Fast finish: Padilla sparks late run as Lobo women fight off upset bid

Just an early season Sunday afternoon romp against an overmatched opponent, right?

Forget about it.

The UNM women’s basketball team had its hands more than full against a tall, physical North Carolina A&T squad at the Pit. In fact, the Lobos found themselves in a 57-53 hole when coach Mike Bradbury signaled for a timeout with 6:13 left in the game.

The finishing stretch was all New Mexico. Nayli Padilla scored seven of her 15 points, Joana Magalhães came up with key steal and layup and the Lobos pulled out a 71-64 victory to improve to 2-1.

Destinee Hooks scored a game-high 20 points, Alyssa Hargrove chipped in 14 and UNM found a spark when it needed one to finally shake the upset-minded Aggies. Asked about the pivotal timeout, Bradbury said it wasn’t a tactical change that turned the tide.

“We were in almost exactly the same situation (Thursday) in Boulder,” Bradbury said of his team’s 84-59 loss to Colorado. “That game got away from us and we just challenged ourselves not to let it happen again.”

Instead, Hooks cashed in a pair of free throws, Padilla buried back-to-back 3-pointers and Hargrove hit a driving layup for a 10-0 Lobos run coming out of the timeout.

“Honestly, we just tried to focus on the next play,” Padilla said. “I’ve been working really hard to try and help my team, so it felt amazing when I saw those 3s go in.”

North Carolina A&T did not fold, getting as close as 64-62 on a three-point play by Chaniya Clark with 2:26 remaining. The 6-foot-4 Clark was a thorn in the Lobos’ side all day, finishing with 19 points, six rebounds and three blocks.

But UNM answered, getting a Jessie Joaquim layup on a Padilla assist to make it 66-62. Magalhães followed with a steal and layup to increase the lead to six points with 1:38 left, and the Lobos put the win away from there. The strong finish allowed UNM to overcome an afternoon of cold shooting and often getting pushed around inside by the Aggies. UNM was just 4-of-16 shooting in the first quarter and 5-of-16 in the third, missing several layups and helping the visitors stay close.

North Carolina A&T held a 36-28 rebound advantage with 6:13 left and ended up with a 37-35 edge.

“We knew they were big and physical and (rebounding) was a focus of ours,” Bradbury said, “so that’s a little disappointing. We’ve got to rebound better. Fortunately, we were able to make up for it by forcing (24) turnovers and we took advantage of a lot of those.”

UNM aggressively pressed the Aggies for most of the contest and came away with a 31-18 advantage in points off turnovers. The Lobos racked up 16 steals, led by Magalhães with six.

After a sluggish first quarter that ended with the teams tied at 10, UNM finished the second with a 7-0 run to take a 32-26 lead into halftime. Hargrove’s late 3-pointer capped the first half and seemed to give the Lobos some momentum.

UNM built the lead to 41-28 early in the third, but the Aggies then started employing a half-court zone defense that helped turn things around. The Lobos’ lead was just 50-48 entering the fourth quarter, and Elliott Jessup’s 3-pointer later gave North Carolina A&T its largest lead at 57-53.

Hooks, who did not score until 3:51 remained in the first half, was a catalyst for the Lobos’ comeback.

“I was having trouble scoring, forcing some shots,” Hooks said. “(Bradbury) just pulled me aside and, ‘Let the game come to you.’ Once I did that, things started to turn around. I always had confidence in my team and believed we’d find a way to win.”

Magalhães finished with eight points, while Clarissa Craig and Joaquim scored six apiece for the Lobos. It was UNM’s final game without junior guard Cacia Antonio, who becomes eligible when the Lobos host New Orleans for an 11 a.m. weekday matinee on Wednesday.

UNM’s bench was a player short Sunday as freshman Kaia Foster sat out with a broken right pinkie finger. Bradbury said the injury did not occur at practice but declined to elaborate. He said there is no immediate timeline for when Foster might return.