Lobos Advance to NIT Quarterfinals with 86-61 Win over George Washington

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The New Mexico men’s basketball team reached the quarterfinals of the 2026 NIT with an 86-61 win over George Washington on Sunday night at The Pit – Powered by Nusenda. The Lobos (25-10) never trailed as they advance to a quarterfinal matchup with Saint Joseph’s, while the Revolutionaries end their season at 19-16.

Jake Hall led the Lobos with 19 points, highlighted by 4-6 shooting from deep. Uriah Tenette had 15 points and six assists. Tomislav Buljan just missed a double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds, while Tajavis Miller added 10 points off the bench.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lobos took an early 7-4 lead over the opening four minutes of action. UNM led 20-12 just past the midway point of the half before the Revolutionaries scored five straight to cut the margin to 20-17 with 8:20 left. UNM pushed the margin to 30-20 with 5:25 left and took a 34-23 lead with 2:20 left in the half. George Washington ended the half on a 6-0 run to cut the halftime margin to 36-32. Hall had eight first-half points to lead the Lobos.

In the second half, back-to-back-to-back triples from Hall capped a 10-0 Lobo run to start the half as UNM led 46-32 with 16:10 left. UNM pushed the surge to 13-2 to lead 49-34 with 15:15 to play and held a 57-39 lead with 12:00 to go. The Lobos led 62-46 at the midway point of the half and took a 67-48 lead with 8:20 to play. The Revolutionaries used an 8-0 run to cut the lead to 67-56 with 6:30 left, but UNM answered with a 16-0 run to push the lead to 83-56 with 2:20 to play. The Lobos closed out the 25-point win over the final two minutes.

LOBO NOTES
• The Lobos reached the NIT quarterfinals for the ninth time in history (first since 2001)
• New Mexico reached the 25-win mark for the third straight season (second time in program history, also 2012-14)
• UNM won consecutive postseason games by at least 20 points for the first time in program history
• Hall moved into T-4th all-time among Division I freshmen with 113 threes (trails only Detroit’s Antoine Davis, Davidson’s Stephen Curry and Oklahoma’s Trae Young)
• Buljan set the UNM single-season offensive rebound record with 135
• Tenette set the UNM freshmen steals record with 50 on the season
• Tenette became the first Lobo in the Mountain West era to have consecutive games with at least six assists and no turnovers
• Deyton Albury missed the game due to illness

QUOTABLE
“George Washington is a really talented team, well coached, and we knew we would have to play well tonight. I’m excited that we get to play again, especially for DA (Albury), so he didn’t end his career with a flu bug. I thought our guys played really well and performed at a high level. It’s exciting that we get one more game in The Pit.” – Eric Olen

UP NEXT
New Mexico will play Saint Joseph’s winner in the quarterfinal on Tuesday (Mar. 24). Game time is 7 p.m. MT and the game will air on ESPN2. Ticket information for that game will be announced soon.