Feb. 15, 2001
SAN DIEGO - There are moments that define the turning points of every season. San Diego State experienced one of those turning points Thursday night at Cox Arena versus New Mexico. And it just may have saved the Aztecs' year.
Trailing 53-50 with just 52 seconds to play and on the wrong side of a 6-0 run, sophomore Jamey Cox drilled her fifth of a season-high five three-pointers to tie the game at 53 all. The Aztecs held on the ensuing New Mexico possession and when Sophia Sledge hit junior Atim Otii for a wide-open lay-up in transition with 26 seconds on the clock, San Diego State had all the points they would need to upset a Lobo team that had beaten them five straight times.
"A lot of times this season there have been points in games were we have started to lose it mentally," said San Diego State head coach Barb Smith. "We saw it happen again tonight, but when the staff pointed it out, (the players) were able to snap out of it and regain their focus and intensity."
New Mexico's Miranda Sanchez missed a pair free throws with five ticks remaining that could have tied the game, before junior Claire Swinbank's free throw provided the final margin of victory as the Aztecs held on for a 56-53 win.
Otii would finished with one of the best games of her career, scoring a season-high 19 points and collecting 11 boards for her first double-double of the season. The junior also nabbed a career-best five steals, helping San Diego State (12-11, 4-6 MWC) shed a three-game losing streak with the victory.
Cox added 18 points, 15 coming from beyond the arc, for the Aztecs, who host Air Force Saturday at 7 p.m. in their 2000-01 home finale.
Sanchez finished with 16 points and Jordan Adams added 10 to lead New Mexico (14-9, 5-4 MWC).
"We talked all week about putting together a 40-minute effort at we did it tonight," Smith said. "The team really hung together throughout the entire game and worked hard to get the win."
New Mexico controlled the game's opening minutes and lead by as many as seven points out of the gate before SDSU used an 11-4 run to tie the game at 15 with just under 10 minutes to go in the first half. Two ties and two lead changes highlighted the final five minutes of the period before the Aztecs finally took a 25-24 lead into the locker room.
Cox opened the second half with three straight treys and SDSU fashioned a 10-2 spurt to take its biggest lead of the game at 38-31 at the 15-minute mark of the second half.
The Lobos, however, reeled off the game's next eight points to retake the lead midway through the period. A lay-up by Anita Bundage stopped the bleeding and put the Aztecs back on top. SDSU held the advantage on the scoreboard for the next seven minutes until the Lobos' 6-0 run put New Mexico in front, 53-50, with just over a minute to play.