LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State women's basketball team returns home to the Pan American Center as it opens up conference Western Athletic Conference play against WAC-newcomer California Baptist on Thursday, Jan. 3, at 6 p.m. (MT).
 
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Where to Watch
Aggie fans unable to attend Thursday's WAC opener can catch the action on a number of TV stations.
 
FOX Sports Arizona
Dish: 415 | DTV: 686
 
FOX Sports Oklahoma
Dish: 416 | DTV: 675

FOX Sports Southwest PLUS
DISH: 449 SD, 9519 HD | DISH Hopper: 412-37 | DTV: 676-1 SD & HD
 
FOX College Sports Pacific
DTV: 608 | Comcast Xfinity: 262 | AT&T U-Verse: 647
 
FOX Sports Prime Ticket (Los Angeles coverage)
DISH: 411 | DTV: 693
 
Follow Along
Fans can also follow along with every Aggie home game thanks to live stats from StatBroadcast.
 
Strive for Five
The New Mexico State women's basketball team enters conference play with four-straight Western Athletic Conference regular-season championships and three of the last four WAC tournament championships. Since the 2014-15 season, NM State is 51-5 in WAC play including a 27-1 record at home. The Aggies haven't lost a conference game at the Pan American Center since the final game of the 2015-16 season against UT Rio Grande Valley, a streak of two years and 14 games. Only one team has won as many WAC championships in a row, Louisiana Tech who won five in a row from 2001-06.
 
A Look at the Lancers
California Baptist makes its first trip to Pan American Center with a five game winning streak and a 6-6 overall record in its inaugural Division I season. The Lancers made the move from Division II starting with the 2018-19 season.
 
CBU is led by Britney Thomas who averages a double-double 15.1 points and 11.2 rebounds per game while leading the team in both categories. Thomas 11.2 rebounds per game is good for second in the Western Athletic Conference, behind only Chicago State's Ines Mata Boix (11.6). Two other Lancers also average double figure points, Delacy Brown with 10.6 points per game and Georgia Dale with 10.3 points per game.
 
As a team, California Baptist boasts the WAC's top offense with 75.2 points per game while making the most threes in the conference at 9.4 per game. They also average 43.3 rebounds per game, also tops in the conference.
 
Last Time Out
The New Mexico State Women's basketball team wrapped a five game road trip with a visit to the Golden State, taking on UC Riverside on Thursday, Dec. 28, and UC Santa Barbara on Sunday, Dec. 30.
 
At UC Riverside, the Aggies got off to a hot start and led 25-14 after one quarter of play. However, the Highlanders hung around and eventually completed the comeback for a 65-64 NM State loss. Brooke Salas scored 22 points playing in her home state for the first time this season.
 
Then, against UCSB, New Mexico State again got off to a hot start, leading 21-25 after the first quarter and 44-30 at halftime. Gia Pack scored 20 points in the first half including a season-high four three-pointers. Although, he Gauchos rallied in the third quarter and cut the NM State lead to just 61-55 heading into the fourth.
 
 However, NM State closed strong, with clutch free throw shooting down the stretch from Pack, to earn an 81-73 decision. Pack finished with a season-high 29 points while Brooke Salas added her sixth double-double of the season with 24 points and 10 rebounds.
 
Up Next
The New Mexico State women's basketball team heads out on its first road trip during conference play, paying visits to Grand Canyon on Thursday, Jan. 10, at 6 p.m. (MT) and CSU Bakersfield on Saturday, Jan. 12, at 2 p.m. The Aggies' match up with the Lopes is set to be streamed live on the WAC Digital Network.