Board game: Junior Joseph grabs 21 rebounds as Lobos clobber Falcons

U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. — Clune Arena did Clune Arena things to the Lobos once again.

Well, for about 4 minutes, anyway.

After the Mountain West-leading Lobos missed their first 10 shots and fell behind early in an arena that has a history of doing funny things to them, UNM’s smothering defense star power took over, ensuring there would be no doom in Clune on this trip.

Nelly Junior Joseph has 14 points and 21 rebounds, Donovan Dent had 25 points, six assists, and Tru Washington added 16 points and four steals in an 88-53 blowout over Air Force.

“All of these programs are really good,” UNM coach Richard Pitino said. “They’re tough to go against. Coach (Joe) Scott, with a lot of limitations, is obviously a terrific coach, so I knew we were going to get their best shot. There’s a little bit of a narrative that they’ve got our number a little bit that I didn’t want to creep into our guys’ heads.

“But it’s scary when you’re playing a team like this that took San Diego State to overtime, should have won. And we know what they’re capable of doing.”

The Lobos improve to 12-1 in the Mountain West and 20-4 overall. UNM now has 20 wins for the third consecutive season after an eight-year drought.

Air Force falls to 3-21 and 0-13 in Mountain West play.

UNM fell behind 8-2 early after that 0-10 shooting start. Then, powered again by its defense, which has been statistically among the top 10 in the nation since their Dec. 7 home loss to New Mexico State, the Lobos rattled off a quick 13-0 run, leading to an Air Force timeout with 10:47 remaining.

The game was never in doubt after that.

“I don’t know if we’ve ever started 0-for-10. So I’m sitting there going, ‘My goodness, guys. Let’s go.’ But we ramped up the pressure,” Pitino said.

“I think our defense right now is phenomenal. Tru is really setting the tone on the ball. I don’t know what the deflections were, but to turn over a team 18 times, that doesn’t turn it over a lot, just shows you how hard we’re playing.”

UNM took a 34-24 lead into the break at halftime and then just piled on in the second half. The Lobos shot 57.6% in the second half, even with emptying the bench, and scored 54 points (their third consecutive game of scoring 52 or more points in the second half). They were able to cruise down the stretch in front of an announced Clune Arena crowd of 2,619 — 50% of whom, at minimum, were Lobo faithful.

Air Force did start the second half with a modest 7-2 advantage, cutting the Lobo lead to 36-31.

UNM then went on a 13-0 run and an extended run of 20-3 that, as it’s done to so many other Mountain West teams this season, visibly deflated the Falcons.

Junior Joseph’s 21 rebounds (14 defensive, seven offensive) is a career high and second most in a Mountain West game ever by a Lobo. Drew Gordon had 23 against Utah in 2011.

It was also the fifth consecutive double-double for Junior Joseph, who is the only player currently averaging a double-double in the league.

In the 20-3 run in the second half, the Lobos’ starting center had the following stretch:

• 17:12 — Junior Joseph offensive rebound, layup, for a 40-31 lead

• 16:27 — Junior Joseph defensive rebound, outlet pass for fast break

• 16:21 — Junior Joseph layup off a Filip Borovicanin assist

• 16:10 — Junior Joseph blocked shot and rebound setting up a fast break.

• 15:58 — Junior Joseph offensive rebound (off a Washington miss) and layup for a 46-31 lead.

By game’s end, the Lobos had 48 points in the paint to Air Force’s 18; outrebounded the Falcons 48-34; and scored 21 points off turnovers with the Falcons committing 18 of them.

“I feel like it’s just an urge to want to win every time, play hard every single time,” Junior Joseph said of the groove he has been in lately. “... I just want to keep going. That’s my goal. Every time I am on the floor, I just want to do whatever I can do to make my team win.”

Air Force was led by 12 points from Luke Kearney.

The Lobos defense held Air Force to 31.5% shooting.

NOTES: Starting forward Mustapha Amzil did not play Saturday, resting plantar fasciitis in his foot. Freshman Jovan Milicevic got the start in his place and finished with three points and seven rebounds.

Junior Joseph’s 14 first half rebounds is the most in the first half by any Lobo ever in a Mountain West game. It was also one shy of his personal record for the first half as he had 15 first half rebounds vs. Division II Eastern New Mexico on Dec. 29, 2023. (Junior Joseph ended with 16 rebounds in that game after not playing much at all in the second half).

Air Force guard Ethan Taylor started his 113th game for the Falcons on Saturday, a new program record.

BOX SCORE: New Mexico 88, Air Force 53