Bowling Green, Ky. – The Aggies will end this week's road trip in Bowling Green, Kentucky as they take on Western Kentucky once more. After holding off the Lady Hill Toppers in the final minutes of play in Las Cruces, NM State will look to pick up its third conference sweep by defeating WKU another time this season.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Who: NM State (15-13, 8-7 CUSA) at WKU (20-7, 11-4 CUSA)
Where: E.A. Diddle Arena – Bowling Green, Ky.
When: Saturday, March 1, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. MST
Live Stream: ESPN+
Live Statistics: StatBroadcast
All-Time Series Record: MTSU leads 6-4
Last Meeting: NMSU won 64-59 (February 1, 2025)
LAST TIME AGAINST WKU
Freshman Madi Gewirtz finished with a career high of 17 points, leading to a CUSA freshman of the week award. She also nailed 80% (4-for-5) from the perimeter in the final quarter of play. Kaiser and Gewirtz combined for 34 of the Aggies' total points in today's matchup. Additionally, Gewirtz and Yenes tallied 25 of the Aggies' 45 second-half points.
the Aggies tallied an impressive 86% from the stripe (19-for-22 at the line), shooting completely perfect at the stripe in the 3rd quarter. Both Gassama (5-for-5) and Harding (4-for-4) shot perfect at the charity stripe.
THE PRODIGY
Molly Kaiser has spent all five seasons with the Crimson & White, making her the longest-tenured Aggie on the 2024-25 roster. The Watauga, Texas, native has 1,807 points across her career and has moved into third all-time in scoring for the Aggies in program history. Scoring over 1,800 points, she's also currently the active leader in career points among CUSA players. She now sits just 124 points shy of moving into second on the Aggies all-time scoring list.
Last month, Kaiser was named Conference USA Player of the Week for the fourth time this season after dropping 31 points against Liberty. This marked the fourth CUSA weekly award for Kaiser, which equals the most by an Aggie in program history. This season, Kaiser has also hauled in two NCAA Starting Five accolades, which recognizes the nation's top five performers each week.
Kaiser sits at 15th in the nation in points per game (20.9) and 15th in total points (585). Including her 30-point outing against UTEP three weeks ago, Kaiser is also responsible for the five of the seven highest scoring performances in league play this season.
FANTA-STIC
Fanta Gassama's eight double-doubles thus far marks the first time that an Aggie has recorded five or more double-doubles in a single season since Bigue Sarr tallied 12 double-doubles in the 2021-22 season.
Fanta tallied her second highest game in rebounds this season, snagging down 14 against the Gamecocks.
She currently sits at 17th in the nation and second in CUSA in defensive rebounds per game (7.5).
D-UP
At the moment, NM State ranks third in the conference in steals per game (9.40), which has led their opponents into 539 total turnovers. This has carried over in league play as the Aggies currently rank second in turnovers forced per game (19.3) against CUSA opponents.
FROM DOWNTOWN
Entering Thursday, the Aggies rank third in 3-point percentage in CUSA play, shooting 30.7%. This mark is led by Jaila Harding who is currently shooting an impressive 42.3% from the perimeter against league opponents.
Two weeks ago against the Panthers, the Aggies went 8-20 (40%) from beyond the arc which marked their best 3-point percentage since January 11th when they shot 42.1% against UTEP.
FRESH FISH
Madi Gewirtz picked up her second Conference USA Freshman of the Week award this past week. Previously, Madi Gewirtz became the first and only player in Aggie program history to earn the honor. Three weeks ago, she scored 17 points over Western Kentucky and picked up four defensive boards along with two assists to serve as a catalyst in the Aggies' win over the Hilltoppers.
VETERAN LEADERSHIP
The Aggies are led by 11 upperclassmen, including nine seniors. Molly Kaiser and Diarrah Sissoko are each in their fifth season of collegiate basketball, headlining a 15-person roster that has 50 combined seasons of experience, including 32 at NM State. Four Aggies are on at least their third season in the program: Molly Kaiser (five), Sylena Peterson (four), Sianny Sanchez-Oliver (four) and Lucía Yenes (three).
INTERNATIONAL AGGIES
There are seven Aggies with international backgrounds on the 2024-25 roster. Four of those seven hail from Spain (Fanta Gassama, Noah Garcia, Marta Guilera, Lucía Yenes). Hungary (Anna Csenyi), Netherlands (Loes Rozing) and Mali (Diarrah Sissoko) are also represented on this year's squad. Four of six Aggie newcomers are from overseas. 569 of the Aggies' 1,806 points this season have come courtesy of international members, accounting for over 32.3% of the team's production thus far.
GUESS WHO'S BACK… BACK AGAIN
Nearly every rotational guard and wing has returned in action in 2024-25, with 75.66% of the 2023-24 point production still on the roster. Additionally, the returning Aggies accounted for 85.14% of all assists and 97.71% of 3-pointers made (128 of 131) a season ago.
ONE LAST RIDE
This iteration of the Aggies revolves around fifth-year legend Molly Kaiser. The Watauga, Texas, native exercised her extra year of eligibility that she earned from the NCAA's response to COVID-19, electing to spend her fifth and final campaign with the Crimson & White. In 2023-24, Kaiser led the Aggies in games played (31), games started (31), points (463), points per game (14.9), minutes per game (34.2), field goals made (165), free throws made (107) and free-throw percentage (86.3).
Last season, Kaiser drove and buried a patented elbow jumper shot to give her 1,000 career points, with every bucket coming as a member of the Crimson & White. She became the 25th member of the 1,000-point club, and the first since Gia Pack, who played for the Aggies from 2016-2020.
LAST TIME OUT...
Fanta Gassama picked up her eighth double-double this season(11 rebounds, 10 points). This marks the most double doubles by an Aggie in a single season. With 37 boards, this was the most grabbed the Aggies in a single game this conference season.
The Blue Raiders prevented Molly Kaiser, Aggies leading scorer, from recording in double figures. This is the first time this conference season Kaiser was unable to finish with 10 points or higher.
SCOUTING WKU
Leading the the Hilltoppers in his 7th consecutive season with WKU as head coach is Greg Collins. In six seasons on The Hill, Collins has amassed 101 wins and has a 70.4 percent winning percentage in Diddle Arena. Collins has also coached players to seven All-Conference USA honors, five being first-teamers, and 18 overall conference postseason awards, including two Freshmen of the Year, five All-Freshmen Team and four All-Defensive Team honors.
WKU currently sits with an 11-4 conference record (third in the standings), just one spot in front of the Aggies.
Leading WKU in scoring this season is Alexis Mead who averages 13.5 points per game. She also currently leads the team in FT percentage, shooting 88.3% from the stripe.
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