NLAS CRUCES, N.M. – The defending undisputed Western Athletic Conference Champion and four-consecutive WAC Tournament Champion NM State Aggies (8-7, 0-0) open defense of their 2015 title against the 2014 WAC regular season champion Utah Valley Wolverines (6-9, 0-0) on Thursday at 7 p.m. in the UCCU Center in Orem, Utah. The Aggies are coming off heartbreaking 54-52 loss at UC Irvine last Saturday. The Wolverines beat San Diego Christian 88-79 on Saturday at the UCCU Center.
 
SERIES RECORD: This is the fifth meeting between the Aggies and the Wolverines, with NM State leading the series 3-1. The Aggies won both meetings last season with NM State taking a 51-38 victory at the UCCU Center on Feb. 19, 2015 and a 69-44 win on Jan. 24, 2015 in Las Cruces. The teams first met on Feb. 1, 2014, when NM State posted an 72-49 win at the Pan Am Center. UVU answered on Feb. 27, 2014 with a 66-61 win in Orem..
 
MEDIA COVERAGE: Saturday's game can be heard live on the Aggie Sports Network and over the Las Cruces radio airwaves on KWML, 570AM with NM State Hall of Famer Jack Nixon on the call.
 
The game will be televised on the American Sports Network with Daron Sutton (play-by-play) and Rich Zvocek (analyst). The game will be available on Altitude Sports (Dish 413, DirecTV 681).
 
LIVE STATS ON THE WEB: Live stats are available for most games at www.nmstatesports.com at no cost all season long and.
 
ABOUT THE AGGIES: NM State has been up-and-down in its last eight games after falling 54-52 at UC Irvine last Saturday. The Aggies are 4-4 in their last eight contests.
 
The Aggies are on a 13-game winning streak against WAC opponents dating back to the 2014-15 campaign. NM State won its last 11 WAC games and both WAC Tournament contests.
 
The Aggies were scheduled to play Wichita State on Dec. 28, but due to flight cancellations caused by Winter Storm Goliath, were not able to travel. The game was postponed until a date to be announced.
 
NM State fell behind Baylor 18-2 in the first six minutes of the game. The Aggies outscored Bears 68-67 over the next 36 minutes of the game.
 
NM State's 73-53 win at UTEP was the largest margin of victory over the Miners in El Paso since a 61-38 triumph on Dec. 30, 1974 and the largest win margin ever at the Don Haskins Center.
 
The win at UTEP was also the Aggies first non-conference road win since Dec. 17, 2013 when NM State won at New Mexico 67-61.
 
NM State has won two straight at home with the 81-61 win over Arizona Christian. The Aggies dropped their second game at home this season with the 62-59 defeat by Wyoming. NM State had its 11-game winning streak at the Pan American Center was snapped with the 83-74 loss to New Mexico on Nov. 15 and had won four more before the loss to the Cowboys. Still, since the start of the 2012-13 season, the Aggies sport a 51-6 record at the Pan Am (.895).
 
In the last 64 contests played by NM State at the Pan Am, the Aggies are 58-6 (.906).
 
Sophomore Pascal Siakam has three 30-point games this season with career-highs of 35 points against Robert Morris and Oral Roberts, and 30 points against Tennessee Tech. He is the first Aggie to post multiple 30-point games in the same season since Troy Gillenwater had four in 2010-11.
 
Siakam tallied the first 20-20 game in 13 seasons for the Aggies with his 24 points and 23 rebounds in a win over UTEP on Dec. 2. It's the most rebounds for an Aggie since Chris Jackson's 23 at North Texas on Feb. 1, 2003.
 
Siakam was named the WAC Player of the Week the first three weeks of this season and added a fourth this season. He leads the nation in field goals made (140) and double-doubles (13), is sixth nationally rebounding (11.7 rpg) and seventh in scoring (23.6 ppg). He's 57th in blocked shots (1.93) and 42nd in minutes played (35.27). He leads the WAC in all six categories as well.
 
Siakam has not double-doubled only twice this season, both times against New Mexico. He had 23 points and eight rebounds on Nov. 15, with 21 points and four boards on Dec. 16.
 
