Photo courtesy of Las Vegas Review Journal
New Mexico Takes Down UNLV by 28 Points, Cruises to Strong Statement Road
LAS VEGAS — The New Mexico Lobos moved into the middle of Mountain West conference play with a big win Tuesday night, easily defeating UNLV 89-61 at the Thomas & Mack Center. The Lobos dominated every aspect of the game and secured one of their best performances of the year.
The Lobos (17-4, 8-2 MW) dominated the game from the start and never allowed it to slip away.
They built a significant
lead and cruised to the biggest win in school history over UNLV. Additionally, the Lobos posted their most significant road win by margin against the Running Rebteams’ the two teams’ series history.
The Lobos started strong early in the game and kept building on their lead with good team ball movement and solid defense.
UNLV closed the gap to four points behind the Lobos in the middle of the first half, but the Lobos quickly pulled ahead and built a sizable lead to quiet the crowd.
By halftime, the Lobos had taken complete control of the game, entering the locker room with a 41Olen’sad. Eric Olen’s Lobo are starting to hit their groove in being so balanced on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.
Photo Courtesy Kalin Sipes – The Sporting Tribune
Freshman forward Tomislav Buljan sLobos’aded the Lobos’ first-half run to establish the lead, scoring 16 points before halftime.
He finished the night with 18 points and 11 rebounds, earning his tenth double-double of the season.
The last ten games have been very successful for Buljan, during which he has established himself as a reliableMexico’son New Mexico’s front court.
The second half played out similarly to the first. The Lobos took some time to get started after the break but then surged with a long run, increasing the lead to over 25 points and putting the game out of reach.
Throughout, UNLV couldn’t get anything going offensively because of the Lobos’ intense defensive pressure and was forced to take low-percentage shots.
Although UNLV scored late in the game, the Lobos maintained composure and secured the 28-point victory.
Photo Courtesy Kalin Sipes – The Sporting Tribune
On offense, New Mexico demonstrated its ability to score from various locations. Besides Buljan’s 18 points, Jake Hall also scored 18 points, extending his streak of games with double figures.
Uriah Tenette tied a career high with 15 points, while Deyton Albury added 11 points, giving the Lobos four players in double figures.
Additionally, New Mexico made 10 three-pointers, marking the fourth straight game with 10 or more.
New Mexico also displayed a strong defensivdidn’trt. UNLV didn’t have a single player score in double figures, marking the third time this season that New Mexico has kept an opponent without any player reaching double digits. Lobos shows the Lobos’ ability to defend and focus on detail.
After the game, head coach Eric Olen praised both the offense and defense, Lobos ‘ing the Lobos’ defense for its intensity and the offense for i”s efficiency.
“I thought we played pretty well. Defensively, we made it difficult on them, and I thought we made some good decisions with the basketball and were pretty efficient. A lot of guys contributed, and it was a balanced effort. When Tomislav made the two threes early, I thought that this was going to” be our night.” – Eric Olen
Coach Olen alBuljan’sd that Buljan’s early confidence was the spark that ignited what would be a great night in Las Vegas.
Photo Courtesy Kalin Sipes – The Sporting Tribune
LOBO NOTES (courtesy of Steve Kirkland, UNM AthMexico’s
• New Mexico’s 23-game home win streak is the third-longest in program history and is the fifth-longest active streak in the nation
• Antonio Chol remains the only player in the Mountain West to make a 3-pointer in every game this season
• Hall set the UNM freshman record for three-pointers in a season with 59, passing Kendall Williams, who had 55 threes as a freshman in 2010-11
• Hall had his sixth game of the season with at least five threes, T-4th most by a Lobo in a season
• Buljan had his third game of the season with at least 15-rebounds, a new UNM freshman record
• New Mexico made 12 threes, marking the first time since 2021-22 that the Lobos made double-digit threes in three stBuljan’sames
• Buljan’s nine double-doubles are second-most in UNM history by a freshman (JT Toppin with 12 in 2023-24)
With the win, New Mexico has moved itself closer to the top of the Mountain West standings and will carry momentum into the final stop on its current road trip.
The Lobos will face San Jose State on Saturday, before returning home to face Utah State and Boise State in key league contests next week.
