LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The second installment in the Battle of I-25 this season is scheduled to tip-off at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 10, in the Pan American Center as the New Mexico State men's basketball team entertains long-time rival New Mexico. Saturday's game is also sponsored by Wells Fargo.
 
Adam Young (@youngpbp) will have the call for Aggie fans on the ESPN3 broadcast while former NM State assistant coach Rus Bradburd serves as the analyst. Fans can watch the game online or with the WatchESPN app on a variety of devices.
 
LOU HENSON NIGHT
Prior to Saturday's rivalry game, the NM State Athletic Department will be unveiling a new banner to honor Hall of Fame head coach Lou Henson for his 779 career wins as a head coach. Then at halftime, there will be also a banner presentation to commemorate the only Final Four team in school history – which was coached by none other than Lou Henson himself.
 
GET CONNECTED
Get up to the minute information and news about the NM State men's basketball team all season on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by following @AggieArmy.
 
LISTEN UP!
Aggie fans that can't make it to the game can listen to NM State Athletics/US Bank Hall of Famer Jack Nixon Saturday night on 99.5 Zia Country and affiliate stations. Fans can also listen to the game live with their mobile or tablet device on the TuneIn app for free. The game will be available on following affiliate stations as well:
 
Alamagordo      103.7 FM KNMZ
Albuquerque     101.7 FM KQTM
Carlsbad          1240 AM KAMQ
Gallup              1230 AM, 94.9 FM KYVA
Las Vegas        107.1 FM KMDS
 
WHERE TO WATCH
In addition to Saturday's action against the Lobos on ESPN3, fans can catch the game LIVE on FOX Sports Arizona PLUS and FOX Sports Southwest PLUS and FOX College Sports Pacific.  
 
ALL Times Mountain
FOX Sports Southwest PLUS (LIVE)
DISH: SD – 451, HD – 9539 | DISH Hopper: 412-39 | DTV: 676-5
 
FOX Sports Arizona PLUS (LIVE)
DISH: SD – 451, HD – 9539 | DISH Hopper: 412-39 | DTV: 686-1
 
FOX College Sports Pacific (LIVE)
DTV: 608 | DISH: TBD | Comcast – 264
 
FOX Sports Arizona (Replay)
Sunday, Dec. 11, at 2:30 a.m.
DISH: 415 | DTV: 686
 
Altitude Sports (Replay)
Sunday, Dec. 11, at 12:00 p.m.
DISH: SD – 413, HD – 5413 | DTV: 681
 
BAKER NEARS 1,000 POINT CLUB
Aggie floor general Ian Baker currently sits at 960 career points as he prepares to suit up for his 96th-career game in the Crimson & White. Baker, a Washington, D.C., product will become the 33rd player to join the 1,000 point club in program history when he reaches that plateau. He will be the fourth Aggie in the last three seasons to join the 1,000. Other players that recently joined the 1,000 point club include Pascal Siakam (1,126, 2014-16), Tshilidzi Nephawe (1,087, 2011-15) and Daniel Mullings (1,677, 2012-15).
 
RPI CHECK
After debuting at 94 in the first RPI ranking by the NCAA on Dec. 6, NM State is now sitting at No. 82, good for the highest amongst Western Athletic Conference teams through games on Dec. 7. Utah Valley, who debuted at No. 88 to lead the WAC, is now sitting at No. 96.
 
AGGIES VS. LOBOS PAR DEUX
Saturday's game against New Mexico will be the 218th meeting between the two in-state rivals and the 105th contest between the Aggies and Lobos in Las Cruces when they tip-off at the Pan American Center at 7:30 p.m.
 
UNM took the first match-up between the two schools this season in The Pit, 72-59, behind the play of Tim Williams (20 points), Elijah Brown (19) and Sam Logwood (12). The Aggies were paced by Ian Baker's 25 points while Sidy N'Dir chipped in with 14 of his own. Tanveer Bhullar made his 2016-17 debut that night and added nine points and 10 boards off the bench.
 