Junior Ian Baker bounced back from being clobbered out of the UNM game with a career-high 26 point game at UTEP. He led the Aggie barrage from the 3-point arc, scoring a career-best six and hitting 6-of-7 from long range. He added 21 points at Baylor.
 
Baker was selected a Preseason All-WAC First Team by both the coaches and media. Currently, he is second in the WAC in scoring (15.5 ppg), fourth in 3-point field goals (2.47 pg) and eighth in assists (3.53 apg)
 
The Aggies posted a 23-11 campaign in 2014-15 that included a 13-1 WAC record and the outright regular season championship. They won a record fourth consecutive WAC Tournament. No other program in the history of the Western Athletic Conference has ever won more than two straight tournaments.
 
The Aggies are also coming off appearing in four consecutive NCAA Tournaments, and five in the last six seasons. The Ags are aiming to match the school record of five straight appearances set first from 1967-to-1971 under Lou Henson and then again from 1990-to-1994 under Neil McCarthy.
 
Of the 14 players on the NM State roster, nine are from countries other than the United States.  Four players are from Toronto, Canada, with two from France, one from Cameroon, one from Colombia, and one from Mexico.
 
MENZIES MARKS: Now in his ninth season at New Mexico State, head coach Marvin Menzies is the Dean of WAC Coaches. Menzies is writing himself into the annals of NM State history. With a record of 183-107, Menzies is third on the all-time win list for NM State Coaches. He's reached the 175 win mark faster than the two men in front of him on the win list: Hall of Famer Lou Henson and Neil McCarthy. Henson (1966-75, 1997-2005) leads the group with 289 wins on the Aggie bench (289-152, 16 years). McCarthy (1985-97) has 229 victories (229-114, 12 years). He passed UNM's Bob King (1962-72) for ninth on the WAC all-games win list at 176 with the win over Houston Baptist. He's ninth on the win list for WAC only games with 90, and is third in WAC only winning percentage at .714 in front of the late Jerry Tarkanian at Fresno State (1995-2002). Even with all the winning, Menzies collected his first Don Haskins WAC Coach of the Year Award last year when the Aggies won the regular season by five games. Menzies was named one of Forbes' top 25 college coaches for the money in November 2014.
 
SUPER SOPHOMORE SIAKAM: Sophomore Pascal Siakam continues making a national name for himself with his strong play in the first half of the season. Selected the WAC Preseason Player of the Year by the media, Siakam leads the nation in field goals made (140) and double-doubles (13), is sixth in scoring (23.6 ppg) and rebounding (11.7 rpg), 57th in blocked shots (1.93) and 42nd in minutes played (35.27), leading the WAC in all. He is the leading scorer of the 21 NCAA Division I players averaging a double-double (as of Monday) by 4.1 points a game. Siakam also has three of the top four scoring games in the WAC this year. The 6-9 forward from Douala, Cameroon, had 17 points with 10 rebounds at UC Irvine for his 13th double-double and 20th of his career to go with two blocks and a career-high six assists. He was named the WAC Player of the Week for the fourth time this season last week, becoming just the fourth player to do so in WAC history (Paul Millsap, Louisiana Tech and Nick Fazekas, Nevada in 2005-06, and Daniel Mullings, NM State in 2013-14). Siakam matched his career-high in scoring against Oral Roberts collecting 35 points with 11 rebounds, then collected 26 points at Baylor with 10 rebounds. He previously dropped 35 points on Robert Morris to go with 13 rebounds. He followed it with 26 points, 12 rebounds and a career-high six blocked shots at Air Force. The 35 points are the most since Justin Hawkins scored 37 against Hawaii at the Pan Am on March 8, 2008. With his 30 points against Tennessee Tech, Siakam has three 30-point games this season and is the first Aggie to post multiple 30-point games in a season since Troy Gillenwater had four in 2010-11. Siakam became the first Aggie to post a 20-rebound game in 13 years when he recorded the program's 10th 20-20 game with a 24-point, 23-rebound game against UTEP. Chris Jackson had the last of both on Feb. 1, 2003 when he posted 20 points and 23 boards at North Texas. The 23 boards are tied for the seventh most in a game in program history and are the most in NCAA Division I this season. They were also the most in the WAC since Paul Millsap of Louisiana Tech had 28 against San Jose State on Feb. 15, 2006. In the second game against UTEP he collected 14 points and 10 rebounds for his ninth double-double and 16th of his career. Siakam became the first person ever to be selected as the WAC Men's Basketball Player of the Week in three consecutive weeks with his selection in the first three weeks. There have been 14 back-to-back Men's Players of the Week in the WAC (including Siakam), and the closest to three straight were three in four weeks done by San Diego State's Michael Cage in 1983-84 and NM State's Daniel Mullings in 2013-14. The league's Freshman of the Year in 2014-15, Siakam was a first team All-WAC selection as a freshman and was honored as a first team NABC All-District VII performer last season. In just about a season and a half (49 games), he has 790 career points and 437 career rebounds. He also has 90 career blocked shots ranking ninth on the Aggie career list and is two away from Aggie legend Sam Lacey (1967-70) in eighth with 92.
 
