LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Following a thrilling win on Monday night, NM State (4-9, 0-1 CUSA) opened the new year with its first conference bout of the season, hosting the Lady Flames of Liberty (7-5, 1-0 CUSA). While the Aggies led for the majority of the contest, a 30-point fourth quarter by the visitors saw the Crimson & White fall by a final score of 67-62.
Imani Warren's quick hands picked off an errant Liberty pass, taking it coast-to-coast to give the Aggies a 2-0 lead. Post play led the way offensively in the opening stanza, with Lucía Yenes and Senoj Jones totaling the other nine points in the quarter for the Crimson & White. Yenes finished with five points in the quarter, part of a 16-point performance for the senior forward. A stingy NM State defense held the Lady Flames to 20% shooting from the field, including 0-for-8 from beyond the arc.
Similar to the first period, Imani Warren tallied the first points of the quarter, using back-to-back baskets to give the Aggies their largest lead in the early goings (15-7). Holding Liberty scoreless from the 3-point line in the first, the Lady Flames knocked one in halfway through the second stanza, helping to chip away at the NM State advantage to make it a one-point game at the break (24-23).
In the opening 20 minutes of action, the Aggies kept the lead for more than 18 minutes, while holding the edge in forced turnovers (12-8), steals (9-6) and paint points (16-14).
The visitors took their first lead of the night to open the third, though Lucía Yenes' second 3-pointer of the contest knotted things at 27-27, adding a layup on the next possession to reclaim the lead 29-27. Holding the Lady Flames' leading scorer Avery Mills to just four first-half points, the sophomore guard began to heat up, totaling 10 points in the quarter. An NM State trio of Yenes, Warren and Morane Dossou scored all 18 Aggie points in the frame, sending the contest into the final ten minutes with a 42-37 lead.
The fourth quarter saw junior guard Imani Warren's first made 3-pointer of the night and first make from 3-point land since Dec. 4, to give her 21 points – a new career high. A second triple later in the frame kept the NM State lead at six (52-46) heading into the final five minutes of play. Following a pair of made free throws from Loes Rozing, Liberty went on an extended scoring streak, tallying an 11-0 run in just under two minutes of game time (62-54). Triples by Warren and Anna Csenyi in the waning seconds of the contest proved too little too late, as the Aggies fell by a score of 67-62.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
· Imani Warren finished with 29 points on Friday night, a new career-best for the Milwaukee, Wis., native, and a new individual season-high for the Crimson & White – last surpassed by a 35-point effort from Molly Kaiser on Mar. 6, 2025.
· This became the second 20-plus point performance for Warren, as well as her sixth game with double-digit scoring totals in the past seven contests.
· Lucía Yenes finished with 16 points in 35 minutes of play, fouling out down the stretch. Collecting three steals, the senior forward has totaled 10 steals in the Aggies past three contests.
· Anna Csenyi knocked in her team-leading 14th 3-pointer of the season against the Lady Flames, notching at least one triple in seven of the past eight games.
· The Aggies finished with a season low in turnovers (13), while turning Liberty over 19 times, including 13 steals. This became the fifth time in the last six games NM State recorded ten or more steals.
· For just the second time this season, NM State failed to record a block shot on the night.
· Finishing with six made 3-pointers, the Aggies tied a season high in makes – with all three performances coming in the past six games.
· Of NM State's 62 points, all but two came from the starting five – a layup by freshman Senoj Jones in the first quarter.
The Aggies will face a short turnaround before their next contest, returning to the Pan American Center floor on Sunday, Jan. 4, for a meeting with the Delaware Blue Hens. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. in Las Cruces, with the game streaming live on ESPN+ and live stats available at nmstatesports.com/stats.
For complete coverage of NM State Women's Basketball, visit NMStateSports.com - the official home of Aggie athletics - and follow us on Twitter (@NMStateWBB), Instagram (@NMStateWBB), and like us on Facebook (NM State Women's Basketball).
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