Silver City, NM - Battling all night at Drags Court, the Western New Mexico University Men's Basketball team defeated instate rival Eastern New Mexico 76-70. The Mustangs now improve 6-2 on the year.

"Rivalries are so important to college athletics," said Head coach Zane Gibson. "Our rivalry with ENMU is an awesome one… This is meeting number 105 between the two schools tonight and I am fired up it went the Mustangs way tonight!"

WNMU led most of the game thanks to Jordan Doss (Chicago, Ill./Chicago Hope Academy), Tony Avalos (Las Cruces, NM/Onate HS) and Malik Johnson (Wytheville, Virginia/George Wythe High School) leading the way. Doss ended the night with 18pts, Avalos with 14pts and Johnson bucketed 12pts.

The Mustangs shot 23-53 (43.4%) on the floor and were 8-19 (42.1%) from the three point line. Free throws continue to be a weak point for the Mustangs shooting 64.7%, however they did get to the line 34 times.

Rebounding has been a strong suit for the Mustangs all season. Doss was physical, grabbing  a team high 8 rebounds. WNMU as a team had 31, one shy of ENMU's 32 rebounds.

The Greyhounds got themselves into foul trouble, having 27 fouls. WNMU would go 22-34 at the free throw line.

The Mustangs limited their turnovers, having 15 turnovers whereas the Greyhounds turned the ball over 21 times. WNMU scored 27 points off turnovers. The Mustangs made it difficult for the Greyhounds to score off of their turnovers, only converting 9 points on them.

The Mustangs went into the half leading 36-28. For most of the half, the Mustangs were leading. WNMU was 40.% on the field in the first half. 

The Mustangs got off to a hot start in the second having led by as much as 16 points. Johnson hit a deep shot with 12:11 remaining, putting WNMU up 53-37. ENMU didn't get phased, continuing to battle back and play good defense.

"Malik made a monster three to help separate the game," said Gibson. "I thought we were moving the ball really well early in the second half and it forced them to change their defense."

Adjusting their defense to zone, ENMU slowed down the Mustang offense and cut the lead. With 7:23 left in the game Joshuwan Johnson (Phoenix, AZ/Maricopa High School) knocked down a huge three to put the Mustangs back up 61-47.  

"When they went zone it slowed us down a lot," said Gibson. "Shots like Malik's and Josh's later in the second half were really huge."

ENMU continued to play good defense and put themselves in good offensive opportunities to score, making the game a close one. With 1:24 left and just a couple seconds left on the shot clock, M. Johnson got to the rim and pushed the game out of reach, putting the Mustangs on top 70-60.

The Greyhounds had four players score in the double-digits:

Adam Hess: 16pts (5-10 3FG), 5 reb, 1 stl, 4 fouls

Kentrell Pullianr: 12pts 6 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl, 4 fouls

Jose Serrano: 11pts, 6 reb, 1 ast

Cornell Greenwood: 11pts, 1 ast,  5 fouls

PLAYERS TO HIGHLIGHT:

J. Doss: 19pts, 8 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl

T. Avalos: 14pts, (8-11 FT) 4 reb, 6 ast, 3 stl

M. Johnson: 12pts, (2-4 3FG) 4 reb, 2 stl

J. Johnson: 8pts (2-4 3FG), 2 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl

"Lubbock Christian is #1 for a reason. I 100% believe they are the best team in the country," said Gibson. "We will need to immediately turn our full attention to them and have a great day of work tomorrow to prepare us for Saturday."

The Mustangs will take on #1 Lubbock Christian on Saturday, December 11th, for a 4:00pm tip-off.

This game recap is presented by First American Bank. First American Bank is a proud supporter of WNMU Athletics!  

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 Western New Mexico University is a member of the NCAA Division II, and the Lone Star Conference (LSC). For additional information regarding Mustang Athletics, visit www.wnmumustangs.com; visit wnmu.edu for more information about Western New Mexico University. Follow the Mustangs on social media: @WNMUathletics (Twitter & Instagram).