In a battle of regular-season conference champions, the New Mexico men’s basketball team succumbed to Michigan State, 71-63, Sunday night in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The 10th-seeded Lobos (27-8) held a 31-29 halftime lead over the second-seeded Spartans (29-6) but were outscored by 10 points after the break at Rocket Arena in Cleveland,

Richard Pitino revealed how the New Mexico Lobos pulled off the upset win over Marquette in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

The No. 2 seed Spartans (28-6) will play No. 10 New Mexico (27-7) on Sunday (8:40 p.m., TNT) at Rocket Arena in Cleveland with a spot in the Sweet 16 on the line. The Lobos are coached by Richard Pitino, now in his fourth season after spending eight years at Minnesota as a Big Ten rival.