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Jan. 8, 2009

The resumption of Mountain West Conference play is Saturday when New Mexico (9-7, 0-1 MWC) hosts Air Force (9-5, 0-1 MWC) in the 750th game in The Pit. Tip-off is 7:35 p.m. Mountain Time. It will also be the 50th game for Steve Alford as the Lobos' head coach. He is 33-16 into his second season at UNM.

Air Force is the middle game of a three-game home stand for New Mexico. BYU will be in town on Saturday, Jan. 17.

The mtn. will televise Saturday's game nationally, which is channel 276 on Comcast Cable in Albuquerque and channel 616 on DirecTV. Rich Cellini and Joe Cravens will call the action.

As part of the "Pack the Pit" promotion, all tickets for Saturday's game are just $10. Also, the first 3,000 fans will receive Lobo Cinch Sack Backpacks courtesy of Lovelace Health System.

Game sponsors are Lovelace Health System, KRQE News 13, 92.3 KRST and Magic 99.5 FM.

The Lobos are 9-7 overall following a 73-60 loss to UTEP. UNM has dropped two in a row. New Mexico has yet to lose three straight games with Steve Alford as head coach.

Poor shooting was UNM's undoing against UTEP as it converted only 28.8% (15-52) of its attempts, the lowest percentage in The Pit in 12 years. UNM was out-rebounded 41-33, the second-largest deficit of the season. Daniel Faris paced the Lobos with 16 points.

Air Force is 9-5 overall and 0-1 in the league. The Falcons' last game was Saturday, a 61-44 home loss to San Diego State in the MWC opener for both teams. Air Force has lost three of its past four games after starting the season at 8-2.

The Lobos are looking for their third straight win over the Falcons for the first time since a 7-game run between 1996-2001.

In the two-game sweep last year, UNM held Air Force to an average of 52.5 points and 39% shooting (28-71).

SEASON TICKET HOLDER UNUSED TICKET REDEMPTION POLICY - Lobo season ticket holders can redeem any previously unused tickets for upcoming home games against Colorado State on Jan. 28 and Wyoming on Feb. 3. Tickets must be redeemed no later than the day before the game. New tickets will be located in bench rows 1-10, based on availability.

THE NEW MEXICO-AIR FORCE SERIES - It's the 62nd meeting and UNM has a 43-18 advantage, although Air Force has won 7 of the past 11. It's all tied at 9-9 in MWC games. The Lobos swept the series last year for the first time since 2000, winning 59-44 in The Pit and 68-51 at the Academy. New Mexico has a commanding 25-2 edge in The Pit. The Falcons' only two wins here were 60-51 in 2007 and 68-42 in 2004.

SCOUTING THE FALCONS - Air Force returns three starters and 11 letterwinners from last year's team that was 16-14 overall and finished 5th in the Mountain West at 8-8. The Falcons enter the game 1st in the MWC in 3-point FG percentage (42.5%) and FG percentage defense (37.6%), and 2nd in scoring defense (58.2 ppg). Senior G Anwar Johnson leads three players in double figures at 14.4 points a game. Forwards Matt Holland (46.9%) and Andrew Henke (46.4%) rank 2-3 in the league in 3-point accuracy.

Head coach Jeff Reynolds is 107-53 in his 6th season overall and 25-19 into his 2nd season at Air Force.

NOTES TO KNOW BEFORE THE GAME

• FG percentage defense has been a strength of UNM teams under Steve Alford...last year, New Mexico held opponents to 41.0%, the 4th-lowest allowed by a Lobo team in the past 43 years...it's even better this season at 39.1%, which currently ranks 2nd in the MWC...the last time New Mexico held the opposition to under 40% for an entire season was 1964-65 (36.7%)...opponents have shot just 40.4% (999-2,471) in 49 games against Alford's Lobo teams

• UNM has held 3 straight opponents to less than 40% shooting from the floor (38.3%, 59-154)...the last time for 4 in a row was the first 4 games of the 2006-07 season

