NM State women set to face off against top-seeded Middle Tennessee
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Following its first Conference USA win, the Aggies have another high-powered foe awaiting. On a frigid, snow-capped Saturday afternoon, Middle Tennessee’s Murphy Center will provide warmth, but NM State will took to cool off the 3-0 hosts. The Blue Raiders are one of just two remaining undefeated members of CUSA, alongside 4-0 FIU. MTSU hasn’t lost at home since Nov. 12, falling by five to (RV) Princeton. MTSU (13-4) is pursuing a second consecutive regular-season league title, but must face an Aggie squad that now ranks fourth in the conference at 1-2 and 7-9 overall.
How to Follow
Who: NM State (7-9, 1-2 CUSA) at Middle Tennessee (13-4, 3-0 CUSA)
Where: Murphy Center – Murfreesboro, TN
When: Saturday, Jan. 18, 2024 at 1:00 PM MT
Live Stream: ESPN+
Live Statistics: NM State StatBroadcast
All-Time Series Record: MTSU leads 3-2
Last Meeting: NM State 41 at Middle Tennessee 65 (Jan. 29, 2005)
Where the Aggies Stand
Thursday’s game at Western Kentucky was far from ordinary. NM State snapped a five-game losing skid by smothering a Lady Toppers squad that was projected to finish second before the season and was in the midst of a four-game winning streak that had them in first place. WKU entered averaging nearly 72 points per game, but was held to just 44, including just 19 after halftime. 19 forced turnovers and a 34.6% field goal rate highlighted the Aggies’ defensive efforts in what led to the fewest points allowed by NM State away from home this year.
Fanta Gassama made her first appearance in the Aggie starting lineup, immediately contributing down low. The junior forward poured in nine points to pair with her five rebounds in just over 17 minutes of action. Jaila Harding was the leading scorer for the third straight game, draining four shots from beyond the arc on nine attempts. The defense was stout all night, coming away with 10 steals and coming up with key stops down the stretch. Despite finishing without a field goal in the final 6:15, NM State came away with a crucial 50-44 victory in what was the program’s first league win since joining Conference USA 201 days prior.
Old Reliable
There have been two Aggies to start all 16 games this season. Every opening tip has been taken by Ene Adams, who has put forth a career year. The senior is sinking 51.3 percent of her shots en route to averaging 6.7 points per game in just 21.8 average minutes of action. Adams also paces the Aggies in total rebounds (86) and rebounds per game (5.4). 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 (17) than last (12), and has nearly doubled her 3-point percentage (44.7). Additionally, the Watauga, Texas native has canned 85.0 percent of her free-throw attempts to bolster her career-high 14.6 points per game.
Scouting the Blue Raiders
MTSU is led by 19th-year Head Coach Rick Insell, who has spent his entire career with the Blue Raiders, amassing a 446-155 record. A year ago, Insell and MTSU took down WKU in the CUSA Tournament Championship Game to advance to the NCAA Tournament before falling to Colorado in the First Round.
Savannah Wheeler was CUSA’s Preseason Player of the Year, and is off to an impressive start to her senior campaign, earning a Player of the Week award in the first seven days of the season. The guard is averaging a team-best 15.4 points and 4.2 assists per game, recently becoming the 10th player in conference history to surpass 2,000 career points.
Down low, a 6-foot-6 center looms large. Anastasiia Boldyreva is the most recent CUSA Player of the Week, due to her stifling defensive presence. The Russia native is sixth in the country with 50 total blocks already on the season. Offensively, she averages 14.2 points on 56.7 percent shooting from the floor. She averages 7.8 rebounds and is 5-for-14 from beyond the arc this season.
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