New Mexico
Lobos Hold Off UNLV 75-73 to Improve to 9-1 in Mountain West
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The New Mexico men’s basketball team completed the first half of the conference schedule Saturday with a 75-73 victory over UNLV at the Thomas & Mack Center. The Lobos (17-4, 9-1 MW) overcame a late two-point deficit to defeat the Runnin’ Rebels (11-9, 5-4 MW) and record their first road win in the series since 2018.
Donovan Dent and Nelly Junior Joseph led the Lobos in the victory. Dent had 34 points, his most against a conference opponent, to post his third 30-point game of the season. Joseph had his 10th double-double of the year with 22 points and a career-high 18 rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lobos got off to a quick start, leading 14-7 after the opening five minutes of play. The Runnin’ Rebels tied the game, 16-16, with 11:15 left in the half after a 9-2 run. UNM led 20-16 at the midway point of the half and held a 26-21 lead with 7:45 to play. The lead grew to 31-23 with 4:30 left before UNLV tied the game at 37-37 with 1:05 to go. The game would go to halftime tied at 39-39, as Dent had 18 first-half points to lead the Lobos.
In the second half, the teams traded the lead for several minutes with the game tied at 49-49 with 15:00 to play. UNM took a 58-53 lead with 11:30 to play and held a 60-56 at the midway point and led 66-63 with 7:00 left. UNLV took a 72-70 lead with 3:12 left before Dent tied the game from the line with 2:46 to go. A Joseph putback gave UNM a 74-72 lead with 2:05 to play, a lead they held with 23 seconds left as UNLV had the ball. The Rebels were fouled with 1.3 seconds to play with a chance to tie the game. After making the first, Dedan Thomas, Jr. missed the second and Joseph grabbed the board to seal the win. He was fouled with 0.5 left and made the first shot to make the final score 75-73 before intentionally missing the second.
LOBO NOTES
• Dent’s 34 points were most by a Lobo in a Mountain West road game since Jaelen House scored 42 points at Air Force in 2022
• Dent had a season-low two assists, ending a streak where he was the only player in the nation to have at least 10 points and four assists in every game this season
• Filip Borovicanin led UNM in assists with three, the first game all season that Dent did not lead the Lobos in assists
• Dent’s 18 first-half points were most by a Lobo in the first half since Jaelen House had 26 first-half points vs. New Mexico State (Dec. 2, 2023)
• It was UNM’s seventh Quad 2 victory of the season and eighth Quad 1/2 win of the year, matching its total from all of 2023-24
QUOTABLE
“That was an incredible second half and a huge win. Donovan, offensively, was phenomenal. Nelly was a hero, 18 rebounds and did some amazing things. Donovan and DJ Thomas, those are two of the better point guards you will ever see and they both showed it today. UNLV is really good and we just had to find a way to get a win. It was one of those games when we weren’t making a lot of shots and the first half was choppy with all the free throws. We were great at the rim today and that was a big reason why we won.” – Richard Pitino
UP NEXT
The Lobos will have a week off before visiting Utah State (8-1 MW) next Saturday. New Mexico returns home to host Colorado State (6-2 MW) on Feb. 5. Tickets for that game are on sale at GoLobos.com/tickets.
New Mexico leaders are backing a bipartisan bill after 12 confirmed U.S. screwworm cases, including one case in a Lea County dog.
SANTA FE, N.M. – New Mexico leaders are backing a bipartisan bill after 12 confirmed U.S. screwworm cases, including one case in a Lea County dog.
New Mexico State Veterinarian Dr. Samantha Holeck said the parasite has spread to New Mexico, though officials say they have not found any human cases.
“This is also not a political issue this is a nationwide issue that we all need to address because it affects all warm blooded animals including humans,” Holeck said.
U.S. Reps. Gabe Vasquez and Teresa Leger Fernandez support the Protect America’s Herds Act.
The bill would create a grant program to train people to identify, treat, prevent and report screwworm. It would also support more livestock inspections and education for ranchers.
Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez said she heard concerns from tribal leaders about the cost of protecting cattle herds.
“I spoke with one of our tribal leaders today and they have cattle operation and they’re worried, and they’re talking about how much more money they’re having to pay to go make sure they check on their herds and there are extra costs,” Leger Fernandez said.
Funding would prioritize states and tribal communities most at risk for screwworm outbreaks.
State health officials said screwworm is not a food safety issue. They also said ranchers should stay alert but not alarmed.
New Mexico isn’t done with Meta yet. After the second phase of a landmark trial, the state is asking a judge to make the company pay almost $1 billion to address harm done to young people in New Mexico, SourceNM reports. In a court filing, attorneys with the New Mexico Department of Justice argue that Meta’s addictive design features and recommendation algorithms “substantially contributed to the increase and severity” of problems including depression and eating disorders. The state wants a judge to order Meta to pay $953 million into a fund for public education and behavioral health programs, reports Fox News.
- After the first phase of the trial in March, a jury found the company endangered children and misled the public about its platforms’ safety. Meta was ordered to pay $375 million in damages, $5,000 for each violation.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez has argued Meta executives prioritized profit over minors’ safety, ignored internal warnings, and misrepresented what they knew about harms to young users. In the second phase, First Judicial District Court Chief Judge Bryan Biedscheid heard arguments on whether the company’s actions created a public nuisance, the Santa Fe New Mexican reports. Final filings in that phase of the trial were submitted Friday. Beyond potential financial penalties, Biedscheid will also rule on the state’s request for Meta to make changes including stricter age controls and “safer algorithms” that “do not prioritize engagement over well being.”
Meta says New Mexico is overreaching, warning that the proposed mandates are “impractical and ill-considered” and “would risk leaving teens less safe, infringe on parental rights, and stifle free expression.” Meta argues that New Mexico hasn’t proven that its platforms affect mental health outcomes. In court filings, Meta has claimed that the state is seeking $3.7 billion, not $953 million, but Chief Deputy Attorney General James Grayson says the higher figure is an expert’s estimate of the cost to fund all child mental health interventions in the state. “We’re not trying to hold Meta responsible for mental health harms in general in New Mexico, only for what social media has cost,” Grayson tells the New Mexican.
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