IRVINE, Calif. – The New Mexico State men's hoops team is back on the mainland and set to conclude non-conference action this Thursday, Dec. 28, when it battles Big West Conference favorite UC Irvine at 8 p.m. (MT) inside the Brent Events Center.
 
Alex Croteau will have the call on BigWest.tv while Trent Rush serves as the analyst on the web telecast.
 
GET CONNECTED
Get up to the minute information and news about the NM State men's basketball team all season on Twitter and Instagram by following @NMStateMBB and on Facebook at FB.com/NMStateMBB.
 
LISTEN UP!
Aggie fans that can't make it to the game on Thursday at UC Irvine contest can catch the game by listening Adam Young (@youngpbp) on 99.5 Zia Country and affiliate stations on the Aggie Sports Network listed below.
 
Alamogordo      103.7 FM KNMZ
Albuquerque     1150 AM KNMM
Carlsbad           1240 AM KAMQ
El Paso             1380 AM KHEY
Gallup               1230 AM, 94.9 FM KYVA
Las Vegas         107.1 FM KMDS
 
EYING THE ANTEATERS
When the Aggies and Anteaters both take the floor on Thursday, Dec. 28, at 8 p.m. inside the Bren Events Center, it will serve as the final non-conference contest for both teams prior to starting league play. NM State leads the all-time series against UC Irvine 29-9 along with a 10-7 all-time mark when playing on the road against UCI.
 
UC Irvine has had a tough start to its non-conference season, having dropped seven of its last 10 contests. UC Irvine's wins so far this season have come at Denver, versus Chapman, versus NAU, against Whittier College and versus Idaho.
 
The Aggies needed overtime to put the Anteaters away last year at home, 85-79. Jemerrio Jones and former Aggie Braxton Huggins combined for 12 points in the extra period  to lift New Mexico State past UCI for its ninth win during the historic 20-game win-streak last season.
 
Evan Leonard paces UCI in the scoring column with 11.1 points per game and is tied for the team-lead with 25 made 3-pointers while just shy of the team-high with 17 steals. Four other players for the Anteaters are hovering just below the double-digit mark with John Edgar Jr. leading that pack of four players. The sophomore forward is average 9.7 points with a .452 shooting clip and has started in just about half of the games so far.
 
Eyassu Worku, the team's floor general, is third on the team with 9.5 points per game. He's also leading the team with 56 assists on the year to go with his team-best 18 steals. Tied with Worku in the scoring category at 9.5 points per game is Tommy Rutherford, who owns a team-high 65.1-percent shooting from the floor (min. 80 FGA).
 
Max Hazzard rounds out the top scorers for UCI with 9.1 points per game to his name and a .412 shooting clip and 41-percent shooting from beyond the arc – tying him with Leonard for the team-lead with 25 made 3-pointers.
 
Meanwhile on the glass, junior Elston Jones leads the team with 5.9 rebounds per game. The 6-9 forward is tied with Rutherford and Jonathan Galloway with 31 offensive boards on the year.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Leading for most of the second-half, NM State saw its lead dwindle and lost a heartbreaking 77-72 game thanks to a 9-0 run by USC to capture the victory in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic championship game. Zach Lofton had team-best 28 points on 6-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc while the Trojans countered with Bennie Boatwright's 33 points, including a deep game-winning three-ball.
 
All-in-all, it was a very successful trip to the islands for New Mexico State as it claimed victories against Davidson out of the Atlantic-10 Conference and then-No. 6/7 Miami out of the Atlantic Coast Conference
 
UP NEXT
NM State will get a short reprieve when it returns home after a long nine-day road trip, but won't have much time to get cozy at home before it begins Western Athletic Conference play on the road. The Aggies will take off once again to the Windy City, this time to play Chicago State on Saturday, Jan. 6, at 1 p.m. (MT).