What: Game Two
Who: NM State (0-1, 0-0 CUSA) vs. Sul Ross State (0-0, 0-0 ASC - DIII)
When: Wednesday, Nov. 8, 7 p.m. MT
Where: Las Cruces, N.M. - Pan American Center (12,572)

THE OPENING TIP                     
• After opening the season with what could very easily end up being their toughest matchup during the entirety of the 2023-24 campaign, the Aggies return home on Wednesday night to host Sul Ross State, a Division III program out of Alpine, Texas.
• Head Coach Jason Hooten will be looking to secure his first win at the helm of the program when the Aggies host the Lobos - a program that NM State has not lost to since 1954.
• Wednesday's matchup will also mark the Aggies' first game of the year inside the Pan American Center - a place that they are a combined 123-16 (.885) over the last 10 seasons. Additionally, the Aggies have yet to drop a home opener since the 2009-10 season.
 
IF IT'S FREE, IT'S FOR THE AGGIES         
• NM State went a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe on Monday versus Kentucky to end the night as one of only three Division I programs in the country to not miss a single free throw on opening night. The Aggies were joined by Rutgers (7-7) and Tennessee (10-10).
• This also marked the first time since March 5, 2022 that NM State did not miss a free throw in a game. On that night, the Aggies were 2-for-2 from the line in a duel with Utah Valley.
 
POSE-ING A THREAT                             
• The Aggies' standout performance against Kentucky came from Stephen F. Austin transfer Jaylin Jackson-Posey who finished the night tied for the lead in points (10) while also tallying the most rebounds (8) and assists (6) by anyone in Crimson and White.
• The junior from Midland, Texas, came over to the Aggies after appearing in 48 games while averaging over 20 minutes, 7.2 points and 2.3 rebounds per game for the Lumberjacks.
 
FRESH START                                       
• Entering the season, NM State is the only program in the country with an entirely new roster as zero players from the 2022-23 campaign will take the floor for the Aggies this season.
• Tasked with building a roster from scratch that is also expected to be competitive immediately, Head Coach Jason Hooten opted to bring in guys with experience as all but one Aggie on this year's roster has played basketball beyond the high school level. This includes 12 individuals with collegiate experience and one with experience in the NBA Global Academy. Of the 13 players that have collegiate experience, eight have experience at the Division I level.
 
NEW YEAR, NEW LEADER                      
• After spending the last 13 seasons as the bench boss at Sam Houston, Jason Hooten takes over an Aggie program in need of a refresh button.
• Many are confident Hooten has what it takes to return the Aggie program back to glory as he begins his tenure after compiling 261 wins, posting a .607 win percentage and helping the Bearkats to six postseason appearances. With the success, Hooten ultimately departed Huntsville, Texas, as the program's all-time winningest coach.
• In his final year with Sam Houston, Hooten helped lead the 'Kats to the program's first-ever appearance in the NIT Tournament. Once the Bearkats reached the national tournament, they made some noise - defeating Santa Clara in the opening round. During last year's historic season with Sam Houston, Hooten also led his Bearkats to upset road wins over a pair of Power Five programs in Oklahoma and Utah. The Aggies will be looking to absorb some of that magic on Monday when they take on their blue blood opponent
 
ROOM TO GROW                       
• In their first season as a member of Conference USA, the Aggies were projected to finish eighth in the nine-team league according to a vote of the conference's nine head coaches.
• This underdog role is new territory for the Aggie program as they become affiliates with CUSA after a run in the Western Athletic Conference that included seven regular season titles and 10 tournament titles during their 18-year stint as a member of the WAC.
• In fact, during the Aggies' 18 years in the WAC, NM State was selected to finish inside the top three of the coaches poll every year except for their inaugural season in which they were also tabbed to finish eighth. During that stretch, the Aggies were labeled preseason favorites nine times.
 
TOURNAMENT TIME                  
• NM State's 10 conference tournament titles since 2006 are the second-most in the nation. Only the WCC's Gonzaga (14) has more.
 
BUILDING A FOUNDATION                      
• Although, this may be Jason Hooten's first year with the program, the former Sam Houston coach has done his best to surround himself with familiar faces as two staff members and starting center Kaosi Ezeagu from the Bearkats also made the trip from Huntsville to Las Cruces during the offseason.
• Last season, Ezeagu served as a vocal leader on Sam Houston's squad and started all 33 games that he appeared in and paced the Bearkats in blocks with 16 on the season.
• In addition to Ezeagu, Assistant Coach Payne Andrus and Graduate Assistant Terryonte Thomas were also contibutor's to the success of the Bearkat program last season.
 
THIS DAY IN NM STATE HISTORY
• Wednesday will mark just the second time in program history that NM State will compete in a game on Nov. 8.
• Prior to Wednesday, the Aggies had only ever played on this date in 2013 when they took on Western Michigan in Honolulu - falling 70-64.
 
POWER FIVE AGGIES                 
• The 2023 NM State roster features three Aggies who have spent time on Power Five rosters as Kaosi Ezeagu (Kansas State), Femi Odukale (Pitt) and Davion Bradford (Wake Forest and Kansas State) each played among the best of the best during their collegiate careers.
• Unfortunately for the Aggies, only Kaosi Ezeagu will be available in the season opener as both Odukale and Bradford are awaiting transfer waivers from the NCAA.
 
SCOUTING THE LOBOS              
• Sul Ross State will take on the Aggies on Wednesday in what will be an exhibition game for the Lobos as their season will not officially start until Nov. 11.
• Last season, Sul Ross State finished the season with a 7-18 overall record and a 4-14 mark against American Southwest Conference (DIII) opponents.
• The Lobos will be led by senior guard Trey Nelson who finished second on the team in scoring last season - averaging 15.0 points per game.
• Sul Ross State alum Xavier Webb enters his third full season at the helm of the Lobos after being promoted from interim to head coach in April 2021.