LAS CRUCES, N.M. – NM State faced its toughest test of the home slate less than 48 hours ago. Top-seeded Middle Tennessee rolled in with a perfect CUSA record, and continued with a 73-37 wire-to-wire win on Thursday night. Now, the Aggies will host MTSU's biggest rival with hopes of repeating last month's result; a 50-44 win in E.A. Diddle Arena. WKU (15-11, 6-5) wraps up its Borderland road trip with a stop at the Pan American Center, where the Aggies had won five of six before their bout with the Blue Raiders. NM State stands at 10-13 overall and is fifth in CUSA with a 4-6 mark.
How to Follow
Who: Western Kentucky (15-11, 6-5 CUSA) at NM State (10-13, 4-5 CUSA)
Where: Pan American Center – Las Cruces, NM
When: Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024 at 2:00 PM MT
Live Stream: ESPN+
Live Statistics: nmstatestats.com
All-Time Series Record: WKU leads 6-2
Last Meeting: NM State 50 @ WKU 44 (Jan. 18, 2024)
Where the Aggies Stand
NM State is currently in the middle of CUSA's nine-team standings at fifth with a 4-6 record. The Aggies fell to the conference's lone undefeated team on Thursday; a Middle Tennessee squad that boasts a 24.7 average margin of victory in 10 CUSA games. The next closest CUSA member in that category is FIU at 4.6.
NM State was MTSU's most recent chapter in a string of dominant wins, but the home team will now try to bounce back for a crucial late-season push. The final item on the three-game homestand agenda is a bout with Western Kentucky, who Jody Adams' defense held to just 44 points four weeks ago. The Lady Toppers coughed up 19 turnovers and hit just 18-of-52 field goals on their home floor in what was NM State's first-ever CUSA win.
Home Sweet Home
The Conference USA schedule has included 46 games through Feb.15, 2024. Road teams now have a 16-30 record in those games. The conference's top two seeds (Middle Tennessee and FIU) are a combined 9-1 away from home, with the one loss being FIU at Middle Tennessee. The league's other seven teams have combined for just seven road wins in 36 tries. In games outside the Pan American Center, NM State is 4-9, with a 2-8 road record and wins in two of three neutral games.
Old Reliable
There have been two Aggies to start all 23 games this season. Every opening tip has been taken by Ene Adams, who has put forth a career year. The senior is sinking 50.8 percent of her shots en route to averaging 7.2 points per game in just 21.6 average minutes of action. Adams also paces the Aggies in total rebounds with 119, 46 of which have come on the offensive end. Molly Kaiser has been the other senior in every starting five of 2023-24. The fourth-year Aggie has improved in nearly every offensive statistic from a year prior. Kaiser has already made more 3-pointers this season (19) than last (12), and has drastically improved her 3-point percentage to 35.8 percent (+10.8). Additionally, the Watauga, Texas native has canned 85.7 percent of her free-throw attempts to bolster her career-high 14.5 points per game.
1K MK
With 1:12 remaining in the third quarter at Middle Tennessee on Jan. 20, Watauga, Texas native Molly Kaiser employed one of her patented moves – driving down the left side of the lane before pulling up for an elbow jumper – burying the shot to give her six points in the quarter. The play held extra significance as it gave Kaiser 1,000 career points, with every bucket coming as a member of the Crimson & White.
Kaiser became the 25th member of the 1,000-point club, and the first since Gia Pack, who played for the Aggies from 2016-2020.
Jaila's Jumpers
Transferring in from Butler CC in El Dorado, Kansas, junior guard Jaila Harding has been a spark on offense for the Crimson & White, especially from the 3-point line. Last season, the Aggies ranked 328th in the nation from beyond the arc, shooting just 26.1 percent. Through 23 games in the 2023-24 season, this has jumped to 32.2 percent, while ranking 123rd in the nation.
Among members with at least 2.0 made deep balls per game, Harding paces the Aggies and is second in CUSA with a 36.9 3-point percentage. The Wichita, Kan. native ranks 91st individually by 3-point percentage and is fourth in the conference with 2.09 made threes per contest.
Sabou's Swipes
Junior guard Sabou Gueye has seen massive improvement through her second season with NM State, taking significant leaps in minutes per game (+11.0), free-throw percentage (+25.8), rebounds per game (+1.5) and points per game (+4.0).
The Senegal native's most impactful improvement has come on the defensive end. Totaling 16 steals in 34 games during the 2022-23 campaign, Gueye has already posted 36 steals in just 22 contests, good for 1.6 steals a game.
Scouting the Lady Toppers
WKU is led by sixth-year Head Coach Greg Collins, who touts a 101-75 record in his time with the program. The team's leading scorer is Acacia Hayes, who averages 15.1 points per contest. Alexis Mead can do a little of everything, leading the team in assists (3.8), steals (2.0) and 3-point percentage (38.0). Last time out against NM State, Mead went for nine points, four assists, four rebounds and hit WKU's only two deep balls.
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