LAS CRUCES, NM – NM State suffered its first loss of the season as they fell 75-61 to UTSA on Thursday night at the Pan American Center. UTSA came in and turned in an efficient offensive performance, posting 75 points on 50.0% shooting from the 3-point line and a 12-of-13 night at the free throw line. The Roadrunners improved to the same level as the Aggies; 2-1 overall. Molly Keizer leading the way offensively for the Crimson & White with 23 points, but her side lost the rebounding battle by 17 points on the way to their first home defeat since March.

FIRST QUARTER

Fanta Gassama And Molly Keizer each made multiple made field goals as their team took a three lead with all nine points coming from the duo. UTSA responded with a 9-0 run that cut the Aggies’ final lead in the game. The visitors hit half of their six deep balls, in addition to nine of seventeen and four of five free throws. During that outburst, NM State went cold, scoring just five points in nearly the next six minutes.

At the end of the frame, the home side trailed 25-16, making the quarter the most down in 2024-25 (-9). At that point, NM State had allowed 62 points in the first quarters of this campaign so far, but only 75 in all other periods combined. UTSA’s 25 points were the most by an Aggie opponent in any quarter this season and only second by at least 20.

SECOND QUARTER

Fanta Gassama picked up her second personal foul with more than six and a half minutes left in the half, sending her to the bench. With Gassama on the sidelines, the Aggies received contributions from Sylena Peterson who knocked down her second 3-pointer of the game when she was left open on the wing in transition after a steal from Anna Csenyi. The Aggies then cut the lead to six when Lucia Yenes’ defensive ball pressure forced a turnover and then turned into a one-woman fastbreak to get her first points of the game.

The Aggies’ straight defense continued throughout the quarter as they managed four steals and three blocks during the period. Ultimately, 13 of the Aggies’ 17 points in the quarter came from turnovers.

Later, the Aggies would use back-to-back buckets Molly Keizer to spark a 10-2 scoring run to cut the lead to just one point with just under three minutes left in the stanza. Unfortunately, UTSA ended the half with five unanswered points, leaving the Aggies staring at a six-point deficit as they entered the locker room.

In the first half, the Aggies shot 48% (15-31) from the floor and were led by the efforts of Fanta Gassama who recorded nine points and six rebounds. Additional, Sylena Peterson scored eight points off the bench and doubled her season high on the night.

THIRD QUARTER

After a series of misses for both sides, Anna Csenyi poured in the first points of the match when Gassama saw the junior cut through the lane about a minute into the quarter. Just over two minutes later, Kaiser would make a second attempt under the basket to earn a pair of free throws, which she knocked down to cut the lead to four points and put her into double figures on the night.

The Roadrunners would eventually respond with a quick 5-0 run with all five points coming from Nina De Leon Negron. This would cut the lead to nine with five minutes to play.

NM State answered back and cut the deficit to four with a 5-0 run of its own over the next two and a half minutes of action. UTSA then used the measure of 6-1 Idara Udo as she recorded four unanswered points for the Roadrunners.

Molly Keizer would then dazzle on the final possession of the quarter as she used a screen to pick up the mismatch before flashing a crossover and stepping back to set up an open jump shot that fell as the buzzer sounded. This would bring the Aggies within six points entering the final 10 minutes of action.

FOURTH QUARTER

Freshman Emma Dasovich would be the shining star for the Aggies in the first two minutes of the fourth quarter, when she hit threes on consecutive possessions after twice being left unguarded at the top of the key. Unfortunately, UTSA also produced nine points on a trio of threes to start the period and leave the Aggie deficit at nine points with 7:25 to play.

The two sides would then combine to score just seven points in the next five minutes of action. From this, NM State came away with just three points to enter the final two minutes of play, trailing by eight points. The Aggies continued to struggle down the stretch as they went scoreless in the final two minutes and fell by 14 points.

NUMBER OF COMMENTS

• NM State allowed nine Roadrunner 3-pointers; a figure that opponents only reached twice last season.

• The Aggies lost the rebounding battle by 17 (37-20). That is the worst program figure since the season opener in Colorado on November 7, 2022.

• Fanta Gassama fell one rebound short of her third consecutive double-double to start the season. On his young season, the senior forward is averaging 15.7 points and 13.0 rebounds per game. Despite falling short, she has played four such games in the past six games, dating back to the 2023-2024 season.

• The last Aggie Bigue Sarr accomplished the same feat between February 3 and 10, 2022. Sarr also recorded five such displays in a six-game sample.

• NM State trailed after three quarters and eventually fell in the game. Last season, the Aggies were 1-15 when they were tied or trailing after 30 minutes

• For the second game in a row, Molly Keizer recorded four steals while leading the team in scoring.

• Emma Dasovich recorded the first made field goals of her career, making two three-pointers just 40 seconds apart to start the fourth quarter.

NEXT

The Aggies’ three-game homestand concludes Wednesday with a battle against Western New Mexico. The Mustangs are currently 0-3 and will take on New Mexico on Friday in Albuquerque. The Crimson & White welcome Western NM to the Pan American Center and the action kicks off on November 20 at 6:00 PM MT. The game between the Aggies and Mustangs will be streamed live on ESPN+ and can be followed via nmstatestats. com.

For complete coverage of NM State Women’s Basketball, follow us on Twitter (@NMStateWBB), Instagram (@NMStateWBB) and like us on Facebook (NM State Women’s Basketball). You can also follow Aggie Women’s Basketball at NMStateSports.com.

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