LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The NM State women's basketball head to El Paso, Texas to square off with Battle of I-10 rival, UTEP, on Dec. 15 at 7 p.m. MT, in the Don Haskins Center.
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GETTING READY FOR THE MINERS
The UTEP Miners come into the game on Thursday sitting at 2-6 overall. The opponent's previous contest saw them fall to New Mexico, 79-66, in Albuquerque, N.M. The Miners are led by senior guard, Sparkle Taylor. Taylor is the only UTEP player averaging double-digit points at 14.8 to go along with 7.8 rebounds. Taylor and guard Lulu McKinney are the only two players to have started in all eight games for UTEP.
As a team, the Miners average 61.6 points, 43.6 rebounds and 14.0 assists over their first eight games. The opposition plays their best basketball in the second half as the third (119-114) and fourth (140-137) quarters are the only times in which the team from El Paso outscores their opponents to date.
New Mexico State heads across the Texas border holding a 47-37 series lead over UTEP. The last match up between the two teams saw the Aggies fall, 71-65, at the Pan American Center on Dec. 5, 2015. The Miners have closed the gap as of late winning five consecutive battles and eight of the last nine against the Aggies.
21 YEARS IN THE MAKING
The contest on Friday could see head coach
Mark Trakh and the Aggies do something that has not been done in 21 years. If NM State beats UTEP on Thursday, they will have beaten the Battle of I-10 and Battle of I-25 (UNM) rival in the same season, a feat last accomplished during the 1995-96 campaign.
The squad in 1995-96 was led by head coach Mike Peterson and New Mexico State's all-time leading scorer, Anita Maxwell (2,601 pts.). This team completed the season at 20-10 overall and 10-4 in the Big West Conference.
FREEMAN NEARS THE 1,000 POINT THRESHOLD
Aggie senior forward
Brianna Freeman has 976 career points through 99 games for NM State. The Killeen, Texas native will become the 21st player to join the exclusive 1,000 point club in program history. Freeman will join former teammate
Sasha Weber (2012-16, 1,511) among the ranks of Aggies to reach the plateau. Through nine games this season, the forward has averaged 9.4 points and dropped a season-high 16 at New Mexico on Nov. 15.
LAST TIME WE SAW THE AGGIES
The last time out on the floor, NM State began their road trip with a match-up against NAU in Flagstaff, Ariz. A dominant performance over 40 minutes of play saw the Aggies defeat the Lumberjacks, 79-68.
The game saw the team walk away with their best shooting contest of the season (57.1 FG%). Also, all 12 players on the trip saw time on the court during the contest, the first time this season that all available players have done so.
AFTER THE GAME
After the rivalry game, the Aggies will travel to Las Vegas, Nev. to take part in the Play 4 Kay Shootout. NM State's first game of the tournament will pit the team against Quinnipiac on Dec. 19 at 4 p.m. MT. The following two games opponents, on Dec. 20 and 21, will depend on how the rest of the bracket performs before the match-ups can be determined.
