“Well, the school has been in existence since 1888 and I think that says it all,” NM State head coach Marvin Menzies said. “Those are some big numbers and he’s a prolific scorer. He’s got a good mental toughness to him and it’s great to see him get that stat.”
The beginning of the first half was evenly played and NM State led 12-11 at the 10:08 mark. However, from there the Aggies closed out the half with a 27-4 run and entered intermission with a 39-15 lead – their largest halftime lead of the season.
“We settled down on defense and focused at the task at hand,” Menzies said. “I think we wore them (Florida A&M) down a little bit and caused some turnovers and picked up the intensity.”
NM State opened the second half with a 15-0 run and easily closed out FAMU.
The Aggies played a suffocating defense and forced 21 turnovers and held the Rattlers (0-6) to 23 percent (12-of-52) from the floor.
NM State finished the evening shooting 51 percent (28-of-54) from the floor.
True freshman Braxton Huggins and senior DK Eldridge each scored 13 points.
The Aggies played well under the basket and scored 40 points in the paint and grabbed 41 rebounds.
The 33 points by Florida A&M were the fewest ever scored against NM State at the Pan American Center and are the least amount of points since New Mexico State beat Eastern New Mexico 34-27 on March 4, 1952 in the NAIB Tournament in Kansas City, Mo.
NM State (3-3) returns to the hardwood Saturday, Nov. 29 at Wyoming. Tip is set for 4:30 p.m.