Are You Ready to Rumble? UTEP WBB Faces NM State in Battle of I-10, Round Two

2/9/2024 11:23:00 AM

Game Notes

LAS CRUCES, N.M. – UTEP women's basketball (8-13, 3-5 CUSA) will face off against NM State (9-12, 3-5 CUSA) Saturday at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces. The Miners are hoping to bounce back from two road losses last week.

The Miners and the Aggies are slated to tipoff at 2:00 p.m. MT.

GAME COVERAGE
Saturday at NM State - Live Stats or Watch Here

PREVIOUSLY ON...
UTEP fell at Liberty 87-68 last Saturday. The Miners shot 45.0 percent from the field. The struggles at the foul line continued, as the team hit just 55.6 percent (10-18) from the stripe. Jane Asinde led the Miners with 25 points and seven rebounds. Zhane Thompson posted nine points and Aspen Salazar had eight.

ROLLING IN THE DEEP
Zhane Thompson impressed in her first real minutes since coming back from injury. She drained three of five shots from beyond the arc for a career-best nine points.

EFFORT 'TIL THE END
Aspen Salazar put up career-high eight points against Liberty. All eight came in the final three minutes of play.

ASINDE'S ASCENSION
Jane Asinde leads the Miners and tops CUSA in points per game (16.4).

DEFENSIVE HUSTLE
Jane Asinde paces Conference USA and ranks 19th in the NCAA in defensive rebounds per game (7.2).

GETTING TO THE LINE
The Miners are averaging 20.43 free throw attempts per game, good enough for third in the league and 41st in the nation.

BOXING OUT
UTEP allowed just six offensive rebounds at Liberty, the fewest permitted by the Miners to a Conference USA opponent this year. The season low for the opposition was two offensive boards against Colorado State.

WINDOW WASHERS
UTEP has tied or outrebounded opponents in 13 games this season (61.9 percent). The largest margin came at home against Colorado State, when the Miners out rebounded the Rams by 19, 43-24.

VALUING THE BASKETBALL
The Miners committed a season-low nine turnovers against the Lady Flames. They averaged 19.8 turnovers per game over the previous four contests.

IN THE RANKS
Two Miners are posting stats that rank them inside the top 100 nationally. Jane Asinde leads CUSA and sits 11th in the country in free throw attempts (139), tops the league and ranks 19th in the nation in defensive rebounds per game (7.2), and is first in conference, 36th in the NCAA in free throws made (92). She also places second in CUSA, 35th nationally in double-doubles (nine), second in conference, 66th in the country in rebounds, and second in the league, 48th in the nation in rebounds per game (9.2). Erin Wilson is ranked fourth in conference, 88th in the NCAA in both rebounds (174) and rebounds per game (8.3).

INCHING CLOSER
Jane Asinde is closing in on 1,000 career points at the Division 1 level. She is only 14 points away from the milestone. She compiled 657 points in her time with Wichita State to go along with 329 (and counting) while donning the Orange and Blue.

THE COUNTDOWN IS ON
Keitha Adams is just one game away from 500 career victories as a head coach. A total of 291 of those wins have come at the helm of the UTEP women's basketball program.

SCOUTING NM STATE
NM State is 9-12 on the year and 3-5 in CUSA. The Aggies are averaging 61.1 points and 32.6 rebounds per game while shooting 40.2 percent from the field, 32.8 percent from three, and 68.5 percent from the foul line. The team leads the conference and is 42nd in the country in three-point percentage defense (27.6), ranks second in the league, 79th in the NCAA in scoring defense (60.0), and sits third in CUSA, 53rd nationally in turnovers forced per game (19.14). Molly Kaiser paces the team with 14.7 points, followed by Jaila Harding and Tylie Jones at 9.4 points apiece. Ene Adams (7.0) and Sabou Gueye (6.5) round out the top five scorers for the Aggies. Fanta Gassama pulls down a team-high 5.8 rebounds per game while Sianny Sanchez-Oliver tops the team in assists with 2.7. Gueye leads the team in both steals (1.8) and blocks (0.4). Adams is shooting a team-best 51.9 percent from the floor this season and Jones is hitting 58.8 percent from deep. Kaiser leads the Aggies while sitting second in CUSA, 43rd in the nation in free throw percentage (85.9).

SERIES HISTORY WITH THE AGGIES
The Miners are 46-50 all-time against the Aggies. UTEP won the first contest between the two sides earlier this season, 81-72.

TICKETS
Single-game tickets remain on sale now, and can be purchased through the Eisenberg Family Ticket Office by calling (915) 747-UTEP, emailing tickets@utep.edu, visiting www.UTEPMiners.com/Tickets, or in person at 201 Glory Road (Brumbelow Building, UTEP Campus), Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

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