SERIES RECORD: This is the fourth meeting between New Mexico State and Saint Mary’s, with the Gaels holding a 2-1 advantage. NM State took the first meeting 82-64 on Nov. 19, 2000 in Las Cruces. SMC won 100-68 in Moraga on Nov. 13, 2009, then followed with a 73-53 win in Las Cruces on Dec. 23, 2010.
MEDIA COVERAGE: Tuesday’s game can be heard live on the Aggie Sports Network and over the Las Cruces radio airwaves on KSNM, 98.7 with NM State Hall of Famer Jack Nixon with the call. The game is being nationally televised on ESPN 2 with Mark Neely and Jon Crispin providing the commentary.
LIVE STATS ON THE WEB: Live stats will be available for fans at www.nmstatesports.com at no cost all season long. Fans can click on the ‘Live Events’ link at the top of the NMStateSports.com home page or go to the men’s basketball schedule page and click on the ‘related links’ tab to access the live stats.
SOCIAL MEDIA: Get all the updates of Aggie Athletics on Twitter and Facebook. Get in-game statistics and in-game updates on Twitter @NMStateAggies. Find out about all Aggie Athletics promotions and events on Facebook (NM State Aggies and The Aggie Student-Athlete). Also, new this season, follow us on Instagram at NMStateAggies for photos from all the Aggie athletics.
ABOUT THE AGGIES: NM State looks to complete the rare four-peat in 2014-15, as the Aggies have won the WAC Tournament title and participated in the NCAA Tournament three years in a row. NM State returns honorable mention AP All-American and WAC Player of the Year Daniel Mullings. Last year, the 6-2 senior guard averaged a team-high 16.8 points per game and led the Aggies with 65 steals, which ranked second in the conference. The 2014-15 Aggies have a unique blend of senior leadership and young talent. There are four returning seniors and a group of seven newcomers that will compete for playing time.
Along with the return of Mullings, the Aggies welcome back a pair of experienced seniors in Tshilidzi Nephawe and DK Eldridge. Last season, Nephawe averaged 11.1 points per contest and tied for a team-high 7.8 rebounds a game. Eldridge averaged 11.2 points per game to go along with 4.5 assists per contest.
LOOKING BACK: New Mexico State never led in its season opener, falling to No. 11 Wichita State 71-54 on Friday.
The Aggies allowed the Shockers to go on a 14-5 run midway through the first half to grab a double-digit lead and never look back.
The Aggies did keep the Shockers from hitting a 3-pointer (0-13), snapping Wichita State’s 267-game streak of scoring a trey, dating back to Dec. 19, 2006.
Preseason AP All-American Fred VanVleet was also held in check with just six points and four assists, but guards Tekele Cotton and Ron Baker went off with 17 points and 16 points respectively.
Daniel Mullings led the Aggies with 14 points and six rebounds, while Remi Barry tallied nine points.
ABOUT THE GAELS: Saint Mary’s is facing its second game of the season at 1-0 after coming off a 77-67 win over NCAA Division II Cal State-Los Angeles on Friday.
SMC was led in the game by guard Kerry Carter (6-2, Sr., West Covina, Calif.) who double-doubled with 25 points and 12 rebounds, while forward Brad Waldow (6-9, Sr., Shingle Springs, Calif.) double-doubled with 16 points and 10 boards. Waldow averaged 11.2 ppg and 6.0 rpg last season, as Carter tallied 9.3 ppg and 9.3 rpg in 2013-14.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Aggies make the trip back to Las Cruces on Tuesday and will open their home season on Wednesday night at 7 p.m., against Northern Colorado at the Pan American Center.
The Bears (1-0), defeated NCAA Division II Black Hills State (S.D.) 83-62 in Greeley on Friday. UNC visits Wyoming on Sunday. Tevin Svihovec (6-2, G, Sr., Kingwood, Texas) scored 17 points with five assists, while guard Cameron Michael (6-5, So., Loveland, Colo.) popped for 13 points and forward Cody McDavis (6-8, Jr., Phoenix, Ariz.) put in 11 points with seven rebounds against BHS.
AIR CANADA: NM State returns 2013-14 honorable mention AP All-American Daniel Mullings. The 6-2, 170 pound senior from Toronto, Ontario, was the WAC Player of the Year after averaging 16.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. He hit 46.6 percent from the floor (201-of-431) and 72.7 percent from the foul line (168-of-231). He also led the team with 1.9 steals per outing.
The WAC Preseason Player of the Year for 2014-15, Mullings led the Aggies with 14 points and six rebounds in Friday’s loss at No. 11 Wichita State.
Mullings is tied for 11th in career scoring at NM State, with 1,419 points, equaling Ernest Patterson (1980-83) on the chart. Mullings needs 29 points to join the top 10 by tying Aggie Legend Sam Lacey (1968-70) with 1,448 points.
Mullings is also targeting the Aggie record for career steals. He is currently standing third with 204, and needs five to tie and six to pass William Benjamin (1988-92) with 209 swipes. He is just 12 steals from tying and 13 from surpassing the NM State record of 216 held by Hearnst Leroche (2008-12). Mullings recorded 65 steals last season (1.9 per game), ranking fifth on the single season steals chart.