• Utah was the last opponent to shoot 50% or better against UNM, a streak that is now 21 games in length...the Utes hit 52.4% (22-42) in Salt Lake City on Feb. 23, 2008

• Shooting 36% (59-163) the past 3 games, New Mexico's FG accuracy has dipped to 45.5% on the season

• New Mexico was 2nd in the nation in 3-point percentage last year at 42%...accuracy is 37.1% this season, and just 29.6% (16-44) the past 3 games

• Last year, UNM's 7th loss did not come until the 29th game of the season - a 22-7 start - on Feb. 26 against BYU

• The Lobos have won 25 straight games when allowing less than 60 points, and they are 46-2 in such games since 2004-05

• Of UNM's 33 games in 2007-08, six were decided by 3 points or less, and it went 2-4...the 2008-09 squad has already equaled that total for nail-biters, recording a 4-2 mark

• New Mexico is shooting 65.9% from the FT line - last in the MWC - and just 60% (33-55) in the last 3 minutes of games

• Three Lobos did not play basketball last season: senior Tony Danridge was out with a broken leg while freshmen Will Brown and A.J. Hardeman were tending to academics

• New Mexico has the top-3 single-game assist totals in the MWC this year: 29 vs. Ole Miss, 26 vs. Southeast Missouri and 25 vs. Grambling State

• The Lobos are 2-3 in true road games this year, and 10-9 in head coach Steve Alford's tenure at New Mexico...in the five seasons before Alford arrived, UNM had an 8-43 road record...UNM went 8-6 in 2007-08, tying a school record

• The Lobos are 38-2 in their last 40 non-conference home games and are 7-2 in The Pit this season

• New Mexico had to rally from 12 or more points twice during a 4-game winning streak in December...UNM trailed Southern Miss 30-18, before prevailing 60-58...there was a 34-19 hole against Oral Roberts, but the Lobos rallied for a 66-63 victory

• Senior Chad Toppert ranks No. 2 at UNM by making 44.8% of his career 3-point attempts...he is 3rd all-time at UNM with 226 career 3s

• It certainly looks like four true scholarship freshmen will letter for UNM in 2008-09: Will Brown, Nate Garth, A.J. Hardeman and Phillip McDonald...that has happened only one other time in the history of Lobo basketball: 1983-84 when five Lobos - Paul Connery, Hunter Greene, Larry Markland, Kelvin Scarborough and Mike Winters - all saw time...freshmen became eligible to play with the varsity in 1973-74

UNM-AIR FORCE LAST YEAR IN THE PIT - J.R. Giddens scored 15 points and had 12 rebounds and New Mexico took advantage of Air Force's worst shooting of the season to beat the Falcons, 59-44. Giddens got his fourth double-double in the last six games. Air Force never got its offense untracked and hit just 11 of 40 shots (27.5 percent).

Anwar Johnson was the only AFA player in double figures with 10 points, including 8-for-11 at the free throw line. Tim Anderson, the Falcons' leading scorer averaging 15 points a game, was held to five points.

The game's first five minutes were more reminiscent of a soccer match than a basketball game. Neither team scored through the first 4 1/2 minutes, before Giddens finally snapped the zeros-are-wild start with a layup off a steal with 14:42 left in the opening half. Before Giddens' scoop layup found the range, the teams had combined to miss 11 field goals and four free throws.

Air Force hit just 1 of its first 15 shots, a 3-pointer by reserve guard Andrew Henke at the 14:10 mark. Remarkably, that gave the Falcons their only lead as New Mexico was matching the Falcons miss-for-miss early on. At one point the two teams were a combined 4 of 26.

Air Force went nearly seven more minutes before getting its second field goal, a layup by Keith Maren with 7:18 left in the first half. By then, New Mexico's offense had started to find some flow and back-to-back 3-pointers by Darren Prentice and Chad Toppert gave the Lobos a 16-6 lead.

