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Monday, Januar y 7, 2019 | Vo l u m e 1 2 3 | I s s u e 3 4
UNM stun No.6 Nevada at The Pit By Robert Maler @Robert_Maler
Not many people gave New Mexico a chance to win against the undefeated Nevada Wolfpack heading into Saturday's matchup at Dreamstyle Arena aka The Pit. However, the Lobos engineered an 85-58 dominating performance over the No. 6 team in the country, handing the Wolfpack their first loss of the season and putting the Mountain West Conference and the nation on notice. New Mexico (8-6, 2-0 MW) had failed to live up to expectations and potential over the course of the first 11 games, but finally showed what the talented groups of players are capable of achieving. UNM head coach Paul Weir credited the players for exhibiting high energy, resulting in winning a lot of 50-50 plays. "I don't know where it came from. I've talked about fighting and competing all year long," Weir said when asked about the team's hustle. "Tonight was the night I felt we were able to get rebounds that used to maybe go out of bounds... or get loose balls or whatever those things may be." The Lobos surrendered the first bucket of the game after Tre'Shawn Johnson opened the scoring with a layup, but a Corey Manigualt gave
UNM a 4-3 lead a short time later and the team never looked back. Manigault and company had active hands that disrupted passing lanes and helped create three Nevada turnovers through the first three minutes and change. UNM junior Carlton Bragg got The Pit crowd on its feet after he shook his man, drove baseline and threw down a violent dunk. Anthony Mathis found Vance Jackson on the next possession, who drilled a 3-pointer to give the Lobos an 11-5 lead just six minutes into the action. Nevada didn't do itself any favors as the team struggled to score the basketball and quickly fell behind by double digits. Caleb Martin made it a single-digit contest again after he connected on a 3-pointer — the Wolfpack's first made basket that wasn't a layup or a dunk — with 5:56 remaining in the first half. The Wolfpack was unable to sustain any kind of run as New Mexico seemed to answer back with a big shot anytime it was needed. Backto-back shots by Lobo senior guard Dane Kuiper and a 3-ball from Mathis pushed the lead 33-18 and the team eventually took a 38-26 lead into the locker room at half. Nevada shot just under 38 percent in the first half and was awful from the foul line, making just 1-of6 free throw attempts. And things didn't improve after the break. The Wolfpack was able to draw
within nine points on a couple of occasions after opening the second half with a couple of blocks and getting to the free throw line again. Jordan Caroline cut the deficit to 40-31 after a pair of makes at the 17:04 mark. But the charity stripe continued to be an issue for most of the night. Nevada was 10-of-21 at one point and continued to struggle from the field as well. The team shot an anemic 28.6 percent from the floor — including just 1-of-12 from 3-point range. The Lobos continued to apply pressure and thwart any comeback effort, racking up seven secondhalf 3-pointers. The final one being a deep try from Mathis to extend the margin to 29 points, making it 83-54 with 2:29 to play. UNM won virtually every statistical category and shot 45.6 percent overall for the game. The team also went an efficient 12-of-16 from the free throw line. Weir said he told his team in the days leading up to the game that the opponent and other ancillary factors don't matter. He said the importance is on what the Lobos do and pointed to protecting the ball and contesting the 3-point line as areas of focus. The Lobos held a clear advantage in both facets, outscoring the Wolfpack 20-5 in points off turnovers and limited them to just 4-of-22 overall from long
Anthony Jackson/ @TonyanJackson/ Daily Lobo
Vance Jackson slam dunks during a game against the University of Nevada at Dreamstyle Arena on Saturday, Jan. 5.
