Tanner Conley
The Arena-Auditorium was in a mood of celebration as the Cowboys faced off against the New Mexico Lobos on Sat. The festivities were mainly focused around the legendary career of Fennis Dembo.
Dembo, who featured on the Cowboys basketball team from 1983-1988 and led the Pokes on a Sweet Sixteen ‘Cinderella story’ run in 1987, is the all-time leading scorer for the University of Wyoming and was the first UW athlete to feature on the cover of sports illustrated. With his jersey being retired at halftime, the game itself seemed to take a back seat as fans poured in to celebrate one of the most illustrious careers in Wyoming’s sporting history. He is only the second athlete to have their jersey retired in the Arena-Auditorium, joining Kenny Sailors. Sailor’s number 4 still hangs in the A-A in recognition for his invention of the jump-shot, an invention that changed the entire game of basketball.
To join that kind of company, you have to have an amazing career that words cannot easily describe. Dennis was given several standing ovations during his halftime ceremony as well as the expected honors that go with a jersey retirement. In turn, he gave his 1989 NBA Championship ring to the UW Athletics Department as a token of appreciation. It was clear. Dembo’s legacy will forever be felt by players, coaches and fans alike.
“I don’t know if it could’ve happened to a better person. That’s like joining royalty. You could be anywhere in the country, if you see Wyoming, or a bucking horse the first thing you think is: Fennis Dembo.” said Head Coach Allen Edwards.
Aside from the halftime ceremony, this game had great implications for the Cowboys Men’s Basketball team. Coming off of a three-game slide, the Cowboys desperately needed a win to get their season back on track. A win against the Lobos would not only improve their record but send a message to the rest of the Mountain West Conference. New Mexico comes into this match with an 8-2 record and is 1-0 in conference play. In comparison, Wyoming is sitting at 3-6 with an 0-1 conference record.
This matchup promised a lot of action in the post, where the Cowboys would be challenged to contain the 48th best rebounder in the nation, Carlton Bragg. To add to this, New Mexico’s offense leads the Mountain West in field goal percentage with 49 per cent per game. New Mexico leads the nation in free-throw attempts as well as makes. This is due to their ‘attack the rim’ mindset, something the Cowboys saw little of against Air Force on Wed.
New Mexico started a half court press early, something we have not seen in Laramie this year. The Cowboys seemed to struggle against this early, with turnovers that led to counter attacking points for the Lobos. The problems only further mounted as Jake Hendricks was tripped up and went down hard, appearing to injure his elbow. He was hurried off the court into the locker room. He returned to the bench 13 minutes later without the shooting sleeve he wears on his left elbow. After halftime, he was spotted in a sling, essentially saying his night was over. He was replaced by freshman Kenny Foster.
The Cowboys offense failed to get off to a good start, with only one basket made in the first five minutes and two turnovers. Their defense was solid, forcing New Mexico to commit four turnovers in the same time frame. The Cowboys eventually battled back and tied the game 8-8 with 12 minutes left in the first half. From there on it seemed both teams struggled to find points. There were quality looks, but the ball simply would not go in for either side. The Cowboys were 0-6 from the field and the Lobos were 0-9 in one four-minute stretch.
Wyoming’s defense did very well to force turnovers and tough shots from the Lobos, causing 10, but that didn’t stop them from scoring. The first half ended with a score of Cowboys 21, Lobos 32.
As expected, the majority of New Mexico’s points came from within the paint, with 18 of their 32 coming from down low. Carlton Bragg was responsible for three of these 32. Unsurprisingly, Maldonado scored the most for the Cowboys, with seven points, three rebounds, and one assist. The Cowboys were out-rebounded 26-15 by the Lobos, a statistic that reflected the physical nature of the game so far.
The start of the second half was a repeat of the first, with only minor changes to separate the two. Hunter Maldonado started strong by scoring his opening attempts including a circus-like layup to give the Cowboys an edge. The Cowboys rode this wave of energy long enough to cut the Lobo lead down to nine points.
Maldonado had become an offensive and defensive force to be reckoned with. He was responsible for forcing three New Mexico turnovers and ten out of the sixteen points in the first seven minutes for the Cowboys. But several controversial calls ruined the flow of the second half and the fans and the players had seen more than enough. Emotions began to run high. A technical foul was issued roughly halfway through the second half on New Mexico for an overly aggressive slam dunk. The Lobos responded by raining down three pointers with reckless abandon and making the majority to inflate their lead to 59-42.
From there, the game was rooted in a pattern. The Cowboys would move the ball well and get a good look, then the Lobos would take the rebound, race down the court, and dunk the ball with more and more vigor. Rinse and repeat. This isn’t to say that the Cowboys had completely given up. There were moments of genius where the defense would steal the ball and get a big basket at the other end. But almost always was this immediately followed by a quick New Mexico bucket. In the end, there was only so much the Cowboys could do. The Lobos had taken a commanding lead and never gave it up to finish with their second conference win, 79-65.
Hunter Maldonado finished with a flurry of scoring and defensive ability to lead the Cowboys with 27 points and six rebounds. AJ Banks stepped up to fill Jake Hendricks’ role in a big way, finishing with 15 points and three assists.
“They just played better” said Allen Edwards after the game “We fought well, but we tried to play as individuals.”
Wyoming will look to get their season back on track Sat. the 14th of Dec. against Northern Colorado.
