LAS CRUCES, N.M. – After a long 37 days between home games, the New Mexico State men's basketball team finally returns to the friendly confines of the Pan American Center for a 7 p.m. (MT) tilt against Seattle U Thursday night.
 
The Aggies return home with a 15-3 overall record and 3-0 mark in league play. NM State was also 7-1 during its eight-game road stretch that included wins over Illinois, Davidson, then-No. 6/7 Miami as well as Grand Canyon in front of a sold-out hostile crowd.
 
Adam Young (@youngpbp) will have the call once again for Aggie fans on Thursday, Jan. 18, while former Aggie basketball assistant Rus Bradburd serves as the analyst.
 
WHERE TO WATCH
In addition to Thursday's action against the Redhawks on ESPN3, fans can catch the game LIVE on FOX Sports Arizona Plus, FOX Sports Southwest Plus and FOX College Sports Pacific. Fans can also use the FOX Sports GO or WatchESPN app with paid cable subscription to watch the game on their mobile/tablet device.
 
ALL Times Mountain
FOX Sports Arizona PLUS (LIVE)
DISH: SD: 443 – HD: 9581 | DTV: 686 | DISH Hopper: 412-31
 
FOX Sports Southwest PLUS (LIVE)
DISH: SD: 442 – HD: 9580 | DISH HOPPER: 412-30 | DTV: 676
 
FOX College Sports Pacific (LIVE)
DTV: 608 | DISH: 454 | Comcast: 264
 
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 Thursday's contest can catch the game by listening to NM State Athletics/US Bank Hall of Famer Jack Nixon 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
 
UPCOMING PROMOTIONS
Thursday night's game will include a slew of promotions. The first 1,000 fans in attendance will get the third edition of the Aggie snap back hat series. In addition, there will also be a postgame autograph session with a limited edition throwback poster for fans. A preselected number of NMSU student will also compete for a chance to win free tuition during at halftime.
 
TICKET PROMOTIONS
What better way to treat your loved ones than an NM State men's basketball "Weekend Warrior" pack for $65. The package includes tickets to the four remaining Saturday games on the schedule while the first 100 orders will either receive a "Los Aggies" or "Aggie A" snapback hat. To make this awesome purchase, fans can come to the Pan American Center ticket office or by calling at 575-646-1420.
 
The four games included in the pack are…
Utah Valley • Saturday, Jan. 20, at 4 p.m.
UT Rio Grande Valley • Saturday, Feb. 3 at 4 p.m.
Grand Canyon • Saturday, Feb. 10, at 7 p.m.
UMKC • Saturday, Feb. 24, at 7 p.m.
 
REDBIRDS VISIT IN WAC-OPENER
Under the direction of new head coach Jim Hayford, Seattle U is 13-7 overall and 2-1 in WAC play heading into Thursday night's game. New Mexico State leads the all-time series against the Redbirds 12-2 and have also won six-straight – including a 6-0 mark when playing at home.
 
As a team, the Redbirds are second in the league in scoring, averaging 80.2 points and only trails Utah Valley (81.7 ppg). SU's 78.2-percent shooting from the free-throw line not only leads the WAC, but is also sixth-best in the country. Its 197 made 3-pointers ranks 13th in the nation while its 768 total rebounds ranks 15th in Division I.
 
Seattle U is also the deadliest team in the league when it comes to 3-point shooting, knocking down a WAC-best 9.9 triples a game. The Aggies will also be tested on the boards with SU pacing the league with 768 total rebounds.
 
Matej Kavas leads a handful of players in scoring with 17.2 points per game to go with a .475 shooting clip from three – which is good for 12th in the country. Kavas is also 20th in the nation with 58 triples so far this season.
 
Jordan Hill is second on the team in scoring, averaging 13.8 points while dishing out a team-best 73 dimes with 25 steals. However, Hill has been pacing the Redbirds in conference play with 15.7 points per game. Josh Hearlihy is third on that list, scoring 12.9 points per game to go with this .439 shooting clip.
 
Richaud Gittens and Aaron Menzies rounds out the list of double-digit scorers for Seattle U. Gittens is third on the team in rebounds with 5.1 boards per game while pacing the Redbirds with 27 swipes on the year. Menzies has been consistent on the boards for Seattle U, pulling down a team-high 7.8 boards per game to go with his 34 blocks. He's also averaging 10.3 boards through three games in league play.
 
TOP OF HIS CLASS
Through games on Jan. 15, head coach Chris Jans' 15-3 overall mark and .833 winning-percentage is best among first-year head coaches and first-year head coaches at a new school. The only other coach with 15 wins is Chris Holtmann at Ohio State, who owns a 15-4 overall mark (.789) in his first year with the Buckeyes.
 
LOFTON CLAIMS FOURTH POW HONOR
After dropping 57 points over two road wins, New Mexico State men's basketball guard Zach Lofton was named the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Week for the fourth time this season. Lofton is the first player to earn four player of the week honors since Pascal Siakam claimed five weekly honors during the 2015-16 season. This is also NM State's fifth player of the week honor after 10 weeks of play.
 
At week's end, Lofton averaged 28.5 points with a .593 shooting clip, 4.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals. He also finished the week perfect from the line, going 18-for-18 while knocking down 53.8-percent (7-for-13) of his shots from downtown
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Aggies used another gritty defensive performance in the second-half last Saturday as it defeated CSU Bakersfield 66-53 to stay undefeated in league play. NM State outscored the 'Runners 40-28 in the second-half in the victory thanks to a combined 29 points from Zach Lofton and Eli Chuha.
 
Lofton finished with a 28 points on 8-of-12 shooting – including four from downtown – while Chuha hauled in 14 of his 16 points in the second stanza to with seven rebounds. Chuha scored 16 of NM State's 20 points off the bench and held a 26-16 edge over CSUB in the paint.
 
UP NEXT
Should NM State and Utah Valley win its respective games on Thursday, the 4 p.m. (MT) match-up on Saturday, Jan. 20, against the Wolverines will pit the two remaining undefeated teams in league play against one another.