Aggies drop contest in Ruston

Making its last road trip of the regular season, NM State (9-20, 5-12 CUSA) traveled to ‘The Pelican State’ for a matchup with Louisiana Tech (23-5, 16-1 CUSA) in the Thomas Assembly Center. Despite a competitive first quarter, the Aggies fell to the Lady Techsters by a final score of 88-47.

After securing the opening tip, Lucía Yenes tallied the first points of the contest for the Crimson & White. Yenes and Imani Warren produced 11 of the 15 first-quarter points for NMSU, trailing 21-15 after the opening 10 minutes of play.

A 13-0 run by the home team to begin the quarter put the Aggies behind in the second stanza. Imani Warren reached double digits for the 20th time this season, just the second while coming off the bench.

Warren finished with a team-high 12 points. With a pair of three-pointers, the junior from Milwaukee posted her third game with multiple makes from long range, all coming in conference play. 

Freshman Senoj Jones and Keira Hudson combined for six points in the quarter for NM State. The duo combined for 17 points, eight rebounds and a trio of assists. 

Trailing 42-28 at halftime, the Aggies led in field goal percentage (58-54%), bench points (18-17) and blocks (1-0), while the Lady Techsters held the edge in points off turnovers (16-5) and fast break points (8-0).

Anna Csenyi posted her first points of the night in the third, tallying her team-leading 31st made 3-pointer, the 20th game with at least one made triple for the Szolnok, Hungary, native. Keira Hudson notched her first 3-pointer since Feb. 21, finishing with nine points – her ninth game with nine or more points this season, and seventh since the start of CUSA action.

Lucía Yenes added her own make from beyond the arc to begin the fourth quarter, while Senoj Jones put in her fourth made basket of the night as the freshman finished with eight points. 

Morane Dossou tallied a team-high seven rebounds in Ruston, adding one assist, one block and one steal in 12 minutes. Emma Christiano recorded a game-high five assists in her 17th start of the season. This is the third time in the last four contests the Las Cruces native has posted five assists. 

The team total of 14 assists was the most in a game since the Aggies tallied 17 helpers in a win over Sam Houston on Feb. 5. Their 28 turnovers tie the second-most in a game this season, with 10 coming in the final seven minutes of the game. 

“We have to make our free throws,” Cristiano said. “Missing six in the first quarter is not helpful when every point counts. We also had too many turnovers and wasted possessions against the top-seeded team in the conference. You can’t do that. Going into Saturday, it’s crucial we put back-to-back quarters together.” 

Marta Guilera used a soft touch to record her first field goal of the game on Thursday, the final NMSU bucket of the night. As the buzzer sounded, the Aggies fell by a score of 88-47. 

“There is a reason they are the number one team in our conference,” said head coach Jody Adams. “They are talented, unselfish, disciplined and they play well together.  Everything a championship team behaves like, they do, and they showed that tonight.”

NMSU will play its final game of the regular season on Saturday, March 7, against Sam Houston. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. MT, with the game streaming on ESPN+, and live stats available at nmstatesports.com/stats.

“We have a quick turnaround to play on Saturday,” said senior guard Loes Rozing. “We are a capable team when we commit to the game plan and to each other, so it’s on us to bring the energy and the fight to get the result we want.”

Cristiano wants to see the seniors enjoy their final home contest.

“We need to play organized defense, take care of the ball and finish on offense,” she said. “For our next game, we need to come in with the same intensity and confidence that we do in Las Cruces. It is win or go home, and we have three amazing seniors who deserve to finish their careers the right way. All we do in this program is believe. That is not changing.”