LAS CRUCES – An and-one from Mel Isbell and a late-game block from Bigue Sarr is just what NM State (8-12, 4-6) needed to remain unblemished in home WAC games this season and earn a series split with Seattle U (7-15, 2-9).
 
The Aggies were led in scoring by Sarr as she posted a game-high 17 points while also leading the way with 11 boards to tally her seventh double-double of the season. Isbell logged the second-most points for the Aggies, finishing with nine points on the evening. Tayelin Grays, Jade Bradley and Soufia Inoussa were also big contributors from their starting roles as Grays finished with seven points and seven rebounds while Bradley finished with eight points and three assists and Inoussa turned in eight points.
 
As a team, the Aggies limited Seattle U to just 36 percent from the field and 17 percent from three-point land. NM State also out-rebounded the Redhawks 43-31, including coming down with 18 offensive rebounds that turned into 14 second-chance points. In total, the Aggies led for all but two minutes and 21 seconds of play.
 
On the Redhawks side, Bree Calhoun and McKenzi Williams were limited to just seven combined points after the duo totaled 50 points in the previous meeting. Courtney Murphy and Barbara Rangel paced Seattle U as each scored 11 points. Georgia Kehoe was the Redhawks' top board-getter, pulling down six rebounds in 21 minutes of action.
 
FIRST QUARTER
· After Seattle U put the first points on the board, the Aggies immediately took the lead as Mel Isbell knocked down a three-pointer from the top of the key at the 8:42 mark.
· The Isbell triple was then followed by three Bigue Sarr points as the Dakar, Senegal, native scored her first point from the free-throw line then scored on a post move to give the Aggies an early 6-2 advantage.
· The Aggies then started to do it on the defensive end as the next 1:30 included a blocked shot from Sarr, an Isbell steal and a Jade Bradley steal. Bradley's steal also turned into points on the opposite end as Bradley found a running Tayelin Grays to put the Aggies ahead 8-4 with 5:42 to play.
· Later on, Isbell knocked down her second three-pointer of the period to give the Aggies a four-point lead with just under four minutes to play in the first. This marks the second-straight game that Isbell has connected on two three-pointers and the seventh of the season in which she has made at least two from beyond the arc.
· Molly Kaiser then got in on the scoring action as she drained a pull-up jumper from the right elbow before Fama Thiam went coast-to-coast to give the Aggies their largest lead of the quarter at 18-11 with 1:06 remaining in the period.
· Thiam also scored on a layup later in the quarter to eclipse her scoring average of 2.7 points per game in her opening five minutes of action.
· The Redhawks would cut into the lead late as Hailey Vice-Neat scored the final six Seattle U first-quarter points, including an and-one with just two ticks left on the clock. This gave the Aggies a 20-17 lead entering the second quarter.
 
SECOND QUARTER
· The Redhawks were the first to the scoreboard in the second quarter as McKenzi Williams scored on the first possession of the quarter to reduce the Aggie lead to just one point. This was also Williams' first score of the game as she was held in check in the first quarter after posting 25 points in Saturday's win over the Aggies.
· After combining to shoot just over 48 percent in the first quarter, both teams then went on a second-quarter scoring drought as the score remained unchanged for nearly three minutes before Bigue Sarr collected an offensive board and scored on a putback attempt at the 6:47 mark.
· Georgia Kehoe then scored on the very next possession before Soufia Inoussa took a pass from Bradley and connected on a three-pointer to put the Aggies back up by four with 5:49 remaining in the quarter.
· Bradley then did it on her own on the Aggies' next trip down the floor as she drove through the right side of the defense to score and extend the lead to 27-21.
· Following a Seattle U score, the next four points came from Bigue Sarr to put her game total at 11 to that point, becoming the first player into double-digits for either side and marking the 13^th time this season that she has posted at least 10 points.
· The next made field goal came after freshman Sylena Peterson drove to the middle of the paint and hung in the air to find Shania Harper on the low block for a wide-open layup, putting the Aggies up by nine points.
· Tayelin Grays then came up with a steal and found a sprinting Inoussa in transition to give NM State what would be its largest lead of the game as they went ahead 36-25 with just 1:38 left to play in the first half.
· However, Seattle U battled back and scored five points in the last 45 seconds to shrink the lead to six points heading into the break.
 
THIRD QUARTER
· In almost identical fashion to the start of the second quarter, the Aggies' Grays scored in the opening minute of the quarter then both teams combined for a 2:41 stretch with no points.
· However, the following stretch belonged to the Redhawks as the Aggies remained scoreless for the next seven minutes and Seattle U went on an 11-0 scoring run to take its first lead of the game since they were ahead 2-0 at the 9:26 mark in the first quarter.
· Luckily, the Aggies woke up and responded with a 5-0 run themselves to get back out front and lead 43-41 with 1:14 remaining in the third period, however, the Aggies would finish with just seven third-quarter points.
· Seattle U had the final say in the quarter as the Redhawks' Williams went one-of-two from the free-throw line to send the visiting squad into the fourth down by one point.
 
FOURTH QUARTER
· After the Aggies and Redhawks battled each other into overtime in their meeting on Saturday, a one-point difference heading into the final 10 minutes was no surprise to the two sides.
· The Aggies did carry their third-quarter momentum into the fourth as Brooke Atkinson's team started the final period on a 6-0 run with Bradley, Sarr and Grays combining to put the Aggies up 49-42 with 7:05 left to play.
· Jade Bradley then scored a big-time bucket at the 3:56 mark to stop a 4-0 run from the Redhawks and put the Aggies ahead by four points.
· The Redhawks then used a pair of Murphy free throws and a made layup from Rangel to even the score at 51 with 2:24 left in the game.
· NM State answered with a late-game bucket from Mel Isbell. In one of the most important possessions of the game, Isbell drove the length of the court and scored while also drawing a foul. She would then knock down her free throw to move the Aggies out front.
· Grays added a point from the free-throw line before Irena Korolenko did the same for Seattle U to cut the lead back to three points.
· The Redhawks then came up with the stop they needed and the Aggies found themselves on defense with a three-point lead and just under 30 seconds remaining.
· Seattle U put Bigue Sarr into the pick-and-roll action and got the switch they wanted as the Redhawks' leading scorer in Calhoun dribbled out to the left wing with Sarr defending. With 21 seconds remaining in regulation, Calhoun gathered to shoot when Sarr used her right hand to block a three-point attempt from the senior guard. Sarr would then corral the ball off the swat and earn a trip to the free-throw line.
· Sarr knocked down the pair from the charity stripe with 18 seconds remaining to put the Aggies ahead, 57-52, and ultimately, put NM State in the driver's seat to claim their fourth win in WAC play and remain undefeated inside the Pan Am against league opponents.
 
UP NEXT
· The Aggies will stay in Las Cruces for the next three games with the next contest coming against Dixie State on Thursday.
· Thursday's meeting between the Aggies and Trailblazers will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.