The Aggies will try to remain undefeated during their three games at Texas, the first against South Alabama (7-1) in Katy on Tuesday, December 2 at 5 p.m. NM State will then face Abilene Christian in Abilene on Dec. 6 before playing Tulsa in Frisco on Dec. 13.
What fueled the Aggies’ strong start? Take a look at his six games so far to find out:
Adams State (83–72)
The Grizzlies kept things a little closer than the Aggies, but NM State found success early in its season.
Guard Jamel Jones, center Cyre Malonga and forward Julius Mims all scored in double figures with 23, 16 and 12 points, respectively. Malonga scored a career-high 16 points on 7-9 shooting and would have scored even more had he not missed seven free throws.
NM State held ASU to under 40% shooting in both halves and forced the Grizzlies into 23 turnovers. Five Aggies recorded multiple steals, with guards Jayland Randall and Elijah Elliott each coming off the bench to earn three.
New Mexico Highlands (74-58)
NM State held Highlands to under 60 points and forced 21 turnovers. That included five steals from guard Chris Terrell.
The Aggies also improved their offense after halftime. After leading only 29–24 at the break, NM State shot 59.3% from the field in the second half to secure its double-digit victory. Jones scored more than 20 points on the board in his second game of the season, putting up 24 points and fellow guard Anthony Razez scored 15 points on 5-for-7 shooting.
The Aggies also had the advantage in fast-break points, 19 of them to the Cowboys’ three.
New Mexico (76-68)
NM State didn’t play well in the first half, shooting only 33.3%, but held UNM’s offense under 40% to keep the game close. The score was 27–27 at halftime and superior shooting gave the Aggies the victory in the rivalry.
NM State recorded a 48.3% shooting mark in the second half and a 50% mark from 3-point range after going 3-for-18 from there in the first half. Reszcz led the way with 16 points, Jones had 15 points after not scoring in the first half, and Randall and Elliott came off the bench to score 11 and 10 points, respectively.
The win gave the Aggies consecutive wins over their in-state foes after winning an 89-83 overtime thriller in Albuquerque last season.
Samford (81-72)
The Aggies didn’t make a single shot in the final 3:47 of the game, but were on fire from the field every other point before that.
NM State shot a season-best 54.4% and had four players reach double figures in points. Two of them, Randall and forward Kiersey Mullen, came off the bench to score 10 points. Forward Julius Mims made all seven of his shots, including two 3-pointers, and recorded his first double-double of the season at 17 points and 11 rebounds.
Better defense in the second half also led to victory. After allowing the Bulldogs to shoot 48.2% in the first half, the Aggies held them to only 33.3% shooting in the second half.
UC Irvine (57-45)
The suffocating defense allowed NM State to defeat a solid mid-major program the past few seasons.
The Aggies held the Anteaters to under 30% shooting in both halves, with 25% in the first and 28% in the second. UCI was also held to just 12.5% shooting from 3-point range. The Aggies also out-rebounded the Anteaters 42–25 and allowed only six offensive rebounds.
Forward J’Coby Osborn came off the bench to have his best scoring outing as a NM State player. He scored 10 points, most of which came via six free throws.
Georgia State (77–58)
The Aggies continued their tough defense the next day at the Cancún Challenge, and this time scored more points to earn a comfortable victory.
The Panthers were limited to just 28.6% shooting in the first half and finished at 31.3%. GSU also made only one 3-pointer in the second half, helping NM State pull away. On the other hand, the Aggies’ 39.1% mark from 3-point land was their second-highest mark of the season, and they went 5 of 11 from that range in the first half.
NM State also continued to get production from its reserves, as two players came off the bench to score double-digit points. Elliott equaled his season-high of 11 points, and Terrell scored the same amount to tie his season-high. Mims also grabbed 11 rebounds.
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