"When do the Lobos play next?" she asked, which is a question many of the state's citizens have been asking of late due to the meteoric rise of the University of New Mexico men's basketball team this season.

"Sorry, I don't know," I found myself replying, which was a rather shocking admission in that I have been a die-hard Lobo fan since the days of my early sports heros, like Ron Nelson, Tommy Roberts and Bernard Hardin.

I mean, I had read Mark Smith's story on UNM's progress in the Albuquerque Journal that very morning as I always do, and I knew the basics of the team's status. But the date and time of the next game simply hadn't stayed in my brain.

"You're a sports reporter, and you don't know that?" the scorekeeper asked accusingly but with a smile.

However, I think she was only half-kidding. So thanks a lot, lady.

It's just that I had become totally immersed in the state playoff hopes and dreams of the likes of the Mountainair boys. And honestly, I enjoyed covering the Mustangs' games, as well as those games involving the local area's other state qualifiers, just as much as I ever did watching a Lobo game as a fan.

Plus, when I was reading the Journal article, I must have unconsciously filed the date and time somewhere in the deep recesses of my brain as something I wouldn't be able to use. I must have realized that, in all likelihood, I wouldn't have the time to watch the game or even to listen to it on the radio.

Besides, I can't afford all the assorted special cable channels that are required these days to be able to view UNM games on television, and that irks me to no end in that the Lobos are never on any of the free, over-the-air channels or even on a channel that comes with the basic cable plan.

In addition, I haven't been to a UNM game in person for a few years. There always seems to be a high school game that conflicts, and I've come to prefer, even if I wasn't working, to be at those prep contests.

So I have been relegated to just reading about the Lobos. Imagine that, using a newspaper as your sole source for news in these days in which the word "progressive" has become a misnomer and tidbits of news are flashed before your eyes on the TV screen as if one could comprehend what really happened in a matter of seconds.

Still, I have managed to receive my hoops fix on a regular basis. For starters, what a wonderful season it was for Mountainair. And it was a different kind of season all the way around.

In recent years, the Moriarty girls and the Manzano boys would be the only local teams still left standing when the state quarters rolled around. This year, the Estancia girls and the Mountainair and Manzano boys all advanced to the elite eight in their respective classes.

The EHS boys and the Manzano girls qualified for state but lost on the road in the first round.

Though none made it past the quarterfinals (for the Monarchs boys, that was quite unexpected), it still was an exciting time for their coaches and players — and me. It could be even more exhilarating in years to come — hopefully, not very far down the road — when the time comes for the East Mountain boys and girls to make their first-ever appearances at state, for the Mountainair girls to make it once again, and for the Moriarty boys and girls to rejoin the ranks of the successful.

It won't be easy for any of them. The Mustangs, for instance, are saying goodbye to their boys basketball coach, Kenneth Branch. The former standout for the Mora High Rangers is moving after three years at the helm in Mountainair.

"I'll lose five seniors," Branch said after the 'Stangs' 73-44 loss to eventual state champion Cliff in the Class 1A quarterfinals on March 10.

Then Branch caught himself.

"But I won't be here," he said after a thoughtful pause. "I got moved with my job (as a range management specialist with the Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service in Mountainair) to Silver City. I'm really proud that I got to coach this team."

The coach was a good fit for the Mustangs. His enthusiasm and love for the game matched Mountainair's hell-for-leather play. Together, he and the 'Stangs were crowned as the District 7-1A Tournament champions and ended the year with a 15-12 record.

Branch could always step up to the plate and make the hard decision under pressure. And he was always willing to expound on his boys' accomplishments, both individually and as a group.

I'll miss coach Branch, too. Good luck and Godspeed, sir.

Harold Smith can be reached at 823-7104 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .