Bulldogs edged 78-73 by Lobos in MW opener

Wednesday, December 28

Albuquerque, NM

6 p.m. PT

Fresno State

8-5, 0-1MW

New Mexico

8-5, 1-0MW

Fresno State

New Mexico

Photo by: Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports

Bulldogs edged 78-73 by Lobos in MW opener

12/28/2016 9:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Fresno State will host the Nevada Wolf Pack on Saturday at 4 p.m. PT. Tickets are available starting at $15 through the Save Mart Center Box Office or online at www.ticketmaster.com.

By: By Stephen Trembley / Director of New Media

Next up: Fresno State will host the Nevada Wolf Pack on Saturday at 4 p.m. PT. Tickets are available starting at $15 through the Save Mart Center Box Office or online at www.ticketmaster.com. Mini plans are also available by calling 559-278-DOGS (and then pressing "1") with 3-game flex plans starting at $36 and 5-game flex plans starting at $60.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. --- The Fresno State men's basketball team displayed its fighting effort, but the Bulldogs came up just short in falling 78-73 to the New Mexico Lobos on the road in their Mountain West opener on Wednesday evening inside Wisepies Arena AKA The Pit.

How it happened: Fresno State (8-5, 0-1 Mountain West) erased a 14-point first-half deficit when senior guard/forward Paul Watson pulled up for a 3-pointer and then made a lay-up on back-to-back possessions over the course of 35 seconds to tie the score at 53-53 with 8:04 remaining in the second half.

New Mexico (8-5, 1-0 Mountain West) kept trying to pull away and even led 71-63 in the final minute, but the Bulldogs refused to give up in a frenetic fight to the finish.

Fresno State junior guards Jaron Hopkins and Jahmel Taylor, and senior forward Cullen Russo combined to score 11 points in last 50 seconds of the game. The 'Dogs never retook the lead though as New Mexico won its sixth straight conference opener and remained perfect at home this season.

Taylor finished with a team-high 17 points to lead five Bulldogs in double figures scoring. Taylor went 3-for-6 from beyond 3-point arc and 2-for-2 at the free throw line to extend his consecutive free throws made streak to 17, which is 11 shy of tying the school record of 28 (Rod Higgins, 1980-81).

Fresno State senior forward Karachi Edo, who made his first start of the season, posted 15 points, six rebounds, two blocks and two steals in his second game back.

The Bulldogs couldn't overcome strong performances by New Mexico's Elijah Brown and Tim Williams and the Lobos' efficient free throw shooting. Brown, who had a game-high 19 points with a perfect 14-for-14 clip at the free throw line despite going 2-for-10 from the field. Williams added 18 points, seven rebounds and four assist with no turnovers.

New Mexico attempted 22 more free throws than Fresno State as the Lobos went 29-for-34 (85.3 percent) at the line, while the Bulldogs went 7-for-12 (58.3 percent).

Fresno State trailed New Mexico 36-34 at halftime as the Bulldogs closed the first half on a 13-1 run.

Fresno State and New Mexico will meet again on Feb. 18 at 3 p.m. PT when the 'Dogs host the Lobos at the Save Mart Center.

Quoteable

Rodney Terry, Fresno State head coach

On the game…
"Every game you have to adapt to the way the game is being officiated. We had a veteran crew here tonight, so give them credit. New Mexico got to the foul line and they made their free throws. That's probably the biggest difference in the game. You go right down the line of everything else, is probably an even wash. But that's playing college basketball on the road sometimes. It's a tough deal. You can't guard that free throw line."

On the start of second half…
"We had a couple of empty possessions. We didn't score the ball at the basket and we did get one in at the rim there. We went into the half with momentum and had an opportunity to come out and to execute a couple of plays to start the second half."

On turnovers...
"It's really not a turnover situation. We had five turnovers at the half. At the end of the day, they had a few more 50-50 balls and they made 29 free throws. I'm not going to harp on the turnover deal. Some of those were plays up the floor where the ball was tapped around. A couple of those were offensive fouls. I thought we did a pretty decent job taking care of the ball."

Player Notes

Jahmel Taylor (17 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal)
Scored team-high 17 points for his 12th career game (ninth this season) with at least 10 points … went 3-for-6 from beyond the 3-point arc for his 10th game this season with multiple 3-pointers … went 2-for-2 at the free throw line to extend his consecutive free throws made streak to 17 … went 6-for-11 (54.6 percent) from the field for his eight game this season with a field goal percentage of 50 percent or higher … has at least one steal in each of the last six games.

Karachi Edo (15 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals)
Made his first start of the season and 59th of his career … scored 15 points for his second straight game with 12 points or more … hit a 3-pointer for the second straight game (had zero 3-pointers in his first 103 career games).

Team Notes

With the loss, Fresno State dropped to 8-5 on the season and 1-4 in Mountain West openers.
Fresno State lost in back-to-back games for the first time this season. This was also the Bulldogs' first loss to a Mountain West opponent since falling 77-72 in overtime at Nevada on Feb. 13, 2016.
This was the third straight season the Bulldogs opened Mountain West play on the road.
Fresno State lost for just the fourth time in its last 20 games decided by five points or less.
Fresno State fell to 1-9 all-time in games played against New Mexico at The Pit in Albuquerque.

"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.