The University of New Mexico women’s basketball team will look to build off an upset win over the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday, Dec. 1 as they take on the New Mexico State Aggies in the first of two matchups between the teams at Dreamstyle Arena — The Pit at 2 p.m..
The Aggies are 4-1 so far this season, with the team’s only loss coming against Abilene Christian on Nov. 20 in Las Cruces. NMSU is ranked No. 1 in the country according to the NCAA’s official RPI rankings and is the highest rated team in the Western Athletic Conference. Last time out, they secured an easy victory over Northern New Mexico, 101-51.
Brooke Salas leads the Aggies in scoring at 17.2 points per game and rebounds with 8.2. Gia Pack is another key cog for the Aggies, and has recorded three double-doubles this year after being named first team All-WAC a year ago.
Lobos head coach Mike Bradbury was very complimentary of Salas, a senior out of Placentia, Calif., and said that it’s not so much about stopping her as it is about making things hard on her.
“She’s a great player, she can play every position on the floor,” Bradbury said. “She’s been there best player for several years, at least since I got here. She’s hard to guard.”
The Aggies are a stout defensive test, ranking No. 22 in the country in scoring defense, allowing only 53.2 points per game. Bradbury isn’t concerned about the game being played at a slower pace, as NMSU would prefer, as he thinks his team is capable of winning in that style.
Ideally for UNM, the Lobos will be able to control the pace and speed up play, which, Bradbury said that they can do by forcing turnovers, getting stops on the defensive end and pulling down rebounds.
The game can be seen via LoboTV which is accessed through golobos.com, or heard on 95.9 The Sports Animal.
Cameron Goeldner is a senior reporter and photographer for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers men’s soccer, women’s basketball, softball and the Albuquerque Isotopes, but also contributes content for all other sports. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @goeldfinger.
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