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There's something about these Lobos.

They don't always play to their potential. But when they do, they look unstoppable.

They show flaws. But sometimes they appear flawless.

They have confidence issues.

Shooting woes.

Lack of a go-to scorer.

On and on.

To be sure, this University of New Mexico women's basketball team has been a conundrum. They ride the pendulum of momentum from game to game.

It was on the rise during Wednesday's 79-40 smack down of the Air Force Falcons in The Pit.

All 13 Lobos scored. The 39-point margin of victory was UNM's second-largest this season and most lopsided score during conference play.

"Maybe this will get us over the hump," coach Don Flanagan said in his postgame radio comments.

Yet the momentum might also swing back and smack the Lobos in the face when the 18th-ranked Utah Utes visit for a 1 p.m. showdown Saturday.

Or not.

Dare I say, these Lobos (14-11 overall and 6-6 Mountain West Conference) could topple the league-leading Utes (22-3, 11-0 MWC). UNM lost by three points in the first meeting after blowing a 14-point lead in the second half at Salt Lake City.

"We played them well the last time, and now we've got them at our place," Flanagan said.

Something tells me these Lobos could even go on one of Flanagan's patented late-season runs.

Call me cuckoo.

If the Lobos can beat the Utes on Saturday, who's to say they can't win the Mountain West Conference Tournament and make the NCAA tourney for a seventh straight season?

Of course, the Lobos could also flop against the Utes, continuing their on-again, off-again performances for the remaining four regular-season games.

They could exit in the first round of the MWC tourney and miss the postseason entirely.

That's the enigma of these Lobos. Just when they seem on the verge of a breakthrough, they break apart instead.

But, for at least one night, they gave the rest of the Mountain West something to worry about.