a Sunday matchup against the Lobos should be fun to watch
The Gonzaga Women will face off shortly against the New Mexico Lobos in an away match in Albuquerque, New Mexico that will start at 3pm EST and be featured on ESPN+.
I covered the Lobos in the Non-Conference Schedule Preview series earlier this year and want to remind you of that here:
Uh, New Mexico, what happened? Seven, (yes, seven) players transferred out after the completion of the ‘23-24 season and it’s potentially more since I can’t find players like Aniyah Augmon, the second leading scorer from last year, listed on the current roster. By my rough calculation, this team is returning about 20 points per game from the ‘23-24 squad so with its current makeup, the current team bears almost no resemblance to last season.
That’s reflected in their MWC preseason ranking. Despite finishing with an overall record of 21-11 (11-6) and second in the conference, the Lobos have been predicted to end the year 6th in the eleven team Mountain West. They had one player selected to the ‘24-25 MWC Preseason Team of the Year in 5’10” junior guard, Viane Cumber, who finished last season with 11.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.3 assists. Looking at their transfers, unless someone makes a step up, it looks like the 6’1” senior transfer from in-conference rival San Jose State, Amhyia Moreland, represents the only known commodity as only two other players averaged more than 15 minutes per game in the preceding campaign.
Coach Mike Bradbury will be entering his ninth season and he’s won 20 games or more five times so he clearly has the coaching chops, but integrating this new-look team will interesting to watch.
Thus far into the ‘24-25 campaign, the Lobos sit at 3-2, but that record is a bit deceiving as their loses have come against teams like Northern Arizona and Texas Tech, while their victories have come against Morehead State, Western New Mexico, and South Carolina State. As such, I find it hard to read too much into those victories.
As it stands, the Lobos look to have a pretty offensive team that is averaging just over 75 points per game and will look to shoot the deep ball as they’re taking a top-100 ranked 23 per game which they’re converting at a respectable 34.5% mark.
The Zags will need to watch out for two guards, 5’9” sophomore Destinee Hooks and 5’10 senior Viane Cumber. Combined, they’re averaging just over 30 points per game, but they represent the spectrum on where they score. Destinee will primarily be the inside force, most likely with her driving, while Viane will be the deep threat.
On the defensive end, the Zags will need to be careful around 5’9” senior guard Alyssa Hargrove and 6’1” senior forward Amhyia Moreland. Hargrove is currently averaging 2.4 steals per game while Moreland is averaging 2 blocks per game. How the offense deals with such inside-out defense shall be interesting
Hit the comments below to share your thoughts on the game!