Saturday, March 2
Las Cruces, NM
3 P.M.
Jacksonville State University
at
New Mexico State
Women's Hoops Takes on New Mexico State in Final Road Game
3/1/2024 5:15:00 PM | Women's Basketball
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Gamecock women's basketball hits the hardwood again this weekend on the road in a Conference USA clash with massive tournament seeding implications. Saturday's showdown at New Mexico State will tip-off at 3 p.m. CT at the Pan American Center. It will serve as the final road game of the season for Jax State.
Jacksonville State (10-16, 5-9) will look to rebound after a tough loss in El Paso on Thursday night. The team shot just 26.9% from the field and could not slow down UTEP in a 70-48 setback in the Lone Star State. As a result, the Red-and-White are in a tie with New Mexico State (11-16, 5-9) for seventh place in the CUSA standings as we approach the final two matchups of the regular season. Both teams are hoping to avoid the eight-seed versus nine-seed play-in game at the league tournament in Huntsville, Ala., later this month, and a win on Saturday for Jax State would secure at least a seventh-place finish.
Bre'Anna Rhodes remains the team's leader in scoring (8.2 points per game) and rebounds (4.7 rebounds per game). Kristol Ayson (7.9 ppg) and Rachel Johnson (6.2 ppg), who had a team-best 15 points on Thursday, are nipping at her heels offensively while Mya Barnes (4.2 rpg) and Asia Barclay (4.2 rpg) are just behind her in crashing the boards.
The Gamecocks won the first meeting with New Mexico State earlier this season. As part of a weekend sweep over UTEP and the Aggies, Jacksonville State downed NMSU 56-49 on Feb. 3 in the Pink Game at Pete Mathews Coliseum. Ayson totaled 17 points and Madison McCoy posted a career-high 15 points in the contest. A late 9-0 run by the home team solidified a big CUSA victory that night. Now, Jax State will have to face New Mexico State on their home court in a significant revenge game.
The Aggies have split results since their early-February loss in Calhoun County. They promptly responded with a 66-59 win over rival UTEP the following week, then were clobbered by league-leading Middle Tennessee 73-37 on the road. NMSU's last win was a 64-61 thriller versus Western Kentucky on Feb. 17, but three straight tight losses to Sam Houston (66-56 OT), Louisiana Tech (70-63 OT), and Liberty (60-56) have ensued.
Molly Kaiser, one of the conference's premier scorers, had 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting in the first pairing and she still leads the team's efforts with 14.4 points per game. Jaila Harding is close to double-figures this season (9.5 ppg) and South Georgia State transfer Fanta Gassama averages over seven rebounds per contest.
Saturday's game will be covered on ESPN+ and Logan Maddox will have the call on the Gamecock Sports Network. Links to watch, listen, or follow along with live stats will be provided at JaxStateSports.com. In addition, score updates and highlights will be posted on Jax State Women's Basketball's X account (@JaxStateWBB).
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, follow their Facebook (Jacksonville State Women's Basketball), Instagram (@JaxStateWBB), and X (@JaxStateWBB) accounts.
Jacksonville State (10-16, 5-9) will look to rebound after a tough loss in El Paso on Thursday night. The team shot just 26.9% from the field and could not slow down UTEP in a 70-48 setback in the Lone Star State. As a result, the Red-and-White are in a tie with New Mexico State (11-16, 5-9) for seventh place in the CUSA standings as we approach the final two matchups of the regular season. Both teams are hoping to avoid the eight-seed versus nine-seed play-in game at the league tournament in Huntsville, Ala., later this month, and a win on Saturday for Jax State would secure at least a seventh-place finish.
Bre'Anna Rhodes remains the team's leader in scoring (8.2 points per game) and rebounds (4.7 rebounds per game). Kristol Ayson (7.9 ppg) and Rachel Johnson (6.2 ppg), who had a team-best 15 points on Thursday, are nipping at her heels offensively while Mya Barnes (4.2 rpg) and Asia Barclay (4.2 rpg) are just behind her in crashing the boards.
The Gamecocks won the first meeting with New Mexico State earlier this season. As part of a weekend sweep over UTEP and the Aggies, Jacksonville State downed NMSU 56-49 on Feb. 3 in the Pink Game at Pete Mathews Coliseum. Ayson totaled 17 points and Madison McCoy posted a career-high 15 points in the contest. A late 9-0 run by the home team solidified a big CUSA victory that night. Now, Jax State will have to face New Mexico State on their home court in a significant revenge game.
The Aggies have split results since their early-February loss in Calhoun County. They promptly responded with a 66-59 win over rival UTEP the following week, then were clobbered by league-leading Middle Tennessee 73-37 on the road. NMSU's last win was a 64-61 thriller versus Western Kentucky on Feb. 17, but three straight tight losses to Sam Houston (66-56 OT), Louisiana Tech (70-63 OT), and Liberty (60-56) have ensued.
Molly Kaiser, one of the conference's premier scorers, had 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting in the first pairing and she still leads the team's efforts with 14.4 points per game. Jaila Harding is close to double-figures this season (9.5 ppg) and South Georgia State transfer Fanta Gassama averages over seven rebounds per contest.
Saturday's game will be covered on ESPN+ and Logan Maddox will have the call on the Gamecock Sports Network. Links to watch, listen, or follow along with live stats will be provided at JaxStateSports.com. In addition, score updates and highlights will be posted on Jax State Women's Basketball's X account (@JaxStateWBB).
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, follow their Facebook (Jacksonville State Women's Basketball), Instagram (@JaxStateWBB), and X (@JaxStateWBB) accounts.
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
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