EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — The New Mexico State University men’s basketball team lost its regular-season finale on Saturday, March 8 to Sam Houston in Huntsville, Texas.
Sam Houston used a hot start and some offensive firepower to score a 75-67 victory over the Aggies.
The Aggies finished their regular season at 17-14 overall and 10-8 in Conference USA.
The Bearkats jumped out to an early 9-2 lead and led 45-38 at halftime.
New Mexico State cut the deficit to 45-40 in the early going of the second half. From there on, the game was a back-and-forth battle with Sam Houston extending its lead to double digits multiple times. NM State, however, fought back and cut it to a single possession on several occasions.
NM State’s Christian Cook delivered a clutch 3-pointer with 2:45 remaining, bringing the Aggies within two at 69-67. However, Sam Houston responded with a timely 3-pointer of its own and converted some crucial free throws down the stretch to keep NM State at bay.
Robert Carpenter led the Aggies in scoring, finishing with 20 points and four rebounds while shooting 6-12 from the field and 4-9 from beyond the arc. This marks just his second 20-point performance of the season, with the first coming on the road against I-25 rival New Mexico, where he also scored 20 points on 6-12 shooting from 3-point land.
Peter Filipovity recorded 13 points and seven rebounds, extending his streak of double-figure scoring performances to six consecutive games.
For the first time this season, the Aggies held an opponent’s bench scoreless, while their own reserves stepped up with 29 points in the contest.
Jae’Coby Osborne matched his season high in points with seven while also tying his second-highest rebounding total of the season with six.
The Aggies will now turn their attention to the Conference USA tournament in Huntsville, Alabama.
New Mexico State finished as the No. 6 seed in conference and the Aggies will take on No. 4 Kennesaw State University at 4:30 p.m. Mountain time/5:30 p.m. Central on Thursday, March 13.
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