Roman Martinez scored 10 of his 13 points in the first half and Prentice closed out the half with back-to-back drives to the basket for a 32-17 Lobos lead.

UNM-AIR FORCE LAST YEAR AT THE ACADEMY - J.R. Giddens scored 14 points to lead New Mexico to a 68-51 win over Air Force, the Lobos' first at the Academy since 2000.

With the scored tied 35-35 at the intermission, the Lobos began pulling away early in the second half. Roman Martinez opened the scoring with a three-point basket, and Giddens and Daniel Faris began scoring from beneath the basket. The Lobos opened a 15-point margin with some five minutes to play, and coasted home for the win.

Faris was in double figures for the Lobos with 11. Eric Kenzik led Air Force scoring with a career-high 11 points. Andrew Henke and Keith Maren had 0 for the Falcons.

The teams battled on even terms early, until the Lobos opened a 14-point bulge midway through the first half behind the three-point shooting of Chad Toppert, who canned three shots from beyond the arc, and Jamaal Smith who added another three-pointer.

Not to be outdone, Air Force answered with a long-range basket by Henke and a pair of three-pointers from Eric Kenzik, to narrow the margin to 27-22, and eventually tied the game at 29-29. Three-pointers by Dairese Gary and Darren Prentice gave the Lobos the lead, but Henke tied the game with a three-pointer shortly before the halftime buzzer.

POSTGAME NOTES FROM THE UTEP LOSS

• New Mexico lost for just the second time in its last 40 non-conference home games - both coming this season (72-71 vs. Central Florida, Nov. 22)...UNM fell to 7-2 in The Pit this season

• UTEP erased a 42-40 New Mexico lead (12:45 2nd half) with a 14-2 run that covered 3:19...the Miners scored 9 straight points, including 5-5 from the FT line, after the Lobos had closed the gap to 45-44 with 10:57 left to play...the game featured 6 lead changes and 9 ties before UTEP took the lead for good at the 12:32 mark

• Both teams finished with more free throws than field goals...UNM hit 25 FTs and 15 FGs, while UTEP hit 26 FTs - the most by a Lobo opponent this year - and 21 FGs

• New Mexico established season-lows for field goals made (15), FG percentage (28.8%), and assists (7)...it's the lowest FG percentage since the 2000 Mountain West Conference Tournament in Las Vegas when the Lobos shot 27.6% (16-58) vs. BYU (L, 56-43)

• UTEP's 24 first half points tied its season-low (trailed New Mexico State 38-24 in Las Cruces on Dec. 14)...the two teams were a combined 16-53 (30%) from the floor in the first half

• After an 0-10 start, New Mexico hit 5 of its final 11 3-pointers

• New Mexico has made a 3-pointer in 597 consecutive games; the last time it didn't connect was Jan. 3, 1991, going 0-8 against Colorado State

Senior Daniel Faris

• 16 points in 24 minutes...has scored in double figures in 3 straight games, averaging 17.3 during that span...the 52 points are the most for Faris in a 3-game stretch during his career...his previous best was 47 points in consecutive road games at Hawaii (21), UTEP (13) and Wyoming (13) last year. • Went to the free throw line a career-high 11 times, hitting 8

Senior Tony Danridge

• 12 points...career-best 9th straight game in double figures...averaging 15.0 points per game during that span • Hit a career-high 10 free throws on 12 attempts

Sophomore Dairese Gary

• Season-high 6 rebounds (career-high is 9 at UTEP last year)

UNM HEAD COACH Steve Alford

- Steve Alford, 44, is in his second season in charge of Lobo hoops and his 18th year as a collegiate head coach. He was named UNM's 19th head coach on March 23, 2007.

Alford, who has never been an assistant coach is his career, has a 341-199 (63%) career record in his 18th season as a head coach, 33-16 at New Mexico. His teams have qualified for postseason play 12 times, produced 14 winning seasons and reached 21 wins on nine occasions.