The New Mexico Lobos men's basketball team represents the University of New Mexico, competing in the Mountain West Conference (MWC) in NCAA Division I. The university established basketball as a varsity sport in 1899 and began competing with regional colleges after establishing an athletics department in 1920.

The University of New Mexico is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889 by the New Mexico Territorial Legislature, the University of New Mexico (UNM) is the state's second oldest university, the flagship university of the state, and the largest by enrollment, with approximately 23,000 students in 2023.