Mashburn has 24 points, No. 25 New Mexico beats Air Force

Updated Jan. 28, 2023 12:21 a.m. ET

Associated Press

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Jamal Mashburn Jr. scored 24 points — seven during a crucial late surge — in No. 25 New Mexico's 81-73 victory over Air Force on Friday night.

Jaelen House had 19 points and six steals for the Lobos (19-3, 6-3 Mountain West). Morris Edeze added 15 points and eight rebounds.

Rytis Petraitis led Air Force (12-10, 3-6) with 19 points. Ethan Taylor had 17.

After New Mexico twice held 12-point advantages in the first half, Air Force rallied to take its first lead 6:28 into the second half on 50-48 after Jeffrey Miles finger-rolled in a shot as he was fouled for a three-point play.

Air Force led 53-49 before New Mexico rallied back.

The Lobos used a 14-3 run — half of those points coming from Mashburn — to take a 76-68 lead with two minutes left.

Mashburn was key in a first-half New Mexico run, scoring six points in an 8-0 spree that put the Lobos up 38-26.

BIG PICTURE

New Mexico won its 13th straight over the Falcons in Albuquerque. This game marked the midpoint of the Mountain West schedule and the Lobos have their best record since the 2017-18 season. New Mexico finished that season with a 12-6 conference mark.

Air Force has not beaten a ranked team since 2013 when it upended the then-No. 12 Lobos. Overall, the Falcons have a 4-89 record against ranked teams.

UP NEXT

Air Force: Hosts Boise State on Tuesday night.

New Mexico: At Utah State on Wednesday night.

AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25