New Mexico
Nevada basketball: New Mexico edges Nevada, 71-67, in Wolf Pack’s home finale
Nevada showed much more fight than it did the last time time out, but the Wolf Pack was facing the conference’s top team — and one of the best players — and came up a bit short in the home finale.
It didn’t help that New Mexico’s standout player was on fire New Mexico edged Nevada, 71-67, in front of 7,881 fans at Lawlor Events Center on Tuesday night.
Nevada had two players score 15 points each, Kobe Sanders and Nick Davidson, and Tyler Rolison had 12 as the Wolf Pack dropped to 16-14 overall, 8-11 in the Mountain West. Xavier DuSell had nine points as he made two 3-pointers and needs one more to tie the all-time Mountain West record for made 3-pointers.
Donovan Dent was on fire for New Mexico as he poured in 32 points, on 12-of-18 shooting from the field. He was the only Lobos player in double figures. Nelly Junior Joseph had nine points and 14 rebounds as they improved to 24-6 overall, 16-3 in the Mountain West.
New Mexico clinched at least a share of the Mountain West regular-season title and will be the No. 1 seed for next weeks tournament in Las Vegas (March 12-15).
Nevada will be the No. 7 seed for the tournament and play on Wednesday, March 12 against either Fresno State or Air Force.
DuSell said Dent is a good player and the Wolf Pack was trying to make him pass the ball more.
“He got loose early and got some momentum early,” DuSell said. “If we see him in the tournament, we have to do a better job of not letting him get hot early.”
New Mexico beat Nevada, 71-67, on Tuesday in the Pack final home game.
New Mexico beat Nevada, 71-67, on Tuesday night in the final home game of the season for the Wolf Pack.
Key to the game
Nevada was 13-of-20 from the free throw line, but New Mexico was not much better, converting 16-of-22.
But Nevada was just 5-of-10 from the stripe in the second half. Sanders missed the front end of one-and-one’s twice in the final three minutes.
The Lobos held a slight advantage in rebounding, 37-34, a stat that doomed the Wolf Pack in its loss at UNLV last Friday.
Nevada outscored the Lobos, 30-20 in the paint.
The Wolf Pack was 4-of-29 from 3-point range while the Lobos were 9-of-27.
The Seniors
Nevada has six seniors, five of whom were honored before the game: Tre Coleman, KJ Hymes, Kobe Sanders, Xavier DuSell and Brandon Love. Daniel Foster is also a senior, but he was honored at last season’s senior night, before deciding to return to the Pack.
“We appreciate from a coaching standpoint, all they have done for us,” Nevada coach Steve Alford said. “On the court. Off the court. In the community. They have been terrific and represented us the way we want to be represented. We didn’t get as many wins as we would have like this year, but hopefully something is still left in the tank.”
First half
New Mexico led, 41-38 at the break as Dent had 20 points in the first half.
Nevada hit 2-of-10 from 3-point range in the first half, while New Mexico was 7-of-14 from the arc.
The Wolf Pack made 8-of-10 free throws, to 6-of-9 for the Lobos.
Up Next
Nevada concludes the regular season at San Diego State. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
The Aztecs played at UNLV later Tuesday night.
Nevada’s Remaining Schedule
- March 8, Nevada at San Diego State, 7:30 p.m. (TV: FS1, Radio: 95.5 FM)
- March 12-15 Mountain West Conference men’s tournament, at Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas.
Mountain West Schedule
Friday’s games: Colorado State at Boise State; UNLV at New Mexico.
Saturday’s games: Nevada at San Diego State; Air Force at Utah State; Fresno State at San Jose State.
Josh’s Saturday Night Forecast
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – Calmer weather has moved back into the state this afternoon. Temperatures are slightly warmer across northwestern New Mexico, while southeastern areas are cooler thanks to the backdoor cold fronts that moved in on Friday. Breezier winds will return Sunday and will help kick off a warming trend across the state, along with an elevated fire threat in eastern New Mexico.
Warmer weather will continue building in across the state throughout the upcoming week. A few isolated rain chances will return Monday in parts of New Mexico, but some of that rain may evaporate before reaching the ground.
Good morning!
Heading out the door this morning? Bundle up! Cold air has settled into the Land of Enchantment after two cold fronts passed through New Mexico within the last 24 hours. Temperatures have fallen to the teens, 20s and 30s throughout northern New Mexico. The metro area is just as cold with Moriarty falling to the teens and several other cities bottoming out near the freezing point. The National Weather Service (NWS) has Freeze Warnings in place until 9 a.m. for several locations in northern and central New Mexico. However, one of the aforementioned cold fronts is still moving through eastern New Mexico this morning. That back door cold front has brought 30-45 mph wind gusts, or more, in southeastern New Mexico. The front will push west further west this morning bringing breezy winds to far south and southwestern New Mexico this afternoon. Otherwise, much calmer weather will be on tap for the state compared to the majority of this week.
The colder air this morning will bring cooler and seasonable weather to the Land of Enchantment later on Saturday. Afternoon highs will range from the high 50s, in sections of the northern mountains, to the 70s in southern New Mexico. Throughout the weekend into early next week a warming trend is expected as a ridge of high pressure builds on Sunday, which is forecasted to last through at least Tuesday. By next Tuesday, high temperatures will be 5 to 15 degrees above normal, and even warmer for some locations by next Wednesday with breezy conditions returning to the state.
Moisture does stream back into the state early next week across New Mexico. Tomorrow’s forecast is expected to have cloud coverage increase with warmer weather. On Monday sufficient moisture in the mid to upper levels of the atmosphere will bring the chance for showers; however, moisture levels toward the surface will be lower. That will also bring the chance for dry showers and thunderstorms throughout the state. Have a great weekend and stay warm this morning!
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A New Mexico man has taken a plea deal for his role in the death of a three-year-old girl more than two years ago. Police said that Kerri Santos brought her toddler to University of New Mexico Hospital, claiming that she fell and hurt herself. Medical staff determined the child was already dead when she arrived, and noticed signs of abuse, including evidence that she had been tied up. Police said that Santos and three others were staying at James Welch’s home when the abuse took place.
On Friday, Welch pleaded no contest to three counts of child abuse and tampering with evidence. He faces up to five years behind bars.
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