PHOENIX – The New Mexico State men's basketball team looks to return to the win column on Saturday, Feb. 11, when it battles Grand Canyon in GCU Arena.
 
Barry Buetel will have the call on the ESPN3 broadcast while Scott Williams serves as the analyst and Kate Longworth on the sidelines for Saturday night's game.
 
UPCOMING PROMOTIONS
The final opportunity for Aggie fans to take advantage of the 4-For-$40 ticket promotion will be for the Utah Valley game on Thursday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m. Fans get four tickets, four soft drinks and four hot dogs for the price of $40. Two days later, the Aggies will honor its 2017 US Bank/NM State Hall of Fame class at halftime of the Seattle U game on Saturday, Feb. 25.
 
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:
 
Alamogordo      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 Lopes on ESPN3, fans in the Borderlands can catch the game LIVE on The CW on the following channels:
 
Time Warner Cable (Spectrum): SD: 13 | HD: 1212
Comcast: SD: 14 | HD: 388
DirecTV: SD: 8 | HD: 936
DISH Network: SD: 17 | HD: 7595
AT&T: SD: 19 | HD: 1019
AGGIES AND LOPES PART 2
The last time NM State and Grand Canyon squared off, the Aggies prevailed 81-69 for their 600th program victory inside the Pan American Center. New Mexico State had a whopping six players reach double-figures led by Jemerrio Jones, who had 19 points and seven rebounds. Jones' partner on the glass, Eli Chuha, pulled down 13 rebounds to go with 10 rebounds. Other players in double-figures were Jermaine Haley (15), Braxton Huggins (11), Matt Taylor (11) and Ian Baker (11).
 
Since the last time these two programs squared off in January, the Aggies have gone 6-1 with its only last coming this past Thursday at CSU Bakersfield while the Lopes went 6-2 with losses at UMKC and at home vs. Bakersfield.
 
DeWayne Russell continues to lead both the league and GCU with 22.1 points per game while also pacing the Lopes with 114 assists. Joshua Braun is the only other player averaging in double-figures for Grand Canyon, checking in at 17 points per game. Keonta Vernon is just on the cusp of averaging double-figures, posting 9.8 points per game with a team-high 7.4 boards per game. In conference play, the trio of Russell (19.5), Braun (18.5) and Vernon (11.1) pace the Lopes in scoring.
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLES FACTORY
Through Thursday night's game, New Mexico State is fifth in the country amongst Division I teams with 23 double-doubles as a team. Memphis (26), LIU Brooklyn (24), Purdue (24) and UCLA (24) have double-doubles split amongst three players while NM State's 23 is split between Eli Chuha (11), Jemerrio Jones (9), Ian Baker (2) and Braxton Huggins (1). Chuha's 11 double-doubles is also tied for the ninth-most in the country.
 
STREAKING
The 20-game win-streak for New Mexico State came to a halt on Thursday, Feb. 9, at CSU Bakersfield when the Aggies dropped a 72-53 decision to the 'Runners. The streak was the second-longest in the nation at the time and trailed just Gonzaga, who extended its streak to 25 after Thursday night's victory. The 20-game win-streak was one win shy of tying the program record of 21 set by the 1937-38 squad led by Jerry Hines
 
NM State has only had a winning-streak of 8 or better six times in the last 20 season dating back to the 1996-97 campaign. Of those six winning-streaks, five were snapped on the road with the exception of the current streak. There have only been 10 win-streaks of 10 or better between the 20-game win-streak and the program record 21-game win-streak in 1937-38.
 
Paul Weir is the first coach since Arthur Bergman (1920-21) to have an eight-game winning-streak in his first year the helm in Las Cruces. Reggie Theus is next on that list, having won 13-straight games his second year at the helm. Lou Henson also did it in his second season at the helm, however it was during his second stint as the Aggies head coach.
 
Winning Streaks (1996-97 – Present)
2016-17:           20 - Lost at CSU Bakersfield*, 72-53
2015-16:           8 – Lost at Wichita State, 71-41
2014-15:           13 – Lost vs. #10/11 Kansas, 75-56 (NCAA Tournament 1st Round)
2012-13:           12 – Lost at Utah State*, 73-69
2006-07:           13 – Lost at Louisiana Tech*, 73-71
1998-99:           8 – Lost at Utah State*, 61-54
*Denotes conference game
 
Winning Streaks (8+ Cont.)
1993-94:           13 – Lost at Nevada*, 77-68
1992-93:           8 – Lost at Pacific*, 71-68
1991-92:           8 – Lost vs. UCLA, 85-78 (NCAA Tournament Sweet 16)
                                10 – Lost to UNLV*, 74-67
1989-90:           12 – Lost at Long Beach State*, 72-56
1978-79:           8 – Lost at Southern Illinois*, 86-83
1969-70:           9 – Lost vs. UCLA, 93-77 (NCAA Tournament Final Four)
                                9 – Lost at Creighton, 72-68
1968-69:           16 – Lost to New Mexico, 86-66
1960-61:           12 – Lost at Arizona State, 86-72 (Border Conference Playoffs)
1959-60:           8 – Lost at UCLA, 66-56
1951-52:           12 – Lost to New Mexico, 40-38
1938-39:           12 – Lost at Texas Tech*, 51-37
1937-38:           21 – Lost vs. Murray State, 30-29 (NIT 3rd Round)
1936-37:           8 – Finished season with win (Lost 2nd game of 1937-38 season to SUC 64-41 at home)
                                9 – Lost at Northern Arizona*, 59-45
1925-26:           10 – Lost to Arizona, 39-19
1920-21:           10 – Lost at Billings of El Paso, 31-17
*Denotes conference game
 
HALL OF FAME INDUCTION DINNER
The New Mexico State Athletics Department will formally enshrine Jackie Choi Parker, Gwladys Nocera, James Moore and Billy Joe Price into the US Bank/NM State Hall of Fame on Friday, Feb. 20, in the Pan American Center.
 
Tickets are $40 per person for the special event, which is set to begin with a social hour at 6 p.m. (MT) followed by dinner at 7 p.m. and dessert.
 
To attend the event or for more information, please contact coordinator for special events and community engagement, Nicole Gomez, at 575-646-8050 or by email at nicolemg@nmsu.edu.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The NM State men's basketball team had a tough time finding the bottom of the basketball Thursday night as it dropped a 72-53 decision to CSU Bakersfield in a packed Icardo Center.
 
Thursday was the first time the Aggies had suffered a loss since Nov. 18, a 72-59 defeat to New Mexico in Albuquerque. The 20-game win-streak finishes as the second-longest in program history, trailing just the 1937-38 team that won 21-consecutive games.
 
Ian Baker finished with a team-high 19 points, all of which came in the second half and was 10-of-11 from the free-throw line. Jemerrio Jones finished with his ninth double-double of the year, posting 11 points and 16 rebounds.
 
Despite a 12-8 advantage on the offensive glass for NM State, they were edged 40-28 in the paint in the loss.
 
UP NEXT
New Mexico State will take its final road trip of the regular-season the following week when it meets UT Rio Grande Valley for the first time this season on Saturday, Feb. 18. The Aggies will then return home for a three-game homestand to conclude the regular-season.