THIS BAKER DELIVERS: Junior Ian Baker is a tough and vital leader for the Aggies. The second leading scorer on the team and in the WAC, the 6-0 guard from Washington, D.C., is averaging 15.5 points a contest. His worth to the team was proven at New Mexico when he went down in the 10th minute at New Mexico after running head-first into a blind screen and couldn't return in the Aggies 79-61 loss. He was cleared to play three days later, the morning of the game at UTEP, and turned in a career performance with 26 points, including going 6-of-7 from the 3-point arc. He followed that with his fourth 20-point game of the season with 21 points at Baylor. Baker's second in the WAC in free throw shooting, hitting 83.7 percent from the line (41-of-49). He's fourth in the league in 3-pointers per game (2.47), sixth in 3-point percentage (.398, 37-of-93) and eighth in assists (3.53). He scored 22 points in the first UTEP game and 20 vs. Wyoming after picking up 17 points at Air Force with a career-high eight rebounds. Baker also popped for 19 points in consecutive games against New Mexico and Tennessee Tech. The elder statesman of the team, Baker was named Preseason First Team All-WAC by both the coaches and the media.
 
A SHINY PENNIE: Sophomore Jalyn Pennie had one of his best all-around games at UC Irvine last Saturday. The 6-7, 180 pound forward from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, hit 4-of-9 3-pointers against the Anteaters, scoring 12 points and grabbing eight rebounds with an assist. It nearly mirrored his game at UTEP when he scored 14 points with eight boards and a blocked shot. Pennie grabbed nine boards at Air Force and had three blocked shots at New Mexico. A starter in the last six games, Pennie is averaging 6.2 points with 4.9 rebounds and 1.0 3-pointers a game.
 
WARMIN' UP WILKINS: Sophomore Johnathon Wilkins has made the most of his last few games. The 6-10, 225 pound forward scored a career-high 12 points against Oral Roberts, then matched it against Arizona Christian. He grabbed a career-high eight rebounds in the loss to Wyoming and nearly had a double-double with eight points as well. At UNM, Wilkins had eight points with a career-high three assists. After missing the first four games due to an administrative error, Wilkins has moved into the starting lineup and is averaging 6.8 points and 3.8 rebounds a game. Wilkins played in all 34 games last season, starting 10 as a redshirt freshman.
 
TALENTED TAYLOR: Sophomore Matt Taylor has stepped up his workmanlike play for the Aggies. The 6-5 guard from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is averaging 4.8 points a contest, with 4.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game for NM State. He's also got seven blocks on the season, averaging 0.47 per game. Taylor scored a career-best nine points at UTEP, and collected a career-high eight assists. It was the second time this season Taylor had nine against the Miners. In his first starting season, he is one of three Aggies who have starts in all 15 games.
 
HENSON INDUCTED: Aggie Legend Lou Henson was officially inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame on Nov. 20 as part of a class of eight individuals, including three coaches, who formed the NCB Class of 2015 at the College Basketball Experience in Kansas City, Mo. Henson had a 41-year career as a collegiate head coach, all at the NCAA Division I level, posting a record of 779-412 with a 65.4 winning percentage. He's the all-time winningest coach at both New Mexico State and Illinois, and started his career at Hardin-Simmons. Henson, a 1955 graduate of NM State, coached 16 years in two stints for his alma mater, posting a 289-152 record. He also tallied a 423-224 mark in 21 years at Illinois and amassed a 67-36 record in four seasons at HSU. He is currently 11th all-time in career Division I victories, and was sixth on that list when he fully retired from the floor in January of 2005. Henson is one of only 12 coaches to take two different schools to the Final Four.
 