range, connecting on 11-of-29 from beyond the arc and also won the rebounding battle 47-37. Caroline was the lone bright spot on offense for Nevada, scoring 17 points on 7-of-17 shooting. But nobody else on the team made
more than two shots. New Mexico had plenty of players chip in on the way to the 85-58 win. Mathis led all scoring with 27 points, while Jackson posted 18 and finished
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DAILY LOBO INVESTIGATION
Questions swirl around volleyball coach’s conduct By Cameron Goeldner and Danielle Prokop @Goeldfinger @ProkopDani Editor’s Note: Pictures of the reports in this article can be found in the online version of this article. The University of New Mexico announced on Dec. 19, 2018 that head volleyball coach Jeff Nelson’s contract, which ends in January 2019, will not be renewed. The team is coming off a third straight .500 season and has struggled to replicate Nelson’s early success at New Mexico, when the team had three top three finishes in the conference in his first four years. In an official statement Athletic Director Eddie Nuñez said, "We appreciate Jeff 's dedication and 12 years of service in leading our volleyball program. However, I have decided that in the best interest of the program, we needed to make a change and have new leadership. We wish Coach Nelson all the best in his future endeavors." Described as one of the winningest coaches in program history on UNM’s website, Nelson’s legacy with the program is far more complex than just wins and losses. He received a reprimand from the Mountain West in November for his conduct toward officials during a match against San Jose
File Photo/ @dailylobo/ Daily Lobo
Head volleyball coach Jeff Nelson talks with his team during a break in the first set as the Lobos trailed Colorado State University on Thursday, Oct. 6, 2016.
State on the road. The reprimand was for obscene language or unduly provocative gestures. His personal conduct has also been reported by his players and University employees. In the past two years, the Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO), which handles all reported instances of discrimination based on a protected status (race, age, gender, etc.) at the University, opened two inquiries regarding his conduct toward players, according to documents obtained by the Daily Lobo. As of the publication of this article, the Daily Lobo was unable to
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find out how Nelson’s cases were resolved due to University policy and the closed-door-nature these matters are treated with. The public has no means of verifying outcomes of cases regarding alleged misconduct, or to any indication of how seriously the allegations were taken. Nelson and OEO The first OEO inquiry occurred in October of 2016. Retired chief of staff, Amy Wohlert, called OEO to report concerns regarding Nelson she had heard from students. Redactions are often used to protect the names of students involved, pursuant to The Family
Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) policy established by the federal government. Under the state’s Inspection of Public Records Act (IPRA) policies, the records custodian must included a written statement indicating that all redactions were related to FERPA. The summary of Wohlert’s call to OEO said Nelson was allegedly “psychologically and emotionally abusive” towards the players, and that he had made the team cry after a loss in California. “Members of the team have stated ‘we gotta win or we don’t get fed,’” the report said. “Nelson isolates the players from friends and family and shames them in front of others.” The case was determined not to be in OEO’s jurisdiction and passed on to the Athletic Department. It’s unclear from the documents what course of action the department took. When asked, Athletic Department officials refused to comment. Exit interviews with athletes in April 2016 obtained by the Daily Lobo described Nelson’s alleged, often contradictory conduct toward players. “Head coach is ‘two different people,’ intense on the court and nice off the court but this year has been better after Janice (Ruggiero, the Deputy Athletic Director for Internal Operations) talked to him,” an unnamed player said in the report. Exit interviews do not contain any specific information about the
players speaking to Athletics officials beyond the sport they play. Ruggiero did not respond to attempts for comment. The second report was filed in October of 2018, almost two years to the day from when the first report was opened and reported by Ruggiero. The primary issue listed on this case was sexual violence and sexual misconduct, making it within OEO’s jurisdiction. A redacted account also reported that Nelson bullied team members and discussed their families in front of the team. The complaint of sexual misconduct is mostly redacted, but appears to stem from a question that Nelson asked an unnamed party. While it’s unclear if it is the same party, one individual also said they hoped (Nelson) would “get fired.” What specifically this comment refers to is not clear. The complaint was withdrawn after Athletics spoke with a redacted party who said it was a misunderstanding. The party also emailed OEO the same statement and said they did not wish to be contacted, and the case was closed. When asked about the outcome of the second investigation in 2018, OEO Director Francie Cordova said the OEO would need to further review the case to give specifics. “I don’t know there are so many hundreds of them that I
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Maler: Women’s Basketball — 11th-straight win puts Lobos first in conference