Lobo Pack Basketball: Montana State Preview

What:

New Mexico Lobos vs. Montana State Bobcats

When:

Saturday November 20^th , at 2:00 p.m. Mountain Time

Where:

University Arena, The Pit, in Albuquerque, NM

Coverage:

The game will be streamed on the Mountain West Network and on the airwaves the Lobo Sports Radio Network will carry the game.

Series:

This is the second time these two have met. The Lobos won the only other matchup back in 2011, a 91-46 decision in The Pit.

Breakdown:

The New Mexico Lobos will look to win their second game in a row on Saturday when they host the Montana State Bobcats in The Pit.

The Lobos are 2-1 on the season, following an 86-61 victory over Grambling State on Monday night.

In that game Jaelen House led the way with 18 points, eight steals and seven assists. Jamal Mashburn Jr. also scored 18 points for UNM.

Montana State comes into Saturday’s contest with a 1-2 record on the season following a 91-74 loss to South Dakota State on Wednesday night.

Montana State and New Mexico do have a common opponent in Colorado. The Lobos lost to Colorado by a final of 87-76 last Saturday. Montana State opened their season against Colorado, losing in overtime by a final of 94-90 back on November 9^th.

The Bobcats lone win on the season came against Rocky Mountain of the NAIA Division.

What the Lobos will look to do:

The Lobos were a little sloppy against Grambling State in the first half. They were much better in the second half as they pulled away from the Tigers in the second half.

New Mexico’s offense runs through House and Mashburn, as we saw once again on Monday night. Expect much of the same in this contest.

The Lobos will need to focus on rebounding in this one. UNM has been outrebounded in all three games this season. On Monday New Mexico was outrebounded 43-37 by Grambling State.

So far, the Lobos have gotten away with wins in two games that they have been outrebounded in, they will need to reverse that course as the season goes along.

What the Bobcats will look to do:

The Bobcats love to shoot threes. They average 32 three-point shots a contest. Expect much of the same in this contest on Saturday.

Montana State’s leading scorer is forward Jubrile Belo, who averages 16.7 points per game. Belo might be tough to stop due to the Lobos struggle with an inside game.

Much of the Bobcats’ three-point shot attempts come from two players. Those are guard Tyler Patterson and forward Abdul Mohamed. Patterson is 8-for-21 on the season from behind the arc, while Mohamed is 7-of-14.

Patterson is a catch and pop kind of shooter along the lines of players from the Golden State Warriors, averaging 9.7 points per game.

Mohamed is a versatile player that can play on the inside but can also knock down the three-point bombs. Mohamed averages 12 points per game 8.3 rebounds a game. His rebound average is top on the Bobcats roster.

Prediction:

Montana State is capable of an upset but have yet to see a guard lineup of the likes of House and Mashburn.

If the Lobos’ duo of House and Mashburn can roll like they have in the first three, it will be tough to beat New Mexico.

I expect this game to be much like the Grambling State contest for UNM, a little sloppy at first, then able to pull away in the second half. I like Lobos-82 Bobcats-65.