Following a magical championship-winning run in the 2024 Mountain West Tournament, the Lobos of New Mexico travel to Memphis, Tennessee, for an NCAA Tournament first-round matchup with the Clemson Tigers with an upset on their mind. Thursday was a loose day for Coach Richard Pitino and his New Mexico Lobos as they prepare to continue on their four-game winning streak with house money following a complete sweet of Vegas thinking the Lobos don’t have a shot at recapturing some March Madness magic by knocking off Clemson on Friday afternoon at the FedEx Forum.

Despite the narrative pushed by the national media, New Mexico has a legitimate shot at continuing the Mountain West dominance on college basketball and making some serious noise in Memphis, starting with Clemson on Friday afternoon. During that run in Las Vegas to win the Mountain West, New Mexico beat three NCAA Tournament teams in Boise State, Colorado State, and San Diego State.

New Mexico plays with such fire that it mirrors Rick Pitnio’s old-school days at Kentucky in the 1990s. New Mexico likes to get in your face and play fun and gun. According to the KenPom Rankings, New Mexico ranks in the top 25 in defensive efficiency at 96.5. It also leads the Mountain West in blocks and steals. According to the game notes provided by the New Mexico athletic staff, out of their 26 wins this season, 19 have come by double-digits.

On the offensive side, New Mexico has seen six separate players score over twenty points, four of whom have had multiple twenty-point games. Jaelen House, Donovan Dent, Jamal Mashburn Jr, JT Toppin, and Nelly Junior Joseph are the guys who provide the Lobos with high-scoring outings, giving the Lobos a dangerous one-two punch that gives opponents fits.

JT Toppin, in particular, has shattered the New Mexico record book, posting twelve double-doubles as a freshman.

Adding to New Mexico’s depth is the Mountain West’s sixth man of the year, Mustapha Amzil. Amzil comes into the 2024 NCAA Tournament, averaging 9.0 points a game while crashing the boards with 4.4 rebounds a game.

There are so many ways that New Mexico can beat a team like Clemson that the Tigers might have an issue come Friday afternoon. With tenacious defense and an explosive offense, a win over Clemson might not be the upset some might consider a needle-moving victory.

In the 2024 NCAA Tournament, Coach Richard Pitino has his New Mexico Lobos in the perfect position to make a deep run, giving the Lobo Nation something to cheer for over the last two to three weeks. We saw it with San Diego State last season, but the Mountain West plays grown-man basketball, giving New Mexico and others the needed experience to make a run in the NCAA Tournament.

New Mexico and Clemson will get underway in the second game on Friday afternoon in the Memphis Pod.