THE FAVORITE: New Mexico State is the prohibitive favorite to win the Western Athletic Conference by both the league's coaches and the media.  The media went on to name sophomore forward Pascal Siakam as the league's preseason player of the year.
 
The Aggies received seven of the eight first place votes and 49 points from the coaches, the most they could receive since they couldn't vote for their own team or players.  Grand Canyon was second with 39 points and CSU Bakersfield third with 36 and the other first place vote.
 
The media, with no voting restrictions, picked up 13 of the 14 first place votes and was third on the ballot that gave CSU Bakersfield a first place vote for a total of 110 points.
 
The media gave Grand Canyon second with 88 and Missouri-Kansas City third with 87.
 
Siakam and junior guard Ian Baker were the Aggies selected on both the Coaches and Media's Preseason All-WAC first team. Siakam was the media's preseason player of the year, while UMKC's Martez Harrison was the coaches preseason player of the year.
 
AGGIES 11TH WAC SEASON: The 2015-16 season marks the 11th year of competition for NM State in the Western Athletic Conference, and it has been a successful combination for the Aggies in men's basketball. The Aggies won the regular season WAC Championship twice (2008 shared, 2015 outright) and the WAC Tournament Championship five times. Those five have come in the last six seasons, including the last four straight. Additionally in the 10 previous seasons, the Aggies have four second place finishes and three thirds. NM State was fourth in its first WAC season (2006). Since joining the WAC, the Aggies have a record of 111-47 (.703).
 
LOOKING BACK: The New Mexico State Aggies saw a six-point lead with 2:58 to play slip away as the UC Irvine Anteaters closed on an 8-0 run to snatch a 54-52 win last Saturday night.
 
Pascal Siakam led all scorers and rebounders with 17 points and 10 rebounds, notching his NCAA-best 13th double-double of the season to go with two blocked shots and a career-high six assists. Ian Baker added 14 points with seven rebounds and Jalyn Pennie 12 points and eight rebounds with four 3-point baskets.
 
The Aggies shot 41.5 percent from the floor and held UCI to 39 percent. The Aggies out rebounded the 'Eaters 35-30, but suffered 16 turnovers to UCI's seven.
 
ABOUT THE WOLVERINES: Utah Valley is 6-9 on the season after beating San Diego Christian 88-79 last Saturday night. The Wolverines of first year head coach Mark Pope are led by forward Konner Frey (6-6, Jr., Bountiful, Utah) with 14.6 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. Guard Jaden Jackson (6-2, Sr., Salt Lake City, Utah) adds 13.1 points, 2.4 boards and 1.9 3-pointers a contest. Guard Marcel Davis (6-2, Sr., American Fork, Utah) averages 12.7 points, 5.1 boards and dishes 4.2 assists an outing. UVU is scoring 74.0 points a game, and allowing 77.7 per contest.
 
LOOKING AHEAD: The Aggies continue their WAC opening weekend by visiting the hottest team in non-conference play, Grand Canyon.
 
The 'Lopes are 13-2 on the season, 9-1 at home, after beating Bethune-Cookman 74-53 on Sunday. GCU opens WAC play with UT Rio Grande Valley on Thursday before hosting NM State on Saturday. The 'Lopes are led by guard Joshua Braun (6-4, So., Anthem, Ariz.) with 15.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.2 3-pointers per game. Forward Grandy Glaze (6-6, Gr., Toronto, Ont., Canada), this week's WAC Player of the Week, adds 13.6 points and 7.0 boards a contest to go with his WAC leading 63.5 field goal percentage. Guard Dominic Magee (6-4, Fr.-RS, Harvey, La.) averages 11.0 points and 3.4 boards in seven games, while guard DeWayne Russell (5-11, Sr., Peoria, Ariz.) comes up with 10.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and dishes out a WAC leading 5.7 assists an outing. GCU is scoring 78.7 points a game, and allowing 68.7 per contest.