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Now Loading: Women's Basketball
Aggies, Oh Aggies!
Imani Warren
Matthew Knope
73
Winner Middle Tenn. MTSU 20-4,10-0 CUSA
37
New Mexico St. NMSU 10-13,4-6 CUSA
Winner
Middle Tenn. MTSU
20-4,10-0 CUSA
73
Final
37
New Mexico St. NMSU
10-13,4-6 CUSA
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Middle Tenn. MTSU 26 14 13 20 73
New Mexico St. NMSU 10 10 13 4 37

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Matthew Knope

Aggies Fall at Home to Top-Seeded MTSU

Blue Raiders ride hot second half to move to 10-0 in CUSA.

LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Playing at home for back-to-back weeks for the first time in over two months, NM State welcomed in the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders, the lone undefeated team in Conference USA. Despite best efforts, the Aggies ultimately fell by a final score of 73-37. Turnovers proved to be pivotal in the loss, with NM State coughing the ball up 19 times, leading to 23 Blue Raider points. MTSU (20-4, 10-0) won its 10th consecutive game, and remained undefeated in CUSA action. With the loss, NM State fell to 10-13 overall and 4-6 in league play. 

First Quarter

Securing the opening tip, Middle Tennessee opened the night with a layup from Anastasiia Boldyreva, quickly taking a 5-0 lead 57 seconds into the contest. Ene Adams scored the first point of the night for the Aggies, with Tylie Jones posting a block and getting a dish from Sylena Peterson to make it a 5-4 game with 7:50 remaining. A flurry of points by the Blue Raiders would make it 11-4, though Molly Kaiser's first bucket of the afternoon would temporarily halt the MTSU attack. The senior from Watauga, Texas would finish the quarter with a team-high six points. At the end of quarter one, the Blue Raiders held a 26-10 edge.

Second Quarter

The Aggie bench got the action going in the second quarter, with Lucia Yenes and Loes Rozing connecting on baskets for the first NM State points in the second frame. Points would come at a premium on both ends of the ball, with just eight points combined through the first four and a half minutes of gametime. After putting in six triples in the first quarter, Jalynn Gregory scored the only 3-pointer of the second for MTSU to give them a 35-16 edge. Sylena Peterson would score the last basket of the first half for the Aggies, lacing their first triple of the contest with 1:06 remaining. At the break, the Aggies trailed MTSU 40-20.

 

After 20 minutes, NM State was 1-for-7 from beyond the arc, and 33% from the field overall, compared to 7-of-21 3-point shooting and 34.4% shooting for the Blue Raiders (including 11 made free throws, to just three for the Crimson & White). 

Third Quarter

Like the first quarter, Ene Adams posted the first points for the Aggies to begin the second half. In short order, Jaila Harding canned her first 3-pointer of the contest, cutting the Blue Raider lead to 15 points, 40-25. Harding recorded eight points in the quarter to lead all Aggies. MTSU led 53-33 heading into the final 10 minutes. 

Fourth Quarter

Tylie Jones tallied a fastbreak bucket, and Molly Kaiser scored a driving layup to finish with ten points on the night. Outside of that, the Aggies were scoreless in the final frame while Middle Tennessee was 8-for-15 from the field, including 4-of-8 from downtown. At the final buzzer, the score stood at 73-37 in favor of the visitors.

 

Numbers of Note

  • Molly Kaiser was the lone Aggie to finish in double figures, posting ten or more points for the 19th time this season. 

  • With the loss, the Aggies fell at home for just the second time since December 5th, a 61-55 defeat against UC Irvine. The loss snapped a three-game home winning streak, and wins in five of the last six contests. 

  • Knocking down a pair of triples, guard Jaila Harding recorded two or more 3-pointers made for the 11th time this season. No other Aggie has had at least two triples more than three times. 

  • Sylena Peterson tied a season high in rebounds, pulling down six boards in 25 minutes of action. 

Up Next

The Aggies will suit up for one more game from the Pan American Center this weekend, playing host to the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers on Saturday, Feb. 17. Earlier this season, Jaila Harding posted 12 points to lead the Aggies to a 50-44 win over WKU for NM State's first-ever Conference USA win. The game, scheduled for 2:00 PM MT, will be streamed live on ESPN+ and available to follow via nmstatestats.com.

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

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