Emptying the Notebook: Fast breaks, fast starts, Jake the new 3-point king and a fun NIT win for the Lobos
Here are some notes, quotes, stats, trends and other odds & ends I emptied out of the old notebook after Wednesday's 107-83 UNM Lobos win over the Sam Houston Bearkats in the first round of the NIT on Wednesday night in the Pit: Get out and run Thirty four games into the season, the Lobos aren't just now deciding to get out and run in transition. But they did know going into Wednesday's NIT first round opponent Sam Houston ā the best statistical offensive rebounding team the Lobos have face all season ā just might provide an an opportunity to flourish in the transition game. While the Bearkats emphasized attacking the glass, the Lobos counterpunched with 26 fast break points, putting up many of their NIT record 107 points before the visitors from Huntsville, Texas, ever got back to set up their defense.
āļø Air Tenette cleared for take-off!! #GoLobos @ESPNPlus pic. twitter.
com/WTdBUNQGTU ā Lobo Basketball (@UNMLoboMBB) March 19, 2026 "We always want to run when we when we have it," Olen said. "Tomislav (Buljan) is such a good rebounder when he's able to push it ā and you got to be careful with them, because they have such active hands with the guards ā so he was able to push the break a little bit. Obviously, DA (Deyton Albury) is terrific in transition all the time, Uriah (Tenette), we're a good transition team.
We do try to attack that if teams are going to be ultra aggressive on the offensive glass. "The balance, and I thought we did a pretty good job of, is not going early, understanding that you got to get the ball first, that's the priority, and then their aggression gives you a chance to still run once, once you have it. " Sam Houston has a 35.
9% offensive rebound rate ā the second best of any Lobos opponent this season. That can be a double-edged sword, as was seen Wednesday ā focussing on attacking the boards instead of getting back on defense. But the masterful thing about the Bearkats most of the season was that their emphasis, and prolific ability to get those offensive rebounds all season, actually hadn't really made them vulnerable to fast break points like the Lobos were able to get Wednesday.
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