LAS CRUCES – With another banner year under its belt, the New Mexico State women's basketball enters the opening round of the NCAA Tournament as the 15th-seed and will square off against the No. 2-seed Arizona State.
 
The two teams will face off for just the 14th time in program history on Friday, March 16, at 5:30 p.m. (MT) on ESPN2. Mark Jones and Gail Goestenkors will have the call on the nationally televised broadcast. Aggie fans back home can also listen to a familiar voice in Adam Young on AM 570 The Ticket.
 
ASU LINKS: ESPN2 | AM 570 | Live Stats (TBA) | Live Press Conference | @NMStateWBB | @SunDevilWBB
 
SPECIAL RADIO SHOW SET FOR THURSDAY
Adam Young will host a special radio show live from the Scottsdale Resort at McCormick Ranch from 5-6 p.m. (MT) on AM 570 The Ticket. On-air guests include: Athletic Director Mario Moccia and members of the women's basketball coaching staff.
 
PUT YOUR DANCING SHOES ON
For the second-straight year and only the fourth time in program history, the New Mexico State women's basketball team will be playing in the NCAA Tournament. This time, the Aggies will be the No. 15-seed playing against the No. 2-seed Arizona State on its home floor at Wells Fargo Arena on Friday, March 18, at 5:30 p.m. (MT) on ESPN2.
 
Other than last season, the only other times NM State earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament was during the 1986-87 (L, 86-73) and 1987-88 (L, 99-74) seasons under Joe McKeown. The Aggies lost in the first-round to Washington both years.
 
NM State lost to No. 1 Maryland last season, 75-57, in the first-round of the NCAA Tournament. The Terrapins ended up in the Final Four before falling to the eventual champions, Connecticut, 81-58. 

Your Aggies are heading to Tempe! #LetsDance! #AggieUp pic.twitter.com/abHujiwCWU

— NM State WBB (@NMStateWBB) March 14, 2016

WE GOIN' BACK-TO-BACK
For the second-straight year, NM State dominated the competition in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament championship game to earn the WAC's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
 
In a rematch of last year's championship, NM State outplayed UT Rio Grande Valley – formerly known as UT Pan America – in every facet en route to its 80-53 win last Saturday led by freshman Brooke Salas' 20 points.
 
New Mexico State got 16 points, five boards and three assists from senior Sasha Weber – who also went 4-of-9 from 3-point range. Senior Shanice Davis chipped in with 11 points of her own and a dished out a season-high tying seven assists.
 
NM State was dominant in the paint, edging UTRGV 34-18, and shot 48.4-percent from the floor compared to the Vaquero's 32.3-percent shooting.
 
The reigning WAC Player of the Year, Shawnte' Goff, was shut down by the NM State defense, holding her to just six points on 2-of-10 shooting.
 
WEBER, SALAS TABBED ALL-TOURNAMENT
New Mexico State's Sasha Weber was named the WAC Tournament's Most Valuable Player after totaling 28 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals in two games. Freshman Brooke Salas also joined Weber on the all-tournament team after tallying 29 points, nine rebounds, two steals and an assists.
 
Others on the all-tournament team included: Hildur Björg Kjartansdóttir and Shawnte' Goff from UTRGV and Batabe Zempare from CSU Bakersfield.
 
FEW AND FAR BETWEEN
NM State women's head coach Mark Trakh continues to leave his mark in the coaching world as he became just the fifth head coach to lead three separate teams to two-consecutive NCAA appearances. Of those five coaches, Jim Foster is the only coach to lead four different teams to the Big Dance in consecutive years.
 
-Jim Foster: Saint Joseph's (1985-90) | Vanderbilt (1992-98, 2000-02) | Ohio State (2003-12) | Chattanooga (2014-16)
-Gary Blair: Stephen F. Austin (1988-93) | Arkansas (1995-98, 2001-03) | Texas A&M (2006-16)
-Joanne P. McCallie: Main (1995-2000) | Michigan State (2003-07), Duke (2008-15)
-Vivian Stringer: Cheyney (1982-83)* | Iowa (1986-94) | Rutgers (1990-2001, 2003-12, 2015)
-Mark Trakh: Pepperdine (2000, 2002-03) | USC (2005-06) | New Mexico State (2015-16)
 
*Cheyney was the only Division II team to play in the Division I Tournament. The tournament's first year was in 1982.
 
