Drew explained further.
"It's ultimately his decision on where he goes. I know that I hated everybody in my ear about what to do and how to do it, where to go, and what time to go when I was in high school, so I try not to pressure him too much because I know he is getting a lot of that. I do put in my two cents every once in awhile, so hopefully that pays off," Drew said.
Drew Gordon does believe that Aaron would be a great fit for the Lobos, though.
"I think it (UNM) would be good for him. I think it would fit him. They (the Lobos) are long, athletic and they like to get out and run, you know, that's how my brother is, so yeah, I wouldn't have any reservations about him coming here."
During Steve Alford's speech to Drew Gordon, he grabbed Aaron by the wrist, took him to center-court, and raised his arm -- like a referee raising the arm of a champion -- prompting a standing ovation from the crowd. Alford then finished his address to the Gordon's with: "I hope the Gordon's are here for a long, long time."
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Last Updated on Monday, 05 March 2012 15:36 |
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Lobos Focused and Ready for MWC Tournament |
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Written by Phillip Lopez
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Monday, 05 March 2012 14:52 |
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Just two short days away from the start of the Mountain West Conference Tournament in Las Vegas, and the New Mexico Lobos look poised for a good showing at the Thomas and Mack Center.
The home arena of the third-seeded UNLV Runnin' Rebels, which leaves UNLV with an unquestionable home-court advantage. "There is a distinct advantage when one institution in the league gets to play home games," Alford said. "I have no problem with Vegas, I just think the issue is one institution gets to play home games all the time and no other institution gets to do that."
The Lobos will need to overcome that advantage in order to win their first ever Mountain West Conference Tournament. This team could be the one to do it. Their strong defense and unbelievable depth will bode very well for them in tournament style play. In the portion of practice open to the media today, the Lobos looked extremely sharped and focused.
"We take it day by day, you know, we don't really try to look at the big picutre because in that case you may overlook a team or a half of basketball that could ultimitely end your season," said Drew Gordon in refrence to staying focused on Air Force and not looking ahead to winning the tournament. "Coach does a good job of preparing us for that and keeps us focused. Some of us want to think of the tournament or other games and stuff like that, but the way our program is set up, and the the way coach runs things it's not really an option."
Along with being focused on their next opponent, the Lobos do have a chip on their shoulder. New Mexico claimed their third title in four years on Saturday, but remained out of the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches' polls, both of which had third place UNLV ranked.
"You can bet that, you can bet that," Kendall Williams said about entering the tournament with the team having a chip on their shoulder. "We don't care too much about rankings, but we're at least still searching for some respect. They're ranked (SDSU and UNLV), but i'll see them in Vegas."
I will provide in-depth live coverage throughout the tournament here on the blog. You can also join in on the conversation with me on twitter: @PhilABQsports.
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Last Updated on Monday, 05 March 2012 15:35 |
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Final: Boise State at New Mexico |
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Written by Phillip Lopez
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Saturday, 03 March 2012 16:37 |
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The Lobos came out of the gates a bit sluggish, but overcame a 9-point deficit in the first half to claim their third conference title in four years. Prior to Steve Alford, New Mexico had claimed just three conference titles from 1973 to when he took over in 2007, so yeah, this Steve Alford guy is pretty good.
"I am very, very proud of them (the players) because they had a lot of pressure on them, dating all the way back to October," Alford said. "I think this is the first time in five years that the team who was picked to win it actually won it."
Boise State's Jeff Elorriaga set the pace for the Broncos as he drilled his first trio of three-point attempts, helping the Broncos race out to a 19-10 lead. He like the rest of the Boise State team would cool down, though. Elorriaga was held scoreless for the remainder of the game.
New Mexico would take the lead, 27-25 on a three-point bucket from Hugh Greenwood with 5:42 remaining in the first half. He would drain a second long ball with 3:50 to go, before Jamal Fenton hit a three of his own with :58 ticks remaining, sending the Lobos into the break with a 35-30 lead.
It was the Drew Gordon show from there.
The Lobos had their way with the Broncos in the second half, they converted 22 of their last 36 field goal attempts -- a blistering 61% -- which included Drew Gordon's first three-point basket of his college career.
The dominant big man put on a show for the 15,411 in attendance on senior night, which included his father, mother, and little brother Aaron Gordon.
Drew posted his 15th double-double of the season with a career-high 30 points, and a game-high 12 rebounds. No other player -- Lobo or Bronco -- pulled down more than 5 boards.
"He (Drew) has gone to a whole other level in the past week from a points standpoint. He is doing a really good job with scoring. He has always been a high rebound volume guy, but in the last three weeks he has put up points and that has really meant a lot to us," Alford said about Gordon.
The pre-season MWC Player of the Year may have done enough this past week to notch him that award. In the last two games Drew has proven to be an elite scorer from the post and has really improved his mid-range game. Gordon was 18-of-23 from the field this week for 47 points.
"I'm definitely trying to get to the basket more," Drew Gordon said about his improved scoring. Could it also be his very effective mid-range game as of late? "Definitely, when I didn't shoot the ball past ten feet teams just sat on top of me and they were able to double me knowing I wasn't going to be able to shoot the ball, but now I've been able to shoot and step out," he said. "That's (his jump shot) has opened a lot of things up because now teams have to be more cautions and it really helps our offense."
The emergence of Hugh Greenwood's scoring was evident again today. The freshman chipped in 15 points tonight to go along with 5 rebounds and 3 assists.
"I really wanted to win, winning a championship was one of my dreams coming here and to do it on senior night was great. They've (the seniors) been great ambassadors for this program and to see them win and celebrate the right way was great," said Greenwood. "I'm happy we won and we're going to embrace the moment, but we still have a long way to go."
It's now time to focus on Las Vegas and the Mountain West Conference Tournament, which begins on Thursday. The Lobos will be no worse than a two-seed and with a San Diego State loss to TCU, the Lobos would be the one-seed.
"Regardless of who we play in Vegas next week, it is a team we have played before and they know us and we know them. It is about guarding and hoping you make some shots," said Alford, whose Lobos will look to win their first conference tournament since 2005.
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Last Updated on Saturday, 03 March 2012 17:34 |
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NEW MEXICO'S PREMIERE SPORTS MAGAZINE
