The No. 10-seed New Mexico Lobos gained their first NCAA Event sport since 2012 on Friday evening, defeating No. 7-seed Marquette, 75-66.
The Richard Pitino-led workforce avenged its 2024 first-round loss, when it entered the 64-team area because the Mountain West Convention champion however fell to Clemson within the NCAA Event.
This season, the Lobos completed on the high of the regular-season standings however misplaced to Boise State within the semifinal sport of the convention event.
Pitino will be a part of his father, St. John’s head coach Rick Pitino, within the Spherical of 32 — the primary father-son head teaching duo to take action in March Insanity historical past, per the TBS broadcast.
“This can be a very nervous day for me, not due to Arkansas however as a result of my son’s enjoying tonight,” the elder Pitino told reporters forward of New Mexico’s sport on Friday.
He famous that he knew what’s son was “in for” having coached towards Huge East Convention rival Marquette twice already this season.
However Richard Pitino’s squad dealt with enterprise regardless of the lead altering palms a number of occasions all through the sport.
One of many Golden Eagles’ greatest gamers, Stevie Mitchell, was held to just one basket on seven field goal attempts, indicating Richard Pitino took a web page out of his father’s sport plan.
New Mexico, the No. 10-seed within the South Area, is now the fifth double-digit seed to advance to the Spherical of 32 this 12 months.
It joins No. 12-seeds McNeese State and Colorado State, No. 11-seed Drake and fellow No. 10-seed Arkansas within the 2025 event’s upset lore.
Essentially the most double-digit seeds to advance previous the primary spherical was 10 in 2016. It is unlikely that complete might be matched this 12 months.
The Lobos now await the winner of No. 15-seed Bryant vs. No. 2-seed Michigan State, which tipped off late Friday evening. That second-round tilt is scheduled for Sunday.
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