Cowboys Lose MW Opener to Lobos, 72-62

A seven minute scoring drought in the second half proved to be too much for the Wyoming Cowboys to overcome and they dropped their Mountain West opener, 72-62, to a hot-shooting New Mexico Lobos.

The game got going on a steal and dunk by Francisco Cruz, but the Lobos responded right away with a three from Jamal Fenton. It would be just the first of five lead changes in the first half to go along with four ties as both teams battled for control. With 12:56 left in the half, Drew Gordon picked up his second foul while guarding Larry Nance, Jr. and the preseason MW player of the year got sent to the bench. Unfortunately, UNM had other players ready to step up. By halftime, nine different Lobos found points while Wyoming found themselves down 34-30 following a late three from Cruz.

Wyoming kept pace with New Mexico through the opening minutes of the second half and tied the game at 44-44 on a three from Luke Martinez with 14:40 on the clock. Gordon hit a jumper 23 seconds later to give the lead back to the Lobos and then neither team would score for the next four minutes. Unfortunately, it was New Mexico who found their rhythm, going on a 9-0 run to extend the lead to 53-44. UW would miss six shots, including two layups and a dunk, while committing four turnovers before a jumper from Cruz brought an end to the drought with 7:16 left to play. But UNM would hit a couple of three's and grab a layup after a steal to build up a 61-46 lead with 5:06 remaining. The Pokes showed some fight and drew with 7 points three times in the last minute and a half of play, but New Mexico hit their free throws to hand Wyoming their first loss in the AA, 72-62.

Cruz led Wyoming (14-3, 0-1)  with a game high 22 points, followed by Leonard Washington with 15 points and 7 rebounds, and Luke Martinez with 11. The Cowboys shot 42.3 percent (22-52) from the field, 31.6 percent (6-19) from three-point range, and 92.3 percent (12-13) from the foul line. UW had 7 blocks, with Adam Waddell blocking 4.

The three-point shooting ability of the Lobos (15-2, 1-0) was a concern of Wyoming head coach Larry Shyatt, and New Mexico showed just how good they are from beyond the arc on Saturday, hitting 8-of-14 to shoot 57.1 percent from deep. From the field, UNM shot 52.3 percent (23-44) and hit 81.8 percent (18-22) of their free throws. The Lobos were lead by Kendall Williams with 14 points and Jamal Fenton with 13 points, while three other Lobos scored 8 points. UNm out-rebounded Wyoming 29-22.

UW will continue conference play on Wednesday, Jan. 18th, against the Air Force Falcons. Tip off is set for 6:00 p.m. at Clune Arena in Colorado Springs, Colo. Coverage will begin on KCGY-FM (95.1) at 5:30 p.m.