AIR FORCE at NEW MEXICO

3 THINGS TO WATCH

1. PERIMETER SHOOTINGIn the teams’ previous meeting, on Jan. 20, the Lobos made 13-of-27 3-pointers, while the Falcons made just 3-of-24. That disparity was one of the main factors in New Mexico’s 73-50 blowout victory. And that came at Clune Arena. Today’s game is at The Pit in Albuquerque, where Air Force has made just 12-of-41 3-pointers (29.3 percent) and 29-of-86 shots from the floor (33.7 percent) in its past two visits.

2. CAN AIR FORCE STAY CLOSE EARLY?The Falcons need to slow the tempo, make a few shots and make sure the Lobos don’t go on an early run that ignites the crowd at The Pit. Last season, Air Force did none of those things and trailed by 21 points less than 13 minutes into the game. If New Mexico builds a big lead early, things could get ugly. Kind of like last week at BYU when Air Force trailed by 33 at the half.

3. DO THE LOBOS HAVE TOO MANY WEAPONS?Air Force might be forced to pick its poison against New Mexico. Four of the Lobos are ranked in the top 14 in the Mountain West Conference in scoring: Junior guard Darington Hobson (third at 15.5 points per game), senior forward Roman Martinez (fifth, 13.9), junior guard Dairese Gary (12th at 11.8) and sophomore guard Phillip McDonald (14th at 11.4). Looking only at league games, Hobson, Gary, McDonald and Martinez rank seventh through 10th, respectively, in scoring.

Quote to Note: “We’re not the kind of guys who are ever going to quit. Ever. There’s nobody on this team right now that’s thinking the season’s over. … We’re going to strap it on and go to work every day. Yeah, it was a terrible loss (to BYU on Saturday). Yeah, it hurt. But at the same time we’re going to keep working.”  – Air Force senior center Mike McLain.

Note to Quote: Few teams have handled Air Force like New Mexico in recent seasons. The Lobos have won five straight over the Falcons by an average of 18 points.

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