LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State women's basketball team, coming off a dominant victory over Western New Mexico, is set to open Western Athletic Conference play.
 
NM State starts WAC play at the Pan American Center on Thursday, Jan. 5 at 7 p.m. MT, against the UMKC Roos.
 
WHERE TO CATCH THE ACTION
Listen: 91.5 FM KRUX or TuneIn Radio (PxP: Adam Young)  
Watch: WAC Digital Network
Live Stats
 
GET CONNECTED
To stay connected with the women's basketball team and catch all of the up-to-date information and breaking news, follow the Aggies on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, @NMStateWBB.
 
SCOUTING THE ROOS
UMKC enters the PAC on Thursday sitting at 5-8 overall. The Roos are currently on a five-game losing streak. Their latest game saw the team drop a 57-55 decision at Stony Brook.
 
The opponent is led by junior guard, Samantha Waldron. Waldron averages 14.8 points per game and leads the team in field goal shooting, going 72-159 (.453). The guard is the only player on the Roos to have started in all 13 of the team's contests this season.
 
On the defensive end, the team is anchored by junior forward Kiana Law who leads the team with 6.8 rebounds per game, including 42 defensive boards, to go along with 14 steals and five blocks. 
 
As a team, UMKC averages 66.6 points per game with a +0.9 scoring margin over their opponents. The Roos lead the WAC in field goal percentage at .427 (341-798). The Kansas City, Mo. based squad also pulls in 36.5 rebounds and forces 16.3 turnovers, per game.
 
Thursday night's contest will be the 11th meeting between New Mexico State and UMKC as the Aggies hold the series lead, 7-3. NM State has won the last four contests, sweeping the season series the past two years.
 
OFF TO THE RIGHT START
Historically, NM State has performed well in their conference openers. Since 1973-74, the Aggies boast a 24-19 record to start out the conference schedule. The team is also 7-4 in WAC openers, dating back to 2005-06.
 
Current head coach Mark Trakh adds to the winning ways going 3-2 in the team's opening games of WAC play, including winning the last three in a row with opening night victories over Utah Valley (73-68), UMKC (60-48) and Grand Canyon (66-63).
 
LOOKING AT THE CONFERENCE
With NM State and their seven WAC opponents all ending their non-conference schedules, they now enter conference play at 0-0, with each team vying for the number one seed at the WAC Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev., March 8-11.
 
Currently, UTRGV holds the best record in the conference at 10-6, followed closely behind by Grand Canyon sitting at 8-5 and NM State with a record of 8-6. The three squads are the only team in the conference boasting winning records at this time.
 
UTRGV is home to Shawnte' Goff, who was selected in the preseason polls by coaches and media to win WAC Player of the Year and Goff has earned WAC Player of the Week honors twice this season (Nov. 21, Dec. 26), leading the field.
 
GCU, as a team, sits at number one in the conference in assists with 198 (15.2 per game), while NM State's Zaire Williams is the only player in the WAC to have a 10-assist performance in a game, a feat the guard has accomplished twice, against New Mexico (10) and Sacramento State (12).
 
LEADING THE WAY
Heading into WAC play, New Mexico State women's basketball proves to be ahead of the competition as they rank in the top-three in 18 of the 21 recorded team statistical categories.
 
The team's play is featured by leading the conference in eight fields over 14 games, including scoring offense (68.0 PPG), scoring defense (59.4 PPG), scoring margin (+8.6), field goal percent defense (.361 FG pct.), three-point field goal percent defense (.266 3FG pct.), rebounding offense (40.3 RPG), turnover margin (+4.4) and defensive rebounds (26.6 per game).
 
FREEMAN NEARS THE 1,000 POINT THRESHOLD
Aggie senior forward Brianna Freeman has 990 career points through 104 games (9.5 PPG) for NM State. The Killeen, Texas native will become the 21st player to join the exclusive 1,000 point club in program history. Freeman will join former teammate Sasha Weber (2012-16, 1,511) among the ranks of Aggies to reach the plateau. Through 14 games this season, the forward has averaged 7.1 points and dropped a season-high 16 at New Mexico on Nov. 15.
 
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE AGGIES
Before the New Year, NM State closed out non-conference play with a game against the Western New Mexico Mustangs on Dec. 31. This game saw a dominant performance by the Aggies, from start to finish, as they walked away with a 85-28 win. This was the least amount of points allowed by the Aggies in the series history against the Mustangs, with the previous being 32 points allowed in 1974.
 
WHO'S UP NEXT?
After the WAC contest against UMKC, the Aggies will remain at home to play host to Chicago State on Saturday, Jan. 7 at 2 p.m. MT.