Dominant Paint Presence Powers Aggies To 37-Point Win

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico (KVIA) -- NM State Women’s Basketball wrapped up its three-game homestand with a dominant win on Wednesday, cruising past Western New Mexico. The home team controlled the paint with 46 rebounds to the Mustangs’ 20, outsourcing the visitors 40-14 in the paint. Three Aggies logged double-digit point totals as the Aggies rolled to a 78-41 victory, improving to 3-1 on the season. 

FIRST QUARTER

Loes Rozing swiftly put the Aggies on top to begin the contest, swiping the ball from a Mustang’s guard before laying it in at the other end of the floor for a 2-0 NM State lead. The first points for the visiting Western New Mexico squad came with 4:50 remaining in the quarter, cutting the Aggie lead to seven (9-2). 

As the quarter came to a close, the Crimson & White held a 12-4 edge over the Mustangs. NM State showed up defensively in the opening frame, holding Western New Mexico to 9% from the field, converting on just one of their 12 attempts in the quarter. The Aggies also held an edge in turnovers (8-3), rebounds (14-7) and offensive rebounds (6-1).

SECOND QUARTER

The second quarter began similarly to the first, with NM State opening on an 11-0 run thanks to buckets by Molly Kaiser, Diarrah Sissoko and Fanta Gassama - putting the Aggies on top 23-4. A pair of Mustang 3-pointers threatened the Aggie lead midway through the second stanza, but points by Sianny Sanchez-Oliver and Emma Dasovich helped maintain a comfortable NM State advantage (29-12). Late layups by Fanta Gassama and Loes Rozing sent the game to halftime with a home team lead of 36-16. 

THIRD QUARTER

Following the break, the Aggie offense continued to roll, with Molly Kaiser and Loes Rozing scoring the first 12 points of the quarter and expanding the NM State lead to 30 with 6:21 remaining (48-18). Freshman guard Madi Gewirtz sank back-to-back field goals, followed by back-to-back scores by Diarrah Sissoko, with the Crimson & White taking their largest of the contest (37 points, 55-18). 

FOURTH QUARTER

Changing tunes for the final frame, the Mustangs of Western NM began the quarter with five straight points, though NM State would respond right away with a seven-point run of their own. Jaila Harding sank a pair of 3-pointers less than a minute apart in the final frame, while sophomore Marta Guilera logged her first scoring for the Aggies, finishing the night with four points on 2-for-3 shooting. NM State coasted into a 37-point win by a score of 78-41.

NUMBERS OF NOTE

• The Aggies forced Western NM into 33 turnovers on Wednesday night, scoring 30 points off the Mustangs’ miscues. Tonight marked the most turnovers by an opposing team since March 13, 2019, when Chicago State gave away 33 turnovers. 
• Loes Rozing finished the night 5-for-5, tying a high for made field goals in her career, falling one point short of her best mark. 
• 41 points were the lowest by an Aggie opponent this season, surpassing UC Irvine’s total of 49.
• Sianny Sanchez-Oliver surpassed her career-high three steals, notching four in the first half to finish with five on the game.
• Loes Rozing’s previous high was two career steals, also surpassing that mark in the first 20 minutes and finishing with three.
• Molly Kaiser continued her excellent efforts on the defensive end, racking up three steals for the third straight contest.
• After losing the rebounding battle 37-20 last week versus UTSA, the Aggies out-rebounded the Mustangs 46-20 (+26).
• The last time NM Sate out-rebounded an opponent by at least 26 was when the Aggies hosted SAGU American Indian College (62-22).
• NM State collected 17 offensive rebounds, while the visitors tallied just three.
• With just one block, NM State set a new season low.

Head Coach Jody Adams, on the win: “It was really important to us to play as a team and be disciplined dogs. Of course, we wanted effort on both ends of the floor, but it was the little things that we focused on. We got the open shots, and while we didn’t shoot real well, I like the fact that our offense produced open shots and our defense produced easy looks on the other end. I think we’re deep and talented. At the end of the day, we have several people that can come in off the bench and make an impact for us. This is the first time we’ve had everyone in uniform and we’re excited about that.”

Head Coach Jody Adams, on the next matchup against Texas: “we’re going to go and be us. Of course, we’re going to have a game plan. They’re a really deep squad with a loaded bench. There’s a reason why they’re the number four team in the country. We can’t even imitate some of it in practice. We’re going to focus on playing the game the right way and be confident. I want us to challenge them and exploit whatever they’re trying to do and find some easy shots.”

Senior guard Jaila Harding, on returning to the starting five and her season-high 15 points: “During the whole recovery process, my teammates have just been very supportive of me. They helped me get back into a rhythm in practice and kept me encouraged. It certainly helped tonight; they found me when I was open and made it easy to knock some shots down. I’m super excited for this team. It’s a deep group, everyone plays a part and it’s fun to be a part of, especially now that everyone is healthy.”

Senior guard Loes Rozing, on her performance: “I was mostly focused on getting rebounds and getting to the board. That was one of the things Coach [Adams] emphasized in practice this week; that we need to rebound more consistently. From there, I just wanted to be aggressive. My teammates helped me find easy layups and that’s how I did as well as I did. I feel confident with everyone back and healthy. We’re excited for this tournament.”

UP NEXT

Nine straight days off await NM State as Jody Adams’ squad gears up for an important trip east. The Aggies will make the 1,551-mile trek to Hertz Arena in Fort Meyers, Fla. for a matchup with a titan of the sport; the Texas Longhorns. The Crimson & White will tip off the tournament-style weekend against last season’s Elite Eight representative on Friday, Nov. 29 at 5:30 PM MT, with games slated for each of the next two following days. All the action will be streamed live on FloSports and available to follow via nmstatestats.com.