What: Game Four 
Who: NM State (3-0, 0-0 CUSA) vs Samford (3-3, 0-0 SoCon) 
When: Friday, Nov. 21, 7:00 p.m. MT 
Where: Las Cruces, N.M. – Pan American Center (12,200) 

THE OPENING TIP  

• NM State returns to action on Friday, Nov. 21 at 7 p.m. as it welcomes Samford to the Pan American Center for the final contest of its season-opening four-game homestand. The Aggies enter the matchup riding the momentum of a 76-68 win over in-state rival New Mexico, pushing their record to 3-0 on the year. 

• Friday's game marks just the second all-time meeting between NM State and Samford. The lone previous matchup came on Nov. 16, 2016, when the Aggies secured a 58-48 win over the Bulldogs in Las Cruces. 

JONES' EARLY SEASON STATEMENT 

• Senior guard Jemel Jones has had the Aggies follow his lead to start the 2025-26 season, opening the year in the same fashion he closed the last – as one of the top scorers in the country. He enters Friday's matchup averaging 20.7 points per game. 

• His scoring clip currently ranks 39th in the nation, placing him among the most productive guards in the country and within Conference USA, Jones is one of just three players averaging 20-plus points per game, joining Mostapha El Moutaouakkil (22.3) and Brent Decker (20.0). 

THE WRZESZCZ EFFECT 

• Few players in Conference USA have been more efficient from deep than senior guard Anthony Wrzeszcz, who enters Friday's matchup shooting 53% from three-point range. 

• Wrzeszcz has opened the season on a heater, hitting 8 of his first 15 threes to reach a sharp 53% from beyond the arc. That clip leads the Aggies and ranks 40th nationally. 

• Within CUSA, he sits second only to Liberty's Brent Decker (62.5%), placing him among the league's more dangerous perimeter threats. 

MID MAJOR TOP 25 

• NM State climbed into the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 for the first time this season, debuting at No. 23 after last week's 76-68 victory over New Mexico. The Aggies are one of just three CUSA teams in the rankings, joining Liberty (3) and Kennesaw State (21). 

DEFENSIVE DISRUPTION 

• Through games played as of Nov. 20, NM State has emerged as one of the top defensive teams in the nation, ranking 12th in turnovers forced per game (18.6), 12th in steals per game (12.0) and 18th in turnover margin (+6.7). 

• That disruptive defensive pressure has directly fueled the offense, as the Aggies also rank 20th in the nation in fastbreak points per game (21.0), converting takeaways into immediate scoring opportunities. 

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS 

• Samford enters its first season under head coach Lennie Acuff, a veteran of 35 years in collegiate coaching who arrives from a six-year tenure at Lipscomb. Last season, Acuff guided the Bisons to both the ASUN regular-season and tournament titles, earning Coach of the Year honors and securing a 14-seed in the NCAA Tournament. 

• The Bulldogs come into Friday's contest with a 3-3 record following a 77-62 home loss to Florida Gulf Coast. 

• Offensively, Samford is powered by one of the nation's premier shooters in graduate guard Jadin Booth, who is averaging 24.2 points per game. Booth currently leads all of Division I in both three-pointers made (31) and three-pointers per game (5.17). 

• In the frontcourt, junior forward Dylan Faulkner anchors the effort on the glass, leading the Bulldogs with 5.8 rebounds per game. 

For complete coverage of the 2025-26 season NM State Men's Basketball, visit NMStateSports.com - the official home of Aggie athletics - and follow us on Twitter (@NMStateMBB), Instagram (@NMStateMBB), and like us on Facebook (NMStateMBB).  

  

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