CLEVELAND −The ending was much like the season for the Marquette men’s basketball team.

There just wasn’t enough consistency.

The seventh-seeded Golden Eagles looked great for stretches, but too many inexplicable breakdowns led to a disappointing 75-66 loss to 10th-seeded New Mexico in the NCAA tournament first round on Friday at Rocket Arena.

More: Box score | NCAA scores | Bracket

It was a crushing end to the MU careers of seniors David Joplin, Kam Jones and Stevie Mitchell.

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

Joplin kept MU in the game by scoring 28 points on 9-for-15 shooting, but Jones (15 points and five assists) had four turnovers, some of them maddening, and Mitchell struggled.

The Golden Eagles (23-11) were No. 5 in the Associated Press poll in December, but they sputtered down the stretch, going 5-8 since Feb. 1.

MU’s defense struggled to contain New Mexico guard Donavan Dent, who scored 13 of his 21 points in the second half for the Lobos (27-7).

Most of the second half was a tense back-and-forth, with three ties and 10 lead changes.

After Joplin gave MU a 59-58 lead on a three-pointer with 5:23 left, New Mexico hit back with six unanswered points with two tough buckets coming from Dent.

The Lobos added two more baskets before Jones ended the 10-0 run with a three-pointer that made it 67-61.

CJ Noland came off bench to lead New Mexico in first half

MU didn’t get many easy looks against New Mexico’s defense in the first half.

The Golden Eagles were 4 for 11 on two-point attempts as the Lobos’ defenders switched screens to keep MU players in front of them.

Dent was the focus of MU’s defense and he was held to 3-for-8 shooting in the opening 20 minutes. But New Mexico’s CJ Noland came off the bench to hit 3 three-pointers.

The Golden Eagles trailed by as many as eight points. But at the end of the first half, David Joplin hit a three and Kam Jones had a layup in the waning seconds to get MU within 35-32 at the break.