The New Mexico men’s basketball team hasn’t won an NCAA Tournament game since 2012.
The 10th-seeded Lobos (26-7) will look to change that at 5:25 p.m. Mountain time Friday against seventh-seeded Marquette (23-10) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Cleveland, Ohio’s Rocket Arena will be the site of Friday’s matchup.
New Mexico, the Mountain West Conference regular-season champion, was projected to receive an eight or nine seed for the NCAA Tournament. Head coach Richard Pitino was not bothered by the low seed.
“Once you get there, unless you’re a really high seed, there’s no easy games,” Pitino said. “The seeds and stuff, I don’t really care too much.”
Marquette finished in a tie with Xavier for fourth place in the Big East standings, five games behind St. John’s. The Red Storm won all three matchups with Marquette.
St. John’s is coached by Rick Pitino, Richard’s father. The younger Pitino said Rick sent over the scouting report on the Golden Eagles shortly after the selection show.
“Certainly I’ll talk to him and my staff will talk to his staff, but you have so much film now,” Richard Pitino said. “When people call me, I’m always like, ‘Do you not have film? Why are you asking me?’ But sometimes it’s nice to kind of get a feel and some calls and things like that.”
The Lobos are led by star point guard Donovan Dent, the MWC Player of the Year. Dent averages 20.6 points, 6.4 assists and 1.5 steals. Senior center Nelly Junior Joseph is a double-double machine at 14 points, 11.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks.
Senior point guard Kam Jones, a projected first-round NBA Draft pick, does it all for the Golden Eagles at 19.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.4 steals.
Four MWC teams reached the 2025 NCAA Tournament: Colorado State, New Mexico, San Diego State and Utah State. Boise State was among the first four out.
The MWC has received four or more NCAA Tournament bids in four consecutive seasons.
Who: New Mexico and Marquette meet in NCAA Tournament first round
When: 5:25 p.m. Mountain time | Friday, March 21
Where: Rocket Arena | Cleveland, Ohio
Live stream: Watch New Mexico vs. Marquette live on fuboTV (Start your free trial)
TV channel: TBS
Betting odds: Marquette -3.5
ESPN BPI prediction: Marquette has a 70.7 percent chance to win
Odds are courtesy of DraftKings. Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.
