DAILY LOBO new mexico
Boosting morale
friday
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volume
March 11, 2011
GPSA hopefuls vie for positions
115
issue 117
The Independent Voice of UNM since 1895
SLAM IT TO THE LEFT
Nine candidates sign up to become graduate leaders by Kallie Red-Horse kallie69@unm.edu
Nine graduate and professional students announced their candidacy for GPSA leadership positions, stepping up to the plate for a tenure rife with budget concerns and cutbacks. The GPSA Elections Committee met Thursday to begin coordinating for the debates, the first of which will take place March 23. “I get the feeling it is going to be a high turnout year,” GPSA member Michael Verrilli said. “A diverse cross section of the school is being represented by the candidates, so a large portion of the graduate community will likely participate.” GPSA presidential candidates include Patricia Roybal Caballero, Jacob R. Candelaria, Joseph Dworak and Katie Richardson. GPSA Council Chair candidates are Radi Abouelhassan, Sarah Coffey, Shannon Crowley, Victor Lopez and Megan O’Laughlin. Council Chair candidate Shannon Crowley said the number of candidates for both the GPSA
Zach Gould / Daily Lobo Emerging Lobo Leaders members surprised the ASUNM full-senate meeting Wednesday with a flash mob dance to Spice Girls’ “Spice up your life.” The group connects ASUNM senators and incoming students who are interested in student government.
see GPSA page 3 Left: Forward Drew Gordon (32) looks on as point guard Dairese Gary puts up a contested layup in UNM’s 6761 victory over CSU at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on Thursday. Right: Wes Eikmeier bites his jersey while walking off the court. Robert Maes Daily Lobo The Daily Lobo is continuing its MWC coverage over spring break. Visit DailyLobo.com.
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UP NEXT
Men’s basketball vs. BYU Today, 7 p.m. Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas
CSU sent packing in down-to-the-wire victory by Shaun Griswold shaun24@unm.edu
LAS VEGAS — Once again, the UNM men’s basketball team will knock on BYU’s door. The fifth-seeded Lobos, behind forward Drew Gordon’s 13th doubledouble, knocked fourth-seeded Colorado State Rams out of the Mountain West Conference tournament 67-61 in a seesaw affair at the Thomas & Mack Center that saw five secondhalf ties and lead changes.
“We made the winning plays down the stretch,” head coach Steve Alford said. “I could see their faces. We looked a little bit more confident, a little bit more comfortable that we were going to get over the hump and get this done.” Except the Lobos aren’t done — they advanced to play top-seeded BYU in tonight’s semifinal matchUNM 67 up. UNM holds a four-game win61 CSU ning streak over
the Cougars, who ended TCU’s season earlier in the day with a 64-58 victory. “They’ve had an enormous amount of success in our league the last five years,” Alford said. “This is the top of our league. This is the best of the best. For us to advance now, we’ve got to beat that team three times in one year, and that’s not easy.” Neither was it smooth sailing against the Rams. To get there, the fifth-seeded Lobos got overall consistent effort
from their starters. Guard Kendall Williams had a game-high 16 points, and point guard Dairese Gary scored nine. Forward Drew Gordon was the spark plug, putting up yet another double-double (13 points, 13 rebounds). “Our wings and point guards have good spacing on the floor, so it kind of opens up the inside for me to go oneon-one with whomever I’m playing to get the rebounds,” Gordon said. Tied 59-59 with two minutes to
play, Gordon found Gary on a cut to the basket, and he banked a layup off the glass to give the Lobos a two-point lead. On the next possession, Gordon swarmed CSU’s Andy Ogide and forced him to miss a contested shot. Then Gordon found forward Cameron Bairstow open for a mid-range jumper that gave the Lobos a 63-59 lead with less than a minute to play. “I had to hold my breath because
see Mountain West page 3