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Aggies, Oh Aggies!
Molly Kaiser
49
UTRGV UTRGV 12-18,6-12 WAC
65
Winner New Mexico St. NMSU 16-15,10-8 WAC
UTRGV UTRGV
12-18,6-12 WAC
49
Final
65
New Mexico St. NMSU
16-15,10-8 WAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
UTRGV UTRGV 16 9 15 9 49
New Mexico St. NMSU 22 14 16 13 65

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | NM State Media Relations

Kaiser Helps Leads NM State to Win Over UTRGV in First Round of WAC Tournament

NM State will play #2 Southern Utah Wednesday at 6 p.m. in the quarterfinal round

LAS VEGAS – For the first time in two seasons, the Aggies have advanced to the second round of the WAC Tournament after securing a commanding 65-49 victory over UTRGV Monday night from the Michelob ULTRA Arena.
 
Molly Kaiser was the star of the show. The third-year guard managed to come up with another 20+ point performance after scoring 25 for the game – the third 20-point performance in her last four outings. Tayelin Grays also had a solid night for the Aggies, scoring 13 points while adding seven rebounds and three assists to her stat line.
 
The Aggies led the Vaqueros for the majority of the game. The Vaqueros last lead came in the first quarter with about five minutes remaining. From there, the Aggies proceeded to outscore the Vaqueros 57-39, winning by a final score of 65-49.
 
First Half
NM State won the opening tip and scored on the opening possession after a tough layup on the low post by Tayelin Grays to get the scoring started for the Aggies in Vegas. The next possession, Molly Kaiser hit her signature pull-up jumper from the mid-range giving the Aggies an early 4-0 lead. The Vaqueros took the lead with a pair of made baskets, including a pull-up three, giving them an 8-6 lead in the first. Taylor Donaldson ended the Aggie scoring doubt with a quick transition bucket tying the game at eight a piece. The Aggies took a 14-10 lead with four minutes remaining in the period after back-to-back jumpers by Molly Kaiser and Taylor Donaldson. NM State would close out the first period of play on an 8-4 run and led UTRGV 22-14.
 
UTRGV scored the first four points of the second frame cutting the Aggies lead down to six. Molly Kaiser, once again, got connected on another basket – her sixth of the game, giving her 12 points through the first 11.5 minutes of action. After UTRGV drilled a three-pointer, Taylor Donaldson drove through the teeth of the Vaquero defense and scored a tough layup to give NM State a 26-21 lead. The Aggies would make another basket the following possession and would not see their next score until the 4:25 mark of the second period. Molly Kaiser again pulled up from mid-range in back-to-back possessions, putting her at 16 points for the game. A free throw by Taylor Donaldson and a corner three from Sylena Peterson pushed the Aggies lead to double digits (13) and would stay that way until the half as the Aggies led the Vaqueros 36-25 heading into the locker rooms.
 
Second Half
UTRGV scored the first five points of the second half after a pair of made free-throws and a three, cutting the Aggies lead back to single digits. After a Jody Adams timeout, the Aggies got themselves on the board with a second-chance bucket from Sylena Peterson. Molly Kaiser connected on another jumper the next possession to extend the Aggies lead back to double digits. A pair of three was able to keep UTRGV within striking distance, but the Aggies were still getting great looks inside, making it difficult for the Vaqueros to mount a comeback. After a back-and-forth quarter, the Aggies still led the Vaqueros by double digits as they carried a 52-40 lead heading into the final frame.
 
It took over two and a half minutes for either team to make a bucket in the fourth quarter. Ene Adams finally got the Aggies on the board in the fourth with a tough layup inside the paint. A stop-and-pop jumper by Tayelin Grays then gave NM State a 14-point lead with 6:54 remaining. The Aggies would not score another basket for over three minutes before Taylor Donaldson hit a pull-up jumper inside the three-point arc, re-extending the Aggies lead to 14. Molly Kaiser answered a fastbreak score by the Vaqueros by hitting a tough running jumper to the right of the basket to give her 22 points for the night. With just over two minutes to go, Kaiser would put the nail in the coffin by hitting a pull-up three from the top of the key as the shot clock wound down. At this point, the Aggies lead was 16, and all hopes of a Vaquero comeback were lost. NM State would hold onto their sizable lead and secure a commanding 65-49 victory to send them to the next round of the tournament on Wednesday versus Southern Utah.
 
Notes
  • Molly Kaiser has scored 20 or more points in three of her last four outings, averaging 23.5 points a game over that stretch.
  • Kaiser becomes the first Aggie to record a 20+ point performance since Brooke Salas (29), and Gia Pack (22) did in the 2019 WAC Championship against UTRGV.
  • The Aggies shot 49% as a team tonight.
  • NM State held UTRGV under their season scoring average (62.7) and shooting percentage (34.8%)
  • UTRGV could only connect on six of their 26 three-point attempts for a 23% clip.
  • NM State owned the paint scoring 24 of their 65 points down low.
  • The Aggies had ten more assists (18) than the Vaqueros (8)
  • 37:24 was how long the Aggies led the Vaqueros in the game.
 
Up Next 
NM State will play in the quarterfinal round on Wednesday, March 8th at 7 pm (MST) against #2 Southern Utah. The Thunderbirds swept the Aggies in the season series, with their last win coming at home to the Aggies (63-56) – a game the Aggies led through three quarters.  
 
 
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