University of New Mexico junior guard Tony Snell will enter the NBA Draft. Snell is testing the NBA waters to see where he would land in an evaluation. Once he enters his name, Snell has until April 16th to withdraw his name and return to the Lobos. Lobos coach Steve Alford has released a statemet saying, “Tony has decided to test the interest level of the NBA. We are helping him to gather that information.”

Maybe it was the pressure of expectation that caught up with the New Mexico Lobos Thursday night. They could not shoot or guard against Harvard’s ability to shoot the three. The result was an early exit for a Lobo team that some believed could make it to the Final Four. After it was all over Lobo players sat in the locker room dejected and Shocked. Senior Chad Adams said he was devastated. The only other Senior, Jamal Fenton, said the team let the state down and that he felt terrible.
Hugh Greenwood is one of the five starters returning. He said the team can only learn from the experience and make good next year. That would go a long way with a lot of fans who left the arena last night with long faces and broken hearts.

They got a conference record five teams into the NCAA Tournament. The Mountain West needs a good showing to get the respect they so desperately seek. Boise State did not do the league any favors, losing to LaSalle Wednesday night. The next day, critics started calling the league a paper tiger. Now the pressure is on to win. Respect is always earned.

I woke up this morning feeling like a kid again. For every basketball fan, the NCAA Tournament feels like Christmas Day. Number one seeds are like the family members who give you the same thing every year- in this case, 2nd round wins. Then, we all have that crazy aunt or uncle who gives us a present that is completely random. In this case, it’s the upset. My upset of the day was 14-seed Davidson beating 3-seed Marquette. The Wildcats had the nation’s longest winning streak at 17 so picking Davidson to topple Marquette just felt right. However, instead of bringing joy, Marquette won and I get a fat lump of coal. The Golden Eagles outscored the Wildcats 11-5 to end the game thus the 3-seed moves on in the big dance. D’oh! This, is what Christmas in March feels like. I ALMOST got new golf clubs, instead I received a velour sweater-vest.

KRQE has confirmed that University of New Mexico head basketball coach Steve Alford has signed a new 10 year deal with the Lobos.