LAS VEGAS, N.M. – 72-39. That is all that needs to be known.
The Cowboys outscored the Mustangs 72-39 in the last 26 minutes of the ballgame as New Mexico Highlands (4-13, 4-8 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) blew by Western New Mexico (2-15, 2-11 RMAC) 92-69 Saturday night (Jan. 24) in Las Vegas, New Mexico.
The Cowboys fell behind 30-20 just 14 minutes into the game, but used a 14-2 run to take the lead and never look back. Sophomore
Ricky Norris – who had his third double-double in as many games – started the rally with a jumper. After a defensive stop, junior
Jonathon Mines grabbed the board and hit a triple from the top of the arc to pull the Cowboys within five.
Mines, with 19 points, was one of four Cowboys that reached double-digits in scoring.
Junior
Kendrick Nichols added a layup and then a pair from the charity stripe to cut the deficit to 30-29 with 2:46 left until intermission. The Mustangs' Marcos Castrillo, who co-led the team with 16 points, looked to stem the tide with a jumper in the paint. However, freshman
Joe Anaya poked the ball loose, and Nichols picked it up for the hoop and the harm. He completed the old three for the first tie of the game. Tied at 34, Mines hit a jumper and Nichols split from the line to put Highlands up 37-34 half.
Nichols, who only had one point in the first 15:34 of the game, scored 10 of the final 17 points for the Cowboys to end the first half. But who knew Nichols was only getting started.
To begin the second half, Nichols hit both a hard and easy three to put Highlands up 43-34 with 19:07 left. Both teams would go back and forth before a 14-1 run by Highlands late in the game sealed the win. With the Cowboys clinging to a 69-62 lead with 6:12 left, Mines nailed an elbow jumper. Junior
Kaylen Shane split from the line before Nichols ball faked his defender on the right wing and drove in to slam home the dunk. Castrillo answered by splitting from the line, but Mines, Anaya and Nichols all canned triples to put the Cowboys up 83-63 with 3:22 left.
A layup with less than a minute by senior
Luis Rodriguez-Quintana gave Highlands its largest lead of the game at 92-68 before Western New Mexico split from the line for the final 23-point margin. It was the biggest Cowboy win since a 103-59 victory against Northern New Mexico on Nov. 18, 2012.
Highlands, who was outrebounded in seven of their first 12 games of the season, have now out rebounded four of five opponents. In fact, the 14-rebound margin (45-31) against the Mustangs ties the largest advantage on the glass for the Cowboys this season.
Nichols, who finished the game with a career-best 32 points, was on fire in the second half. He had 21 points in the second stanza on 8-10 shooting – including a 4-5 mark from both inside and beyond the arc. He also went 1-1 from the charity stripe, completing an old-fashioned three to begin the second half. The Cowboys as a team shot 67.7 percent (21-31) in the second half, including 8-15 (53.3 percent) from distance.
Besides Mines and Nichols, Norris had the double-double with 10 points and a career-best 11 rebounds. Shane narrowly missed the double-double with 10 points and nine boards.
With the Cowboys up 69-54 with 8:14 left, Western New Mexico scored eight unanswered to try and climb back in the game. Terrez Scott, who finished with 12 points, canned a triple. Castrillo hit a three before finding Steven Loucks for the layup. Loucks finished the game with 16 points for the visitors. However, Highlands responded with a 23-7 run in the final 6:38 for the victory.
The Mustangs, who shot 14-35 (40 percent) in the first half to keep pace with the Cowboys, was held to 12-32 (37.5 percent) in the second half and only 26-67 (38.8 percent) for the game. It was the third-worst shooting performance for a Cowboys opponent this season and the worst for a team visiting the Wilson Complex.
The Cowboys put their three game winning streak on the line next Friday night (Jan. 30) at CSU-Pueblo in Pueblo, Colorado. Game time is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
