LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State Aggies opened with a 13-3 run against the Houston Baptist Huskies and never looked back in winning their season opener 91-69 Friday night at the Pan American Center.
 
The defending Western Athletic Conference champion Aggies (1-0) kept the pressure on the Huskies (0-1) of the Southland Conference, and never fell under a double-digit lead after the 14:42 mark in the opening half. The Aggies won their 11th straight game on the parquet floor of the Pan Am and have claimed 52 of their last 56 games at home.
 
"I was very excited about the way we came out," said NM State head coach Marvin Menzies. "The guys had a very, very good energy level to start out the game. Having a young team, I think that's a sign of maturity and handling our business at the house. When it was all said and done we did a great job in that area."
 
NM State shot 64 percent from the floor in the first half and 59 percent for the game, while outrebounding the Huskies 47-25.
 
The Aggies were paced by the play of WAC Preseason Player of the Year Pascal Siakam of Douala, Cameroon/God's Academy who collected his first double-double of the season with 28 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks.
 
Redshirt freshman Eli Chuha of Redlands, Calif./Redlands East went 5-of-8 from the floor on his way to 11 points, while redshirt freshman Rashawn Browne of Toronto, Ontario, Canada/Bill Crothers Secondary added 10 points with three assists. In all, 11 different Aggies scored in the contest.
 
 "We've got a lot of guys trying to show who they are to us as a staff, so they can get more minutes," said Menzies. "I though Eli did a great job, and I thought Rashawn did a great job and got extensive minutes for it."
 
Houston Baptist got 12 points from senior Anthony Odunsi, while senior Caleb Crayton and junior Colter Lasher each added 11 points. Lasher and Reveal Chukwujekwu each grabbed four boards.
 
The Aggies picked up a season opening win for the first time since Nov. 12, 2011 when they won at Northern Colorado 89-75.
 
The attention now shifts to Sunday's game against Rio Grande Rival New Mexico. The Lobos opened the season with a 86-57 win over Texas Southern.
 
"I'm excited to get this one out of the way so we can focus to the Lobos," said Menzies. "It's good to have them here early. They're very similar to us, a really young team and have a couple of really key pieces that have returned. I think it will be a great battle."
 
There was one down note for the Aggies on the day.
 
NM State announced that sophomore Johnathan Wilkins is out pending an appeal because of an administrative error regarding his academic eligibility.
 
The NCAA has ruled that Wilkins has not met course requirements to remain academically eligible. Due to no fault of his own or the men's basketball program an administrative error prevented him from taking the proper course load. NM State is appealing the decision and Wilkins cannot play while the appeal process is on-going.