Second-seeded Aggies meet No. 7 Chicago State today
San Diego State men rally past UNLV; topseeded CSU women fall
Now, the Aggies get to write the next chapter of the “press or not press” story.
A successful regular season highlighted by 20 consecutive wins, the 25-5 Aggies slumped to a 1-3 skid thereafter. It ultimately cost them the regular season title to Cal State Bakersfield and puts them in the unusual position of being one of the chasers this week. NMSU is seeded second and plays No. 7 seed Chicago State (6-26) today in a Western Athletic Conference quarterfinal at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nev.
When that losing skid peaked with an 84-72 loss at Utah Valley, Aggie players asked first-year coach Paul Weir to get back to extended pressure defense, which was a trademark of their earlier success.
Weir relented; the Aggies responded with two resounding home WAC wins to close the regular season and looked more like the team that steamrolled to 20 consecutive victories and a 22-2 record.
Now they’ll see if they have anything left for the big carrot that is the NCAA Tournament berth that is attached to the WAC tourney title.
“If there’s anything that’s driven us all year long, it hasn’t always been the optimal method of offense or defense,” Weir said. “It’s just been our energy level, our work ethic, our chemistry, our togetherness. … I believe in the guys; they believe in each other. I’m confident we’d be able to play just as hard on Saturday as we do (today).”
New Mexico State leads with league player of the year Ian Baker (16.7 points per game), and Eli Chuha (12.4 ppg, 9.4 rpg), the reigning league player of the week.
Chicago State comes in on a 10-game losing skid and is led by Fred Sims Jr. (18.8 ppg).
Today
WAC tourney, Las Vegas, Nev.
New Mexico State vs. Chicago State
5:30 p.m., 101.7 FM, WAC Digital Network
Men
PATRIOT LEAGUE: In Lewisburg, Pa., Kimbal Mackenzie scored 18 points to help send Bucknell into the NCAA Tournament with an 81-65 victory over Lehigh in the conference final Wednesday night.
The Bison (26-8) are back in the tournament for the first time since 2013 and seem ready to shake up the brackets one more time. Bucknell beat Kansas in 2005 and Arkansas in 2006 to earn a reputation as March upset masters.
The visiting Mountain Hawks (20-12) lost in the Patriot League championship game for the second straight season. No. 14 DUKE 79, CLEMSON 72: In New York, Luke Kennard made two clutch jumpers in the final 2:04 to help the fifth-seeded Blue Devils (24-8) advance to the Atlantic Coast Conference tourney quarterfinals against No. 8 Louisville today. Jaron Blossomgame led Clemson (17-15) with 19 points and eight rebounds. No. 21 VIRGINIA 75, PITT 63: Also in New York, Kyle Guy scored 20 points to match a career high and London Perrantes added 13 in the second half to help Virginia pull away for a win against Pitt (16-17) in a second-round game in the ACC tournament. The sixthseeded Cavaliers (22-9) are in the ACC quarterfinals for the sixth straight season and will meet third-seeded Notre Dame at Barclays Center tonight.
MWC TOURNEY: In Las Vegas, Air Force scored the first 25 points of the game and held on to defeat Wyoming 83-68. Jacob Van scored 18 points and was one of four double-figure scores for the 10th-seeded Falcons (12-20). Justin James scored 20 points for No. 7 Wyoming (18-14).
No. 8 Utah State routed No. 9 San Jose State 90-64 in a game that was tied 31-all at the half. The Aggies (14-16), who set a tournament record for points in a half with 59, get top-seeded Nevada in a quarterfinal today. Ryan Welage led the Spartans (14-16) with 14 points.
No. 6 San Diego State’s Trey Kell scored seven of his 13 points in overtime as the Aztecs outscored UNLV 12-2 in the extra period for a 62-52 victory in another first-round game. SDSU (18-13), which overcame a 32-14 halftime deficit, will face third-seeded Boise State in the quarterfinals. No. 11 seed UNLV (11-21) lost 11 of its last 12.
Women
MWC TOURNEY: In Las Vegas, fourth-seeded Boise State (247) knocked off regular-season champ Colorado State (24-8) 65-61 to advance to the conference final this afternoon against the winner of the late game between Fresno State and UNLV.
Broncos freshman Riley Lupfer had a team-high 17 points.