Aggies hang close but come up short against New Mexico
The USU women’s basketball team (10-7, 5-1) took on one of the top teams in the Mountain West Conference on Saturday afternoon. The matchup was highly anticipated, with the New Mexico Lobos (16-2, 6-1) ranked second in the Mountain West Conference. In a high-intensity game, the Lobos beat the Aggies 68-64.
The Aggies celebrated Australia Day at the game by recognizing the five Australian members of the team, along with two players on New Mexico’s team. Even though the matchup resulted in a loss, the Aussies were some of the top players of the game.
Utah State junior forward Shannon Dufficy said the loss wasn’t surprising after a struggle in the first quarter.
“When you look at our first half, it was not good,” Dufficy said. “We came out so flat. We set ourselves up for that loss in the first half, pretty much. I don’t know if we were too timid or we thought about the game too much but that needs to be improved and I’m sure if we do that, we will be able to beat them next time.”
Junior guard Olivia West proved a force to be reckoned with by scoring a three-point shot within the first minute. This prompted New Mexico to get in motion with Ahlise Hurst scoring a few seconds after. From then on, the Aggies began to trail. Even with 12 rebounds, Utah State was down 12-18 by the end of the first quarter.
Things started to look up for the Aggies in the second quarter. Senior guard Rachel Brewster was a powerhouse player, scoring four points and getting five rebounds off of New Mexico. The Aggies lagged by just three points at 29-32 after the second quarter.
Utah State woke up after the first half and stayed pretty close with New Mexico. The Lobos team is on average a lot taller than the Aggies, and their defense proved difficult to overcome. USU junior guard Eliza West was a shining star in the staying toe-to-toe with the Lobos with seven assists.
In the fourth quarter, it looked like the Aggies might prevail, but the Lobos came out on top in the last few seconds beating Utah State 68-64. USU head coach Jerry Finkbeiner said that one of the dominating forces in their loss was New Mexico’s Jayla Everett. The freshman guard scored 22 points.
“I have a lot of respect for New Mexico, being one of the better, if not the best teams in the conference,” Finkbeiner said. “The team, the girls, the coaches… all wanted it so bad that I think we became our own worst enemies today. New Mexico is a really hard team to guard. They’re big and they’re quick.”
The game was full of achievements, with Dufficy setting a program record for consecutive double-doubles, earning her eighth-straight with 26 points and 10 rebounds, along with junior guard Olivia West scoring 10 points. Dufficy was more disappointed in the team’s loss than impressed with her record-breaking.
“I would’ve liked to get the win, that’s more important than the record or whatever,” Dufficy said. “But that is a cool personal achievement. It reflects the whole team. They were able to get me the ball and get those records.”