NEWARK, Del. – Making their longest road trip of the season, NM State (8-16, 4-8 CUSA) took to 'The First State' for a matchup with Delaware (12-12, 6-6 CUSA). A third-quarter scoring surge by the Blue Hens flipped the script from the opening 20 minutes, as the Aggies fell by a final score of 65-62.
 
Imani Warren created eight of the first 10 points for NM State, dishing out a trio of assists to Lucía Yenes and Morane Dossou while adding in a basket of her own. Holding the Blue Hen offense without a made basket for nearly 10 minutes of game time between the first and second quarter, the Aggies recorded an 11-2 run that saw the lead climb as high as 17-8. However, Delaware was able to climb back into the contest, tying the contest 22-22 with 1:12 remaining in the half.
 
The Aggies closed the opening 20 minutes on a 6-0 run, including a half-court buzzer-beating triple from Emma Christiano – her fourth made 3-pointer this season. At the break, NM State held a 28-22 advantage. Through the first half, the visiting Aggies stifled the Delaware offense (29.6% shooting from the field), while outpacing the Blue Hens in paint points (10-4) and bench scoring (11-5).
 
Tides shifted in the third quarter, as an offensive drought by NM State saw Delaware rattle off a 19-6 run, taking a 41-34 lead with 2:45 to go in the third stanza. Imani Warren notched a 5-0 solo scoring run to cut the lead to two, though the Aggies headed into the fourth quarter down by eight (47-39).
 
Senoj Jones, Lucía Yenes, Keira Hudson and Emma Christiano recorded each of the team's 23 fourth-quarter points, including a 9-0 stretch run that cut the deficit to four (54-50). The Aggies would cut the Blue Hen lead to three points twice in the last 32 seconds, including a second buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Christiano, setting a new career-high in makes from beyond the arc.
 
NUMBERS OF NOTE

• Lucía Yenes paced the Aggies with 18 points, tied for the game-high with Delaware's Ande'a Cherisier. This became the 13^th time this season Yenes has led NM State in scoring, and her ninth game in double-figures since the start of conference play.
• Four Aggies finished with double-digit point totals (Yenes, Senoj Jones, Imani Warren and Emma Christiano) for the first time since Jan. 4, when the Aggies defeated Delaware 64-57 in Las Cruces.
• Senoj Jones tied her career-high in points (11) and blocks (2), while finishing with seven rebounds, one short of her NM State best.
• Emma Christiano notched a new career-high in 3-pointers made with two, while tying her Division-I best of 10 points for the third time this season (Nov. 16, New Mexico and Jan. 15, FIU).
• NM State finished with 30 points off the bench, a new season high.
• Totaling five blocks on Thursday night, this became the fifth time in 2025-26 the Aggies posted five or more blocks. NM State is now 1-4 in such contests.

 
QUOTABLES
 
Head Coach Jody Adams, on the performance against Delaware: "I have to credit Delaware for executing their game plan. As the coach of this program I will continue to teach what winning looks like and hold myself accountable and the student-athletes accountable to those winning standards.
 
I'm disappointed that we allowed our emotions to take us away from the game plan in the third quarter. It's time for us to put four quarters together.
 
We can do better, and it's my responsibility as the head coach to have our student-athletes prepared."
 
Lucía Yenes, on the mentality of the team between the first and second half: "I think it was our energy. It the first half we were aggressive on the defensive end and playing hard offensively. In the second half we relaxed too much, and it let Delaware back into the contest."
 
Lucía Yenes, on the ways to improve a 2-11 record away from the Pan American Center: "I think it's our mindset and how we prepare ourselves before the game. Our approach has to be better from a focus standpoint and treat our warmups as game-like situations. Our emotions have to be put to the side."   

NM State continues its road trip, traveling south to Virginia for a rematch with the Liberty Lady Flames. Tip-off is set for Noon MT, with the game streaming live on ESPN+ and live stats available at nmstatesports.com/stats.

For complete coverage of NM State Women's Basketball, visit NMStateSports.com - the official home of Aggie athletics - and follow us on Twitter (@NMStateWBB), Instagram (@NMStateWBB), and like us on Facebook (NM State Women's Basketball).