Opening Tip
• The Aggies kicked off conference play on Monday of this week as they claimed a narrow victory over Lamar, winning 57-54.
• Thanks to the result against the Cardinals, the Aggies are now winners of nine-straight WAC openers with the streak dating back to the 2013-14 season.
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Brooke Atkinson's team now turns its attention to WAC match No. 2 as they prepare for a road contest versus Tarleton on Thursday evening.
• The Aggies will enter Stephenville, Texas, with an all-time record of 1-1 against the Texans with the 2020-21 season being the first time the two programs met.
• In the two games during Tarleton's inaugural WAC season, the Aggies outscored TSU by a combined score of 120-106, including a 67-44 win in the second matchup.
• Tarleton currently hoists a WAC record of 1-2 with its lone win coming over Utah Valley, a team picked to finish in the top-four in both of the preseason conference polls.
• Most recently, the Texans fell, 45-74, in a road matchup with Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, Jan. 8. Malaya Kendrick finished as the Texans leading scorer on that night as she totaled eight points in Nacogdoches, Texas.
• Head Coach
Brooke Atkinson leads one of the WAC's most efficient offenses as the Aggies rank fourth in the league in field goal percentage by way of shooting at a .423 clip on the season.
• Forward
Bigue Sarr is a large part of the Aggies' success rate as she leads the conference in shooting percentage at .598, while also leading NM State in points per game (15.4).
Scouting the Texans | Roster | Schedule | Statistics
• Tarleton will host the Aggies in its fourth WAC game of the season and its third home game in conference play.
• After falling in their opening WAC contest, the Texans prevailed, 61-48, over Utah Valley, giving them a 1-1 home record in WAC play and a record of 6-2 in Wisdom Gym on the season.
• In the Texans entry season in the WAC last year, they finished with a league record of 4-10 and finished sixth in the conference's regular season standings.
• Despite having only played 14 games this season, the Texans have already equaled their win total from a season ago with nine victories.
• Sophomore Iyana Dorsey leads the way in the scoring column for Tarleton as she is the lone Texan averaging double-digits, posting 10.4 points per game.
• Redshirt senior Malaya Kendrick also plays a big role for Misty Wilson's team as she leads TSU in both rebounds (6.9) and assists per game (2.6)
Last Time Out | NM State 57, Lamar 53 | Monday, Jan. 10, 2022
• The Aggies claimed their second-straight victory as they defeated the Cardinals on their home floor.
• In the narrow win, the Aggies were led from some hot shooting from point guard
Mel Isbell who managed 13 points to go along with two steals and two assists.
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Bigue Sarr also reached double-digits, scoring 10 points and snagged eight rebounds.
• Additionally,
Deja Terrell pulled down a game-high 10 boards.
• As a team, the Aggies outrebounded Lamar by a total of 38-26 and posted a 12-4 advantage in the category of second chance points.
• NM State struggled at times as they trailed by as much as 10 points in the tilt, however, a 15-2 run to open the third allowed the Aggies to find and keep the lead.
Up Next
The Aggies' Texas road trip continues as they make the drive over to Abilene to take on Abilene Christian on Saturday. Tip-off versus the Wildcats is set for 5 p.m. (MT). This will be the first meeting between the two programs since ACU joined the WAC.
Sprinting Out of the Gate
The Aggies toppled Western New Mexico in their season opener, winning by a margin of 54 points. This marked the first 50-plus point win since last November when they derailed Park Gilbert, 92-38. Also, five Aggies reached double-digit scoring for the first time since Nov. 26, 2018, when they did so in a win over Northern New Mexico.
In the blowout win, the Aggies were led by
Molly Kaiser who finished with a career-high 18 points. Oklahoma State transfer
Bigue Sarr also had a productive night, posting 16 points and grabbing six boards in just 16 minutes of action.
Sights on Six
NM State will seek its sixth WAC regular season title since the 2014-15 season. The Aggies are 80-18 in conference play across the past seven seasons.
Preseason Picks
NM State was picked to finish in seventh place in the WAC Coaches' Poll while the media selected the Aggies to land in sixth this season.
The WAC media also selected junior guard
Soufia Inoussa to the Second Team All-WAC list.
Bringing Home the Hardware
Following her final season with the Aggies,
Aaliyah Prince earned Second Team All-WAC and WAC All-Defensive Team honors. Prince finished the season ranked 11th in the league in steals per game while ranking 13th in points per game.
