LAS CRUCES, N.M. — The New Mexico State men’s basketball team snapped its four-game losing streak with a 72-63 road victory over Louisiana Tech at Thomas Assembly Center in Ruston, Louisiana. The Aggies are now back at .500 with an 11-11 record (4-8 Conference USA). The Bulldogs fell to 12-10 (5-6 CUSA).
Only two players finished in double-figure scoring, but it came from the team’s two leading scorers on the season. Jemel Jones nearly had a season-high in points, as he ended up with 26 points on an efficient 10-for-18 shooting from the field. This is the most he has scored since his 28-point outing in a rough 84-75 home loss to Missouri State.
Julius Mims came up big once again, pouring in 13 points and hauling in 12 rebounds to secure his fifth double-double of the season.
NMSU got off to a fast start, quickly stretching the lead to 14-5 in the first six minutes of action thanks to scoring from Jones, Mims, and Chris Terrell. LA Tech responded right away though, going on a 15-1 run to take a 20-15 advantage mid-way through the first half.
The back-and-fourth affair saw the Aggies regain the lead, going up 31-27 with just under three minutes to go in the period thanks to a signature Elijah Elliott step back three-pointer. This would be the last points of the half for NMSU however, as LA Tech took a 32-31 lead going into halftime after a DJ Dudley layup to beat the buzzer.
The Aggies responded well to start the second half, going on a similar run like they did to start the game by taking a 44-37 advantage at the 12:59 mark.
Both teams continued to make runs, but it was the road team who maintained them the most to edge out a rare road win. Nine of Jones’ 26 points came in the final three minutes of play, which included four clutch free throws. Gabe Pickens also found his stride from the line, going 4-for-4 like Jones to finish with eight points in his 14th start.
A big reason for the win was the Aggies’ stellar defense. They compiled nine steals, which is the most against a Division I team for them this season. The most was when they snatched 14 steals to cruise to a 104-33 dominant victory over NAIA foe University of the Southwest Dec. 28.
With UTEP and Delaware both falling in their matchups, the Aggies have climbed back to No. 10 in CUSA. This means if the regular season ended today, they would find themselves as the last team to get into the conference tournament.
NMSU will look to use this win as momentum heading into the I-10 rival game with UTEP at the Don Haskins Center at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 7.
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