Final Recap: It was ugly, but a win

Perhaps 100 people saw the whole game and it's probably a good thing there weren't more in attendance as the Bonnies and Lions put on an abysmal performance of basketball. The two teams combined for 42 turnovers and 44 personal fouls in 40 minutes of play. It wasn’t pretty, but as I said earlier, the Bonnies won as they were expected to.

Here’s a quick look at some of the players who stood out tonight:

Lee was again phenomenal with 22 points and 14 rebounds. He played all 40 minutes – and needed to – as the Bonnies rotated just seven men. But what was most impressive was his ability to take over the game in the second half when it mattered most. His personal 7-0 run midway through the second half kept the Bonnies in the game.

Fereti will never be gun-shy, but his shot selection needs to improve. Five-of-16 shooting (31 percent) isn’t going to get the job done. Where he faltered was in the second half when he decided to settle for long and off-balance jumpers instead of driving to the basket as he did in the first half. In the first half, Z was 4-of-8 from the field, but all four misses came from 3-point range. He repeatedly attacked the basket, drew fouls and converted from the stripe. That should have continued in the second half, but he settled and if this team is going to be competitive this year, Z cannot settle.

Relph played a better first half than second. He finished with seven assists but committed five turnovers – mostly due to ill-advised lob passes into Lee or cross-court to Benson and Fereti. He’s playing with a broken bone in his ankle so he should be respected for that, but he needs to cut down on the poor decision-making.

Haley was quietly productive and I really feel this freshman can have a huge impact on where this team goes this year. Eight points and seven rebounds in 28 minutes is solid for a 19 year old.

Schmidt and crew need to cut down on the turnovers if they want to at least stay within shouting distance of New Mexico tomorrow night. A repeat performance of tonight in tomorrow’s game and the Bonnies will be out of it before the first half horn sounds.

All things considered though, the Bonnies have the talent and ability to be a contending team this year. A win against New Mexico is most likely out of the question, but a good performance shouldn’t be. As long as they stop turning the ball over.