In an overtime victory, the NMSU women’s basketball team defeated the University of New Mexico 73-64 on Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Recovering from a defeat last season against the Lobos, which was a rollercoaster of a game, the Aggies refused to let their opponent lead the Battle of I-25 this time. Point guards Soufia Inoussa and Molly Kaiser scored the most points in the game with Inoussa scoring a total of 14 points and Kaiser scoring 12.
The Aggies blazed through the first quarter, opening with a 20-2 scoring run. Junior Molly Kaiser and senior Inoussa led the team into a strong second half. With only four minutes left in the third quarter, the Aggies nearly doubled the score to 38-16.
The crowd went wild after Aggie point guard Sabou Gueye stole the ball and passed it to forward Shania Harper who then scored. Plays from the Aggies were looking effortless.
In a turn of events, the Lobos started making a fast comeback entering the last quarter. Coaches and fans were on the edge of their seats watching the teams play neck and neck. As the Lobos started picking up their game, the Aggies pushed even harder. Scores bounced back and forth between the teams. The Lobos were either points away from catching up or the teams were tied, however, the Lobos never led at any point during the game.
The teams played down to the wire in the last quarter and the buzzer went off with the scoreboard reading 57-57. The Aggies bounced back hard right away entering the sudden-death round and never backed down.
The Lobos accepted their defeat when the Aggies held nine points over them in the final tie-breaker, 16-7.
When asked about what changed entering the last quarter, Kaiser explained that they started to get comfortable.
“Compared to the first three periods we were attacking them, but in the fourth quarter, we started to pull back
rather than continue to attack them. We just continued to believe in our coaching staff, and our teammates, and just from all five players on the court to everyone on the bench was just believing in each other. We just kept talking to each other and kept leading each other, and we just kind of got our confidence back. It’s our game. We’re going to go out there and we’re going to win. We’re going to take it. That was the mindset and shift change,” Kaiser said.
Coach Jody Adams was ecstatic leading her team into their second win of the season.
“I’m just really proud of these guys. They didn’t quit. That’s something that we say every time that somebody’s got to quit, but it won’t be us,” Adams said after her team poured a celebratory bucket of water on her in the locker room.
Adams says that at the end of the day, it comes down to believing in the team and themselves.
The NMSU women’s basketball team will take on the Yale Bulldogs Friday, Nov. 25, in Denver. Next month, the Aggies travel to Albuquerque on Sunday, Dec. 11, 2022, to take on the Lobos once again.