DANCING WITH TRAKH
Head coach Mark Trakh is 2-6 all-time in the NCAA Tournament. The two wins came during his tenure at USC where the Trojans advanced to the second-round of the tournament in back-to-back years from 2004-06.
 
TRAKH AT THE WAC TOURNAMENT
Head coach Mark Trakh is 24-16 all-time in conference tournaments during his career and 6-3 during his time at NM State, including Saturday's win over UTRGV. The Aggies went 2-0 last season, 1-1 the two years prior to that and 0-1 in his first year at New Mexico State.

Tempe will host first and second rounds of the Sioux Falls Regional! #SelectionMonday https://t.co/9WNdzezJpF pic.twitter.com/Fn6SoadjkF

— NCAA Women's BKB (@ncaawbb) March 14, 2016

FORK 'EM NOTES
Arizona State, ranked No. 11 by the Associated Press in the latest polls, enters the match-up 25-6 overall and 16-2 in Pac-12 play. The No. 2-seeded Sun Devils, in the Sioux Falls Regional, finished the 2015-16 season tied with No. 6 Oregon State for the regular-season title, but was ousted in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament by Cal, 75-64.
 
ASU also had a 15-game winning-streak this season, but it was snapped at the hands of the Beavers in Corvallis, 67-44. ASU then went on a seven-game winning-streak before dropping its next two contests to then-No. 14 UCLA, 74-61, followed by Cal in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament.
 
As a team, ASU is shooting a dismal 11-percent (5-of-47) from 3-point range in its last three contests. However, the Sun Devils are shooting a .321 clip from beyond the arc on the year.
 
The Sun Devils are led by All-Pac-12 Conference teamer Sophie Brunner, who is averaging 10.8 points and 7.5 boards per game. The junior forward also has 48 assists, 44 steals and six blocks to her name this season. After being held to just five points against Southern California, Brunner registered back-to-back double-doubles against the Bruins (10pts, 13rebs) and Golden Bears (14pts, 11 rebs).
 
Quin Doornstauder, a 6-foot-4 center, is second on the team with 9.6 points per game and averages 4.5 rebounds. The junior paces ASU with 40 blocks on the season with the next closes Sun Devil checking in at seven in Eliza Normen. She recently had a breakout game against UCLA, scoring 24 points on 10-of-14 shooting to go with five boards. But, Dornstauder has been held to single-digit points in two of her last three games.
 
Elisha Davis is not only known for her passing prowess, as indicated by her 152 assists (4.9 apg), but also recognized for her defense after earning all-defensive team honors. Davis also has a team-best 46 steals on the year, followed by Brunner at 44 – who was also an all-defensive team honorable mention.
 
Kelsey Moos, a 6-1 forward, is the team's second-leading rebounder with 6.0 boards per game. Her 38 steals on the year puts her third on the team as well.
 
FAMILIAR FACES
Arizona State and NM State have had a pair of familiar foes in CSU Bakersfield and Arizona. ASU beat the Roadrunners 60-47 in the Waikiki Beach Rainbow Wahine Shootout to open the season. In its two games against the 'Runners, NM State won by an average margin of 15.5 points.
 
Against Arizona, NM State's last true road loss, ASU won by an average of 13 points. The Aggies lost to UA 68-64 in the final minute of play without the services of Moriah Mack, who is currently averaging 11.7 points.
 
EYING THE REST OF THE FIELD
The other two teams in the Sioux Falls Regional that will be playing in Tempe include the seventh-seeded Volunteers of Tennessee and the 10th-seeded Phoenix of Green Bay. Tennessee finished the season 19-13 and dropped from the national rankings for the first in over three decades. Green Bay won the Horizon League Tournament Championship and enters the first round with a 28-4 record.
 
The Volunteers and Phoenix are schedule to battle at 3 p.m. (MT) as the opening game before ASU and NM State take the floor at approximately 5:30 p.m.
 
UP NEXT
Should the Aggies advance to the second-round of the NCAA Tournament, NM State will play the winner between Tennessee and Green Bay on Sunday, March 20, at a time yet to be determined.