New Mexico State gets hot from outside, takes down Lobos in overtime

The Rio Grande Rivalry has been played 229 times and Saturday night’s game in the sold-out Pit was as wild, and improbable, as any.

New Mexico State, a 20-point underdog, beat in-state rival New Mexico 89-83 in overtime. The Aggies hit clutch shot after clutch shot and survived a goaltending call that sent the game into the extra frame.

“First and foremost, credit to New Mexico State,” said UNM coach Richard Pitino.

“We built a big lead — 14 (in the first half). They came back. They built a big lead up — 15. (We) just came up a little short. ... We just got to be better, myself, coaches, players, everybody’s got to collectively be better. That’s going to be painful for a while, and we’re going to have to sit on this. Going to be a lot of sleepless nights here.”

NMSU (4-5) hit 14 three-pointers in the game and outscored the Lobos 16-10 in overtime to break a five-game losing streak. It was also Aggies coach Jason Hooten’s first win in three tries in the rivalry.

UNM falls to 7-3 on the season and Pitino to 3-2 against the Aggies in the rivalry that is now being played just once a season and won’t be back in Albuquerque until the 2026-27 season.

Christian Cook sank two free throws to give the Aggies a 73-70 lead with 14 seconds remaining in regulation.

UNM’s Braden Appelhans fired up a desperation corner 3-pointer as the clock was winding down, when NMSU’s Robert Carpenter inexplicably jumped up and hit the ball near the rim, getting called for goaltending with 1.5 seconds left.

After a tense video review, Donovan Dent blocked a last-second heave and the game went into overtime tied 73-73.

“It was a gift that we did not take advantage of,” Pitino said of the goaltending call, one he acknowledged he had never seen anything quite like it in his coaching career.

Cook finished with 26 points and Carpenter chipped in 20 of his own for the Aggies (4-5). Both players hit six 3-pointers.

Carpenter entered the game hitting just 26.7% from 3-point range in games vs. Division I teams and Cook 31.7%. They combined Saturday for 12-of-21 from beyond the arc (57.1%).

UNM got 16 points and 17 rebounds from Nelly Junior Joseph and three other Lobos scored in double figures, but the team seemed to miss shots near the rim with as much regularity as the Aggies were hitting from the outside in key moments.

UNM hit just 14 of 38 layups — an agonizingly low 36.8% on those shots at the rim. And from the outside, it wasn’t much better, going 10-of-32 from 3-point range, including starter Mustapha Amzil hitting just 2-of-9 from 3-point range and C.J. Noland just 1-of-6.

The Lobos jumped out to a 33-19 lead as another rivalry blowout looked to be in the works, but the Aggies had other plans.

The Aggies went on a 28-4 run over nearly six minutes, from 8:01 to 2:12 in the first half, that included hitting nine field goals, eight of which were 3-pointers.

“We didn’t play with enough intensity. We didn’t come out ready to play. I thought we were just letting guys tee up in our face,” Noland said.

UNM, meanwhile, closed the half hitting just 1 of its final 14 shots. A Dent free throw with 45 seconds remaining in the half made it a 47-38 NMSU lead going into the break.

NMSU ended the first half hitting 9-of-15 (60%) from 3-point range. Coming into the game, the Aggies hadn’t hit more than eight 3-pointers in a game against any Division I opponent this season.

The Aggies opened up their largest lead at 61-46 with 10:39 remaining on another Carpenter 3-pointer. Then a 24-9 Lobos run tied the game at 70-70 on a Noland 3-pointer with 1:50 left in regulation.

In the overtime, after Amzil hit two free throws for a 75-73 UNM lead, the Lobos missed their first eight shots in the extra period while NMSU’s hot shooting continued.

UNM shot 35.7% (30-of-84) in the game and 59.1% from the free throw line (13-of-22). They had 23 offensive rebounds, but scored just 16 second-chance points. NMSU, meanwhile, had just eight offensive rebounds, but managed to score 15 second-chance points.

Asked if the loss, especially the way it happened, was a wake-up call for his team, Pitino was emphatic.

"To allow your rival to come into a sold out building and put up 89 points, now give them credit, but how could you not be woken up by it, you know?" Pitino said. "I mean, our fans deserve better than that, so we've got to own it. We've got to humbly own it and learn. We're not playing good basketball right now. We did not play well for San Jose (on Wednesday). We were fortunate. This kind of felt like that."

BOX SCORE: AGGIES 89, LOBOS 83, OT

Lobos fall to Aggies during nail-bitting game at the Pit