In a game that looked like the Lobos (24-6) would be able to advance comfortably to face the winner of Wyoming and Utah State, SDSU Aztecs (14-17) had different plans, as they came back to win the game in overtime 70-61. There are plenty of things to talk and think about this game, which ended the Lobos hopes for a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Here are some of the observation and thoughts that I gathered from media row in the Thomas & Mack:

• For the second time this season, the Lobos struggled from distance against the Aztecs. After hitting 9 of 24 three’s against the Aztecs in The PIT (70-62 win), the Lobos went 3 of 26 (61-59 loss) in their matchup in San Diego and 3 of 29 in tonight’s 70-61 loss. The Lobos came into the game shooting 31%, so it isn’t normal for the Lobos to have this kind of shooting night. Shooting threes is a staple of how basketball is played these days, but when you shoot so many and make so few, it becomes an obvious scapegoat for a loss. In the three games against the two teams this season, the three-point line was the main deciding factor. In the win against the Aztecs, the Lobos had an advantage of 9-24 to 4-18, in the loss in San Diego, the Aztecs had an advantage of 8-17 to 3-26, and tonight the Aztecs had an advantage of 9-20 to 3-29.
• Once again, Mountain West Player of the Year Jaisa Nunn had a huge night for the Lobos, scoring 24 points (8-16 FG, 8-9 FT), 19 rebounds, 3 blocks, and a steal. However, it looked like the Lobos went away from Nunn for periods of time, which seemed to be the reason for a few scoring droughts. During the season against the Aztecs, Nunn had a 14 points, 9 rebounds, 1 block and a steal in the win at The PIT, and a 27 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 3 steals game (loss) on the road against the Aztecs, showing that her dominance tonight was par for the course against the Aztecs. It is really disappointing that Jaisa Nunn’s career will end without a visit to the NCAA Tournament. Nunn has been the best player in the Mountain West this season and she didn’t disappoint tonight.
• The loss of Aisia Robertson was felt tonight on the defensive end, as the Lobos were unable to turn the Aztecs over and get into transition. The Lobos have been at their best this season when they are able to get run outs and score in the open court. With Robertson, the Lobos were able to get some of these looks off of rebounds due to her quickness, but the Lobos were only able to score 2 fast break points tonight.  This was something that you knew would be a factor after AR tore her ACL, but it was difficult to watch it play out tonight.
• After getting great bench play for most of the season, the Lobos struggled to get anything going from the bench players tonight. The Lobos got only 1 point tonight from the bench unit, which had to retool after the AR injury pushed Jaedyn De La Cerda into the starting lineup. The bench unit will continue to be an important part of the team’s formula moving forward, but it was difficult to watch the Lobos get very little from them tonight.
• The Lobos need their starting back-court to step up in the absence of AR, but they didn’t get a good shooting game from any of their guards tonight. The Lobo guards were 8 of 40 from the floor and 3 of 24 from 3. De La Cerda did have bright spots, as she did score 16 points, but Jayla Everett and Ahlise Hurst had really bad shooting nights, going 2 of 20 from the floor and 0 of 11 from 3. All three of the players have been huge parts to the Lobos success this season and it really stings that this was one of the games they struggled shooting the ball. All three of the players are going to work through this game and have huge moments these next few years in a Lobo uniform.
• When I asked if there where any breakdowns defensively when the Lobos had a 10-point lead and SDSU hit back-2-back 3’s to make it a close game, Bradbury responded “No, we went zone. We were having trouble guarding the ball. So we went zone about five possessions there and the first three were good. And the last couple they knocked down a couple 3’s. But it was — I mean it was just kind of what happened. One was contested. They make 9 out of 20. And I don’t know that their 20 shots were any higher quality than our 29. They just made a bunch of them. And give credit. They made shots. That’s what you have to do.” This is another instance where the Lobos felt the absence of AR. With her, the Lobos would have probably been able to stay in front of the Aztec guards and not have to switch to a zone. Up to that point, besides Naje Murray, the Aztecs hadn’t been able to hit a 3, but Sophia Ramos was able to get her shot going with a 3 during that run.
• The Lobos were unable to finish off the Aztecs after taking a 41-28 lead with 6:55 left in the 3rd quarter. The Lobos had a chance to make it a 20-point game, but were unable to end the game in the 3rd, which opened the door for the Aztecs to come back. For the last 21:55 of game time, the Aztecs won the game 42-19. If you give a team a chance to hang around, you give them a chance to come back and win the game and that is what happened tonight. If the Lobos were able to get a couple more stops and extend the lead to 18+ you can probably breathe easy and worry about the next game.
• Nike McClure was very good for the Lobos as she scored 8 points (4 of 7 shooting) and grabbed 11 rebounds including 7 offensive. McClure was a great presence for the Lobos tonight and it was great to see her have a huge impact on the glass and score a few baskets. It was a game that McClure probably should have played more (28 of 45 minutes), since the Aztecs had a very difficult time stopping the Lobos in the post.
• The Lobos did well inside as they were 17 of 37 from inside the arc and were able to get to the line 22 times during the game, hitting 18. With these numbers, it was surprising to see the Lobos shoot so many 3’s in a game that they weren’t hitting from outside and were having success getting the ball to the rim. These are the kind of games that teams need to realize what is working well and continue to attack the opponent’s weakness.
• The Lobos will likely be in the WNIT and will be able to host a game in The PIT from the first round on. While it is disappointing to see the chance of an NCAA Tournament bid slip away, there is still plenty of basketball to play and improve as a team/program. This is just the beginning of what Coach Bradbury and Co. are building at UNM, and I remain excited for what is happening with this program and everything that it stands for. This loss stings, but the sun will come up tomorrow and we can remember all the great memories that the season has brought so far. And look forward to the memories that will come as the season continues.