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Now Loading: Men's Basketball
Aggies, Oh Aggies!
Christian Cook
Emilio Garcia
53
UTEP UTEP 8-7,0-1 CUSA
63
Winner New Mexico St. NMSU 7-9,1-0 CUSA
UTEP UTEP
8-7,0-1 CUSA
53
Final
63
New Mexico St. NMSU
7-9,1-0 CUSA
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
UTEP UTEP 22 31 53
New Mexico St. NMSU 28 35 63

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Lawrence Thomas

Lockdown Defense Powers Aggies to Momentous Win Over UTEP

Hooten notches signature win in Battle of I-10 and program’s CUSA debut.

LAS CRUCES, N.M. - The air was a little different in the Pan American Center on Thursday night. Not only were the Aggies hosting UTEP, but the game signified the beginning of a new era. For the first time in over 60 years, the Battle of I-10 was a conference matchup. NM State logged a win for the record books, toppling the Miners 63-53 to start 1-0 all-time in Conference USA games. 

 

First Half

The first basket of the Aggies' CUSA era belonged to Robert Carpenter on a driving two-handed dunk. A Christian Cook contested 3-pointer and Femi Odukale layup on back-to-back possessions sparked a 5-0 Aggie run that gave them a 17-13 lead, forcing a UTEP timeout with 12:03 left. The streak would extend to 10-0 as NM State held a 22-13 advantage until the 6:19 mark. The Miners went exactly eight minutes without a point; from 14:19 to 6:19.

 

Femi Odukale scored nine first-half points off the bench in just 10 minutes. The senior guard hit the final two Aggie buckets before halftime, along with a pair of rebounds. NM State held a 28-22 advantage going into the break. 

 

Second Half

Early out of the break, UTEP sank a layup to cut the lead to five. Within just 93 seconds, NM State swelled the lead back to 12. A Brandon Suggs layup on the following possession stopped the Miners' run, and UTEP was called for a technical foul on its following offensive possession. Christian Cook took and drained both free foul shots. 23 seconds later, the ball found its way to Cook again, as the junior canned his second 3-pointer of the game, nailing a stepback jumper from beyond the arc as the shot clock expired. The crowd erupted as the bucket swelled the NM State lead to its largest point; 12 with 15:15 remaining in the game.

 

Later, UTEP would cut the margin to four (53-49) with 4:51 remaining. The Aggies' final two offensive rebounds came on the same possession, resulting in free throws that powered a 10-4 run to close out the game. Of the final 10 points, six came at the charity stripe, sealing the win in the Aggies' CUSA debut. 

 

Numbers of Note

  • Christian Cook notched his second-highest point total as an Aggie with 15 points. The junior guard poured in 12 second-half points and hit all three of the team's 3-pointers.

  • Cook (15) was joined by three teammates that dropped exactly 10 points; Ezeagu, Suggs and Odukale. The last time four Aggies were in double figures came earlier this season against Fresno State on Nov. 21. 

  • 53 points are the fewest by a Division I opponent this season, and the fewest since Arkansas scored as many in the 2022 NCAA Tournament.

  • With 15 offensive rebounds, the Aggies secured their highest mark against a DI opponent this season, and the most since Nov. 8 against Sul Ross.

  • With just 24 rebounds, UTEP set a new low for the 2023-24 season. 

  • The Miners only managed nine assists in the game; the second-fewest by any opponent this season. In the game prior, CBU was held to six.

 

Head Coach Jason Hooten, on the win: "I thought this game would be about what it was. You had two teams that were fighting really hard and trying to find a way to win. They guarded us really well. We turned it over 17 times and shot 37 percent in the second half. To me, that's one of the biggest areas we have to improve on; our offensive execution. Right now, our defense is saving us. That's the third game in a row we've held our opponent right around that 40 percent mark. That's what good basketball teams do. I'm not going to call us a good basketball team yet, but we are trending in the right direction."

 

Up Next

The Aggies' first trip of CUSA action will be their longest, as they take on FIU in Miami. Jason Hooten will lead his squad 1,650 miles east for a matchup with the Panthers (5-10, 0-0). FIU finished with the worst non-conference record of the nine CUSA members. FIU will take on Jax State on Saturday, Jan. 6 ahead of its home matchup with NM State. The game between the Aggies and Panthers will be streamed live on ESPN+ and available to follow via StatBroadcast. 

 

For complete coverage of NM State Men's Basketball, follow us on Twitter (@NMStateMBB), Instagram (@NMStateMBB) and like us on Facebook (NM State Men's Basketball). You can also follow along with Aggie Men's Basketball via NMStateSports.com.

 

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