New Mexico vs. San Jose State: Game Preview, TV, Radio Schedule, Livestream, Odds, More

The New Mexico Lobos (15-5, 4-3 MW) host the San Jose State Spartans (6-13, 2-5 MW) at Dreamstyle Arena – The Pit on Tuesday, January 21, 2020 in Albuquerque, NM.

[jwplayer tJPh0k22-sNi3MVSU]

New Mexico vs. San Jose State: Game Preview, TV, Radio Schedule, Livestream, Odds, More

New Mexico seeks revenge against the San Jose State Spartans.

Contact/Follow @MWCwire

The Lobos and Spartans both hope to get back on track after suffering two straight losses apiece.

WHO: New Mexico Lobos (15-5, 4-3 MW) vs. San Jose State Spartans (6-13, 2-5 MW)

WHEN: Tuesday, January 21 — 8:00 PM MT

WHERE: Dreamstyle Arena – The Pit – Albuquerque, NM (15,411)

TV: AT&T SportsNet

STREAM: TheMW.com/Stadium (for out of footprint)

RADIO: TuneIn

SERIES RECORD: New Mexico leads, 14-3

ODDS: New Mexico -11.5

PREVIEW:

Two teams meet up in the Mountain West Conference, both coming off of double digit losses against the same opponents in Colorado State and UNLV. One of the teams, New Mexico (15-5, 4-3 MW) is tied for third in the conference standings, and the other, San Jose State (6-13, 2-5 MW) finds itself in ninth place, tied with Fresno State.

But it was the ninth place team that played closer games against Colorado State and UNLV with a total losing margin of 22 points while New Mexico’s off-the-court woes have led to a beleaguered team that was worn down much more quickly against the Rams and the Rebels, unable to keep pace in their last two outings, getting outscored by 54 points in the two games.

Then there was the matchup between the Lobos and Spartans earlier in the year.

It was the third game New Mexico was without starting center Carlton Bragg and starting point guard JJ Caldwell and one in which it was clear how much each of the two players brought to the team. The two key players remain sidelined, as Bragg has been removed from the team and Caldwell’s suspension remains in effect.

Then the off-court losing streak continued for New Mexico as Vance Jackson went down with a knee injury against Colorado State. As one of New Mexico’s tallest players who has shown an ability, at times, to compete in the paint, it was quite the blow for the Lobos, especially considering what head coach Paul Weir said prior to New Mexico’s loss to San Jose State the first time around.

“We’ve played 15 games (as of December 29th). I think in all 15 games the bigger team has won.”

Without Jackson, which led New Mexico in scoring (alongside JaQuan Lyle) and rebounding the last time out against San Jose State New Mexico is even smaller against a San Jose State team they have already dropped a game to. As a consequence, the remainder of New Mexico’s squad will be hard-pressed to go 13-0 inside the Pit on the season in a match that could favor the Spartans a little more than the 11.5 spread suggests.

This is a Spartan squad that, despite being just 2-5 in the conference, has pushed #4 San Diego State to its limits, losing on one heck of a last second shot at Viejas Arena by mid-season Wooden Award nominee Malachi Flynn. Of course the Spartans had the reverse happen at home, beating New Mexico at the Provident Credit Union Event Center in similar fashion, with a Richard Washington three pointer going in with seconds left in the game.

If New Mexico wants to continue to position itself as one of the top teams in the conference, it will have to put away the Spartans in The Pit. For the Spartans, a win could put them in the mix of the muddled middle-of-the-pack conference standings, which would be a huge improvement over the last many seasons.

Injuries/Roster Updates:

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=645997137]