Since the two squared off, NM State has reel off five-straight wins, including a come from behind win at San Diego despite the Aggies 21.7-percent in the first half and 34.9-percent for the entire game.
 
UNM has gone 3-3 since battling New Mexico State, including a 1-2 record at the John Wooden Classic. The Lobos narrowly defeated UTEP this past Wednesday, 78-77, thanks to a late jumper from Brown with 5.8 seconds remaining the game. As a team, New Mexico is shooting a blistering 50.1-percent from the floor, but opponents are also shooting 44.5-percent from the floor.
 
Williams currently leads the team with 19 points and 6.9 boards per game with a .627 shooting clip and has missed the last two games for UNM due to a concussion. The status of the 6-8 forward is uncertain.
 
Second on the team in scoring is Brown, who is averaging 16.8 points, 5.1 boards and 3 assists. He's also leading the team in 3-point range with 18 on the year for a .300 shooting clip from beyond the arc.
 
Jordan Hunter is tied for fourth on the team with Obij Aget in scoring at 6.4 points per game, but paces the team with 3.9 dimes per game. With Williams out, Aget takes over the team lead in blocks with eight.
 
PROTECT THIS HOUSE
With a win last Saturday over Long Beach State, NM State extended its home winning-streak to 15 dating back to last season. The Aggies have their first six games of the 2016 campaign at home, matching the 2008-09 team. The 2016-17 squad will now be chasing the 2006-07 team that won 15-consecutive games at home, which also included an 80-73 win over No. 13/15 Nevada team.
 
#WACVEGAS
Looking for an early Christmas present? We've got the perfect gift for your Aggie fans! Beginning Monday, Dec. 12, you can begin pre-ordering all-session tickets for the 2017 WAC Basketball Tournament (March 9-11). This year's conference tournament will again be held at Orleans Arena.
 
TICKET INFORMATION/PRICES
All-Session (All men's and women's games)
$250 – First Row in front of Press Section (P1)
$125 – All other sections except upper rows of closed end (P2)
$100 – Upper rows of section in closed end of horseshoe (P3)
 
Single Day Tickets
Quarterfinals (Wednesday/Thursday):
P2: Men -$45; Women - $10
P1: $90
Semi Finals (Friday):
P2: Men - $50; Women - $15
P1: $100
Finals (Saturday):
P2: Men - $50; Women - $20
P1: $100
Students and Youth 12 and Under: 
$10 per session
 
Women's All-Session Tournament Only: $40
 
Student Tickets: Student tickets will be sold on a daily basis during the week of the tournament. However, an institution will be able to conduct an on-campus pre-sale of student tickets (max of 350) for its first guaranteed game whereby students would receive a voucher/receipt during the pre-sale that guarantees them a ticket.  Distribution of all pre-sold tickets would be administered by institutional staff on site at the Orleans Arena.
 
LAST TIME OUT
NM State continued its hot-streak at home last Saturday when it defeated former Big West rival Long Beach State 93-85 inside the Pan American Center. The Aggies were led by Braxton Huggins, who racked up a game-high 26 points on top of 4-of-5 starters scoring in double-digits. The win also extended NM State's home winning-streak to 15, dating back to last season.
 
Eli Chuha finished the night with a career-high 19 points and seven rebounds on 7-of-8 shooting while Sidy N'Dir added 18 points on 4-of-9 shooting and 8-of-10 effort from the charity stripe. Ian Baker chipped in with 15 points thanks to a 9-for-9 effort at the line with Jemerrio Jones rounding things out with his first-career double-double at the Division I level with 10 points and 13 rebounds.
 
UP NEXT
New Mexico State will now hit the road for a pair of games before returning home for another three-game homestand. First up for the Aggies will be Battle of I-10 rival UTEP on Tuesday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. in the Don Haskins Center. NM State then travels west for a bout with Pac-12 foe Arizona State for a Saturday showdown at 6 p.m. on the Pac-12 Networks.