Aggies to play three games in Florida over Thanksgiving Weekend.
Source: NMSU Athletics
By Matthew Knope
Photo By Matthew Knope for NMSU : Courtesy
FORT MYERS, Fla. – For the first time in nearly 10 years, NM State Women’s Basketball is facing off with a top-five opponent. The Aggies are spending Thanksgiving Weekend in the Sunshine State for three games in the Gulf Coast Showcase. The fourth ranked Texas Longhorns await first on Friday as Jody Adams‘ squad attempts to hand them their first loss of the season. Eight teams enter Hertz Arena as all will suit up three times in less than 72 hours for a shot at Sunday’s championship game.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Who: NM State (3-1, 0-0 CUSA) versus #4 Texas (4-0, 0-0 SEC)
Where: Hertz Arena – Fort Myers, Fla.
When: Friday, Nov. 29, 2024 at 6:00 PM MT (through Sunday, Dec. 1)
Live Stream: FloSports
Live Statistics: StatBroadcast
All-Time Series Record: Texas leads 2-0
Last Meeting: NM State 75 at Texas 90 (Jan. 2, 1994)
LAST TIME OUT
NM State bounced back after its first loss of the season, cruising by Western New Mexico at home. The hosts were led by 15 points from Jaila Harding as 13 Aggies entered the scoring column en route to a 78-41 victory. Loes Rozing racked up 11 points on 5-of-5 shooting in addition to six rebounds and three steals. Fanta Gassama, Sianny Sanchez-Oliverand Madi Gewirtz combined for 14 steals as their side collected 27 swipes that led to 23 fast-break points and 30 off of turnovers.
ABOUT THE FIELD
The 2024 Gulf Coast Showcase consists of eight teams, with every squad guaranteed to play three games. The field is Boise State, Butler, High Point, Illinois State, NM State, Santa Clara, Texas and West Virginia. The Aggies’ Saturday and Sunday opponents are yet to be determined as the weekend will follow a true tournament format.
AGENT 007
Molly Kaiser is a certified legend in the history of NM State Women’s Basketball. The Watauga, Texas native has spent all five seasons with the Crimson & White, making her the longest-tenured Aggie on the 2024-25 roster. Kaiser has over 1,300 career points, highlighted by her single greatest performance to date earlier this month.
The 5-foot-8 guard notched 35 points on hyper-efficient shooting against Utah Tech on Nov. 7. She sank 14 of 21 field goals, three of five 3-pointers and four of five free throws en route to the highest individual output since Danesia Williamson on March 12, 2014. In addition to her offensive explosion, the Saginaw High School product raked in four steals for a career high. For the season, Kaiser ranks eighth in the nation with 25.0 points per game.
FANTA-STIC
Midway through last season, NM State bolstered its frontcourt with the addition of Fanta Gassama. The now-senior went on an impressive run at the end of 2023-24, averaging 9.1 rebounds and nearly six points per game over the final eight contests of the regular season. In the CUSA Quarterfinals, the Spain native was exceptional, collecting 20 points and 17 rebounds. Gassama was perfect from the floor, sinking all eight of her field goals and going 4-for-4 from the free-throw line as the Aggies prevailed 63-58 in an upset over No. 3 seed FIU.
This year, Gassama started off with a bang at UC Irvine. She paced both teams with 22 points as she hit eight of her 16 field goal attempts. Her presence was most felt down low, however, as the Mataró, Spain native hauled in 16 rebounds. Three days later against Utah Tech, Gassama tallied her second double-double of the young campaign, notching 14 points and as many rebounds. Her 12.0 rebounds per game currently rank tied for fifth among all of NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball.
Gassama holds the only two double-doubles by an Aggie so far this season. With two already, she ranks tied for 46th in the nation in individual double-doubles. Spanning back to last year, the second-year Aggie has four double-doubles; all of which have come in the past seven games.
VETERAN LEADERSHIP
The Aggies are led by 11 upperclassmen, including nine seniors. Molly Kaiser and Diarrah Sissoko are each in their fifth season of collegiate basketball, headlining a 15-person roster that has 50 combined seasons of experience, including 32 at NM State. Four Aggies are on at least their third season in the program: Molly Kaiser (five), Sylena Peterson (four), Sianny Sanchez-Oliver (four) and Lucía Yenes (three).
INTERNATIONAL AGGIES
There are seven Aggies with international backgrounds on the 2024-25 roster. Four of those seven hail from Spain (Fanta Gassama, Noah Garcia, Marta Guilera, Lucía Yenes). Hungary (Anna Csenyi), Netherlands (Loes Rozing) and Mali (Diarrah Sissoko) are also represented on this year’s squad. Four of six Aggie newcomers are form overseas, rounding out a roster that is 46.7% international.
122 of the Aggies’ 281 points this season have come courtesy of international members. Those seven student-athletes accumulated 73 of 142 rebounds (51.4%) and 49 of 106 made field goals (46.2%). In addition to newcomer Anna Csenyi, Loes Rozing and Fanta Gassama have returned to the starting lineup in similar fashion to the regular first five at the conclusion of 2023-24.
GUESS WHO’S BACK… BACK AGAIN
There are two notable absences in the paint as Honorable Mention All-CUSA selection Ene Adams was joined by 6-foot-5 Femme Sikuzani Masudi as the two key departures from last year. However, nearly every rotational guard and wing will be back in action in 2024-25, with 75.66% of the 2023-24 point production still on the roster. Additionally, the returning Aggies accounted for 85.14% of all assists and 97.71% of 3-pointers made (128 of 131) a season ago.
ONE LAST RIDE
This iteration of the Aggies revolves around fifth-year Aggie legend Molly Kaiser. The Watauga, Texas native exercised her extra year of eligibility that she earned from the NCAA’s response to COVID-19, electing to spend her fifth and final campaign with the Crimson & White. In 2023-24, Kaiser led the Aggies in games played (31), games started (31), points (463), points per game (14.9), minutes per game (34.2), field goals made (165), free throws made (107) and free-throw percentage (86.3).
Last season, Kaiser drove and buried a patented elbow jumper shot to give her 1,000 career points, with every bucket coming as a member of the Crimson & White. She became the 25th member of the 1,000-point club, and the first since Gia Pack, who played for the Aggies from 2016-2020.
SCOUTING THE LONGHORNS
Texas is led by fifth-year Head Coach Vic Shaefer, who boasts a 113-32 record in her time with the program. Last season, the Longhorns finished 33-5 overall with a 14-4 mark in Big 12 play. After taking the conference tournament championship, Shafer led her unit to the Elite Eight, where NC State earned a 10-point victory to clinch a spot in the Final Four.
This season, Madison Booker has been the first option, pacing the team in 3-point percentage (66.7) as well as points (17.7) and minutes (22.0) per night. In her last showing versus Tarleton State, Booker posted 25 points on 10-for-14 shooting in addition to three assists in just 24 minutes.
For complete coverage of NM State Women’s Basketball, follow us on Twitter (@NMStateWBB), Instagram (@NMStateWBB) and like us on Facebook (NM State Women’s Basketball). You can also follow along with Aggie Women’s Basketball via NMStateSports.com.
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