Matched up in their 20th game of the season against the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens, the New Mexico State University Aggies fought to further their 7-3 at-home record in the Pan American Center on Jan. 28.
Rebounding from last Saturday’s loss against Florida International University, the Aggies came out with a familiar sense of aggressiveness, with Aggie Jayland Randall’s jumper shot scoring them the first point on the board.
Nearing the 10-minute mark of the first half, Delaware kept their lead, holding an 11-point difference over the Aggies, led so far by Delaware forward Tyler Houser with 7 points. As for NMSU, guard Julius Mims led thus far with 4 points.
Mims has attained a total of 202 points in total this season, with a high of 22 points against Missouri State earlier this month – and holding an average of .589 and .364 field goal and 3-pointer success percentages, respectively.
With less than five minutes remaining in the half and a 29-17 Blue Hens lead looming over the court, both NMSU offense and defense strained hard to close in their trail before halftime. Aggie Elijah Elliott’s 3-pointer shot, paired with two extra free throw points by Mims caught them up to 31-22.
With only 20 seconds remaining, a quick turnover and steal by Aggie Anthony Wrzeszcz closed it in to a 10-point difference at 34-24 and erupted the crowd with relieved cheers.
“I just thought we came out tonight and didn’t have that sense of urgency that it takes to win,” Head Coach Jason Hooten said post-game. “I thought we had a really good week of practice [and] our preparation, I thought, was good enough to win.”
Randall, once again, got NMSU back on the board first, shooting a 3-pointer within the first 10 seconds of the half. Closing in the lead once again and pushing past Delaware’s Christian Bliss with the help of Mims and Wrzeszcz, the Aggies propelled up to 41-40.
Teetering back and forth between leads. Aggie Jae’coby Osborne and Cyr Malonga paired to keep them just barely ahead, leveling out a 47-46 score by the second half’s 10-minute mark.
“We [have] got to figure out those last five minutes, what we need to do in order to win one of these close games,” Hooten said
Continuously keeping the stadium on their toes, no lead was greater than two points until Delaware pulled away with a 64-58 lead with less than five minutes left. Turning up the aggressiveness and fighting for a win, three final free throw shots by Delaware’s Justyn Fernandez sealed off scoring for the game, finalizing an Aggie loss of 74-64.
“You can’t have a letdown when [you] lost two days in a row at home, and you’re fighting to get up from that tournament; you’re fighting to win, and you’re fighting to be a better team,” Hooten said.
New Mexico State Men’s Basketball will return on Saturday, Jan. 31, against the Kennesaw State Owls at 3:00 p.m. at the KSU Convocation Center.
![Group leaders [left to right] Jacarthie Brazil, Kira Baum, Carter-Elise Keating, and Abby Watkins pose for a picture after a successful interview. April 21, 2026.](https://nmsuroundup.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/01_AnnaB_Health-Club_LowRes.jpg)
