Lobos Look To Sweep Aggies
New Mexico vs NM State Odds See Lobos as Huge Favorites
To weeks ago, New Mexico cruised to a 106-62 victory over New Mexico State. Now, the teams move to Las Cruces, New Mexico, for the rematch. The sportsbook isn’t expecting anything but another blowout win, as the New Mexico vs NM State odds have New Mexico -14.5. The total on the game is 154. The Aggies are going to have to get things turned around in a hurry if they want to avoid being thumped in front of the home fans. This New Mexico team is very good. New Mexico State, not so much.
New Mexico Lobos at New Mexico State Aggies 
Date, time:
Location: Pan American Center, Las Cruces, New Mexico
Line: New Mexico -14.5
Total: 154
Streaming: Live Sports Stream
New Mexico on 8-Game Winning Streak
After losing its second game of the season, the Lobos have run off eight consecutive victories to move to 9-1. The Lobos aren’t just beating teams, they’re crushing them. New Mexico has covered the last seven college basketball betting lines to move to 8-2 against the spread for the season. The Lobos are winning by an average score of 86.1-68.2. New Mexico isn’t the greatest shooting team, but it doesn’t make many turnovers and does a fair job getting offensive rebounds. The Lobos are also good at forcing turnovers, which gives them more possessions.
On defense, New Mexico is strong. The Lobos rank No. 35 in Ken Pomeroy’s adjusted defensive rankings. New Mexico allows 39.8% shooting by the opposition. The Lobos are solid against both the 2- and 3-pointer. Three of the last four games have seen the Lobos hold the opposition to 65 points or less.
Aggies Struggling Against D-1 Teams
At a quick glance, New Mexico State doesn’t appear to be too bad with a 5-6 record. But the teams they’ve beaten have included the likes of Northern New Mexico, Western New Mexico, Southwest and that basketball power Sul Ross State University. The Aggies have beaten one Division I team this season.
New Mexico State’s stats are a little bit skewed due to the teams its played. The Aggies’ stats against D-1 teams are brutal. Pomeroy has New Mexico State rated No. 224 on offense and No. 312 on defense. That might even be too kind. The Aggies are No. 290 in effective field goal percentage on offense. Defensively, New Mexico State is No. 355 out of 362 teams.
What to Expect
The Lobos like to run and New Mexico State tries to slow things down. But that didn’t work out too well for the Aggies the first time the teams played. The Lobos are No. 9 in Pomeroy’s adjusted pace ratings. The Aggies are No. 219. But New Mexico State is No. 309 in possession length on offense, but only No. 15 on defense. That’s due to the Aggies being so bad defensively, teams are getting good looks quickly.
The Lobos averaged 1.54 points per possession in the first meeting. New Mexico was 18 for 28 on 2-pointers, 14 for 25 on 3-pointers and 28 for 41 at the foul line. The Aggies scored .9 points per possession and were 21 for 28 at the foul line.
It’s unlikely we see 69 foul shots again. Last year’s first meeting between the two teams saw 77 free throws. The second game saw just 28.
Who to Bet On?
The New Mexico vs NM State odds of Lobos -14.5 seems a bit cheap. But you have to wonder how motivated New Mexico will be for a team it just beat by 44 points. Still, it’s hard to make New Mexico State on of your NCAAB picks for the night as poorly as its played.
The New Mexico vs NM State odds on the total might be a shade high. The last three games have gone over the total. But this is the highest total seen between the two teams. The Aggies are going to have to do a better job of slowing the pace down. They just saw what happens when you let New Mexico set the tempo. Now, they have to try and dictate the pace at home.
This isn’t exactly a must-watch game. But it is something to turn on while you’re deciding on your bets for Saturday’s college football games. And if you’re looking for a wager to make in this one, your best bet is likely the under 154.
