The Air Force Falcons will be at University Arena to take on the New Mexico Lobos in a Mountain West matchup. The game starts at 9:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Jan. 27 and will air on RT.
The Lobos easily got past San Jose State 83-64 on Saturday. Elijah Brown was the game’s high scorer with 33 points on 10-for-15 shooting. The Falcons are coming off a bitter 56-55 loss at the hands of Fresno State on Saturday. Trevor Lyons had a team-high 12 points.
New Mexico is a considerable 13-point favorite in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 143 points. The Lobos look to build on their records of 11-8 Straight Up (SU) and 9-7 Against The Spread (ATS). The Lobos are an impressive shooting team with a .474 field-goal percentage, one of the highest marks in Division I. As for the New Mexico defense, teams really have to fight for open three-pointers against the Lobos, who have one of the best opponent three-point field goal percentages in the nation at .311.
On the other side, Air Force has a SU record of 10-10 and an ATS record of 6-8. Most recently, Air Force is a meager 2-6 ATS over the last 10 games.
This game marks the first time these teams will play this season. The last time New Mexico and Air Force played, Air Force won, but New Mexico still leads the head-to-head record, 7-3 SU, over their most recent matchups. Additionally, with a 6-4 record, New Mexico has the advantage ATS. When it comes to field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers, New Mexico held the edge in all three of these categories twice in the last five meetings. Air Force never did so in those games.
Predictions: SU Winner – NM, ATS Winner – NM, O/U – Over
Notes
New Mexico is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of New Mexico’s last 6 games at home.
New Mexico is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 6 of New Mexico’s last 9 games when playing Air Force.
New Mexico is 15-3 SU in its last 18 games when playing Air Force.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of New Mexico’s last 6 games when playing at home against Air Force.
New Mexico holds a 4-2 SU record against the Mountain West Conference this season, while Air Force has an underachieving 1-6 SU record against the conference.
Air Force lost its last game by a one-point margin. In games decided by a margin of three points or less, New Mexico is 0-2. Air Force is 3-2 in close games this season.
Air Force has an average field goal percentage of 43.1%. New Mexico is a losing 3-5 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The New Mexico Lobos and the Air Force Falcons both rank higher in average field goal percentage when compared to their effective field goal percentages. New Mexico is 80th and 42nd in the nation for eFG% and FG% respectively, while Air Force ranks 258th and 230th in these categories.
New Mexico ranks 94th in assists, registering 14.9 per game. Air Force performs worse at 151st with 13.9 assists per game.
New Mexico ranks 241st in offensive rebounds, while Air Force ranks 87th in defensive rebounds.
On average, New Mexico makes 6.1 steals per game. Air Force has a solid 8-5 record when it gives up at least 6 steals.
