Norm Detlaff/Las Cruces Sun-News

University of New Mexico guard Eileen Weissmann (left) and New Mexico State's Anikia Jawara scramble for a loose ball during their game at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces. The Aggies beat the Lobos 58-42 on Sunday, snapping a 22-game losing streak to the Lobos.

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You can justify or rationalize the University of New Mexico's 16-point spanking by New Mexico State in several ways.

The Aggies women were playing at home.

The Lobos simply had a bad day.

UNM's Brandi Kimble had a worse day.

There was an Aggies hex on almost all Lobos' shots.

Well, at least there appeared to be a curse on 42 of the 53 shots the Lobos took in their 58-42 collapse in NMSU's Pan American Center on Sunday afternoon. The loss snapped a 22-game winning streak the Lobos had over the Aggies.

And maybe all those excuses above are true. The Lobos get a return date in The Pit on Dec. 21. You can't help but expect the Lobos to win. It's The Pit - UNM's womb. The place Lobos shots are blessed.

UNM was gosh-awful for the second time this season (52-44 loss at Cal-Berkeley) when it came to shooting baskets at an alien rim. The Lobos shot 20.8 percent for the game and 14.8 percent in the second half. UNM made four field goals in the second half.

Kimble, a UNM senior, went 1-of-9, but she wasn't the only Lobo with crooked sights. Angela Hartill went 0-of-6, Christian Shelter went 0-of-5, Amanda Adamson went 1-of-7 and Jessica Kielpinski went 1-of-4.

"I don't think Brandi Kimble was herself today (Sunday)," said Aggies coach Darin Spence.

Yeah, all that stuff might be why the Lobos got hammered by the Aggies for the first time in 11 years and the first time in 23 games.

But if you also want to throw a little truth into the mix, it reads like this:

The Aggies won because they were a more athletically talented team playing at a higher level of intensity.

And here's another truth. If Spence's Aggies hadn't forced up so many off-balanced, hurried, bad shots in the first half, they might have beaten the Lobos by 30 points.

There were really two Aggie teams on the court Sunday and only one Lobos team.

The Aggies weren't all that disciplined in the first half. There simply were too many bad Aggie shots being disguised slightly by hard work.

In the second half, the Aggies came out and, well, looked like Don Flanagan's Lobos.

They played hard and smart and patient and took good shots. They also rebounded better and ran better. They doubled-up Dionne Marsh and had athletes good enough to pester Kimble.

And they kicked the Lobos butts but good.

"It's somewhat embarrassing," said Marsh, a UNM senior. "We came unprepared today, and we didn't play hard.

"This is very frustrating."

Coach Spence tried to ho-hum the NMSU win as just another nonconference game.

But even his players - and his daughter, freshman guard Madison Spence - wasn't buying the line.

"I think we wanted this a little bit more than some of the other games," said the younger Spence, who had 10 points, five assists and six rebounds.

"It's been four years," said Aggies senior Sherell Neal, referring to her long wait to beat UNM.

For most Aggies, the wait has been much longer. NMSU's last win over UNM came in 1995. That year also marked the Aggies' last win in The Pit - Flanagan's first season at UNM.

"Now, they have to come to our place," said Flanagan. "We'll see if we can make some adjustments and play a little better."

The Pit might change things come Dec. 21 when Aggies go North. The Pit surely will change the Lobos. It might change the Aggies, too.

Will the Aggies crumble under The Pit's pressure? Will their shots be more difficult to make if the Lobos bombs are falling. UNM was 4-of-18 from 3-point range on Sunday.

And will the Aggies be as disciplined when things aren't coming so easily?

Yep, The Pit will change things.

But one thing won't change. The Aggies will still be the more athletic team.

For Lobos fans, that should be a little scary. For Flanagan, it should be a wake-up call.