Lobo women add 6-1 freshman Peixinho from Portugal

The UNM women’s basketball team got a little bit taller Friday and doubled its contingent of Portuguese players.

Leonor Peixinho, a 6-foot-1 freshman forward from Lagoa, Portugal, committed to join the Lobos next season after visiting UNM’s campus earlier this month. Peixinho’s signing was officially announced Friday.

Peixinho’s campus visit was initially delayed by a large-scale power outage in Spain and Portugal in late April. Instead, she traveled to Albuquerque in early May and quickly committed to become a Lobo.

UNM coach Mike Bradbury said his recruiting efforts were bolstered by rising sophomore Joana Magalhães, who also hails from Portugal.

“We already knew a lot about Leonor,” Bradbury said. “She’s long, has good skills and can step out and hit shots. But, yes, Jo knows her too, and she helped us seal the deal once Leonor got here. We feel like she has a lot of potential and we’re excited to bring her in.”

Peixinho played both forward and center in Portugal. She competed at the club level for SL Benfica and has represented Portugal in age-group competition for the past several years. During the 2024 U-18 Women’s EuroBasket tournament, Peixinho averaged 6.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists.

“She’s played on Portugal’s top age-group teams and played well,” Bradbury said. “She played inside a lot because of her height but we think she has the skills to develop into more of a perimeter player.”

UNM’s roster is relatively well stocked at post for next season with 6-3 senior Clarissa Craig returning from injury and the additions of 6-4 sophomore Emma Najjuma and 6-2 junior Jessie Joaquim. The Lobos also recently added 5-11 junior guard Cacia Antonio, who was the WBCA Junior College Player of the Year at New Mexico Junior College last season.

Peixinho is the fourth incoming freshman to sign with UNM for 2025-26, joining 5-6 point guard Laila Abdurraqib and guards Kaia Foster (6-2) and Tyler Jones (5-9).

With six returning players, UNM’s 2025-26 roster stands at 13 players and Bradbury hopes to add another, preferably a shooting guard, in the coming weeks.

Bradbury also hopes Peixinho can follow in the footsteps of Magalhães, who quickly made a successful transition from Portugal to New Mexico. Magalhães started 30 games for the Lobos last season, averaging 7.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.3 steals and earning a spot on the All-Mountain West Freshman Team.