On the last day of the regular season, the New Mexico State Aggies battled the Kennesaw State University Owls on March 8.
A win for NMSU would guarantee a trip to Huntsville, Ala., for a spot in the postseason Conference USA tournament, while fending off Kennesaw from achieving a first-round bye and improving their seed.
After Thursday’s win against Jacksonville State, in which the Aggies contrarily gave up 17 points in a row, the pressure on the court was immense from the second that both teams’ sneakers hit the court.
Quickly grabbing three points in the first minute, the Aggies lit up the crowd and made it evident that Kennesaw’s defense would have a definite challenge to face.
“It would [have been] so easy a couple weeks ago to just kind of give in a little bit because things weren’t going our way,” Head Coach Jason Hooten said. “I think all our guys did was just pick themselves up each time and just play harder and tougher and try to do what we’ve been instilling in them all year long.”
Leading the team in with 19 points total and 12 rebounds, Jemel Jones has been a force to be reckoned with on the court.
Jones also leads the team overall this season with 534 points and 40 steals. This game marked his 27th game this season that he’s hit double-digits for scoring.
While the score tipped back and forth between ties and leads, NMSU achieved five turnovers compared to the Owl’s six, then undershot their 3-pointers 1-9 compared to 6-17 and keeping their guard up to close out the first half in the lead at 37-33.
Coming back into the game after halftime’s Senior Night recognition, the Aggies grabbed three more points to attain their biggest lead so far at seven points ahead of Kennesaw.
NMSU spent 22 minutes total in the lead of this game.
“I just think these guys when it’s all said and done, they’re just starting to figure some things out a little bit, and it makes me feel good, [and] makes me proud,” Hooten said.
Having a guaranteed spot thanks to UTEP’s loss against Jax State, which ended about halfway through NMSU’s game, the Aggies were still bringing out the big guns to end their regular season on a high note.
After a hot streak of swift scoring by the Owls and nine fouls in under 10 minutes on the Aggies, KSU snagged the lead to stand at 57-54 with half of the second 20 minutes remaining.
A possession arrow and foul challenge by Kennesaw both had the possibility to shift the tone in the Owl’s favor. However, the ball was ruled to be for the Aggies.
Pushing them ever so slightly ahead and allowing NMSU to pull away; keeping that momentum to finish out the game with a close 79-76 finish.
NMSU men’s basketball will return for their first postseason game in Huntsville, Ala., at 7:00 p.m. against the Jax State Gamecocks.
![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)
