LAS CRUCES, N.M. - After a much-needed 10-day break, the Aggies came back out of the gate to take on Northern New Mexico in the Pan American Center. In an unexpected back and forth battle, NM State prevailed in the second half to get it's fifth win of the season 76-71.

Kaosi Ezeagu led the team in scoring (14),with Jordan Rawls and Brandon Suggs joining him in double figures. The Aggies finished the contest shooting 54 percent from the field (26-48), outscored the Eagles by 18 in fast break points (26-8) and by 22 in bench points (34-12). 

FIRST HALF  

• Kaosi Ezeagu's production was the highlight of a low-scoring start to the game. The big man accounted for 10 of the Aggies 16 points while going 3-4 from the field and 4-6 from the free-throw line.  

• Despite shooting just 37% across the first 14 minutes of the game, Northern New Mexico hung in with the heavyweight Aggies and, in fact, held a 19-16 lead with 5:52 remaining in the opening half – leading to a Jason Hooten timeout.  

• The Eagles continued to show no signs of intimidation and used a hot start which included going 3-5 from beyond the arc to carry a four-point advantage into the final two minutes of the half.  

• Ultimately, the Eagles would finish 13-28 (46%) from the field while NM State shot 11-23 (48%) across the first 20 minutes of the game to lead to a 30-31 deficit for the Crimson & White. Additionally, the Aggies were out rebounded by a significant mark as NNMC brought down 17 boards while NM State rebounded nine missed shots.  

SECOND HALF  

• The Eagles' lead would increase to seven points following back-to-back made contested threes early in the second half.  

• Northern New Mexico would maintain the advantage through the first seven minutes of the game, however, a pair of consecutive triples from Christian Cook would help the Aggies go on an 8-0 run in less than one minute of game time and would help NM State collect its first lead of the second half.  

• The Aggie offense finally got going in the second period and built a six-point lead with just under 10 minutes to play. Although, Northern New Mexico refused to go away and eventually tied the game at 58 with 7:36 to play.  

• After not appearing in the first half, Jonathan Kanyanga earned his first minutes and immediately made an impact. Following a dunk to put the Aggies back in front, the native of The Republic of Congo swatted an Eagle shot which immediately led to a three from the newest Aggie, Tanahj Pettway, who made his debut after joining the team earlier in the week.   

• Northern New Mexico responded to the Aggie burst with a seven-point run to jump in front 65-62 with 6:01 remaining. Then Brandon Suggs kickstarted a matching 7-0 run to help the Aggies regain a four-point lead.  

• Back-and-forth scoring across the final six minutes of action would allow the Aggies to escape with a five-point victory. 

NUMBERS OF NOTE

• In only seven minutes, Jonathan Kanyanga managed to finish the game with five blocks and added five rebounds and two points. 

• In his first game back since UC Irvine, Brandon Suggs returned from injury to record his first double digit scoring game in an Aggie uniform. He finished 4-6 from the field with 10 points and four rebounds to go along with it.  

• Stony Brook transfer Tanahj Pettway recorded his first minutes as an Aggie. In his debut, he ended the game going 2-2 from the field, totaling six points and a three-pointer. 

##NMState##