NM State Aggies vs UTEP Miners Women’s Basketball 12-10-17

I’m still not over that last game versus the Lobos.  I can’t believe what I saw for a shooting performance out of both teams.  On the Aggie Coaches Show, Assistant Coach Ryan McAdams said it wasn’t a defensive issue with 194 total points scored in the game; both teams were just shooting that well and playing up tempo.  He also admitted that, even in a loss, it was a great game to watch.  Looking at the stats from the Aggies’ previous games, there were over 5,000 people for their game in Albuquerque versus the Lobos.  Little wonder there were so many Lobos here last Saturday for their team.  UNM might be nationally ranked at this point.  

For this game, Ron was joining me.  I told him I was sorry he wasn’t with me last weekend.  He was unavailable, out shopping with his wife.  He got a kick out of Coach Martin’s speech when I repeated it to him.  We hadn’t seen each other in a while, so we caught up over lunch at Schlotzsky’s beforehand.  It was a really light crowd to begin with at the Pan-Am Center, but it filled in reasonably by tipoff.  The Roadrunner Review band and the Sundancers weren’t there, but the Cheerleaders were.  The students were on break after finals.  There was a small section of orange-clad Miner fans behind their bench.      

There was no radio call for this game.  In fact, it was on over-the-air TV.  I could have watched this for free, instead of paying $8 a ticket (that’s an extra $2 for a rivalry fee like the Lobo game).  The Miners were broadcasting the game on KROD.  I didn’t think I’d be able to get reception on my portable AM radio in the arena on a non-local station.  I’m not sure who they had there, maybe Duke Keith.  Him and his color commentator seemed to be having a good time calling the game.  If Steve Kaplowitz had been there, I might have wanted to say “Hello.”  He mentioned recently that he liked the old-timey feel of the Pan-Am Center and thought it produced a better game atmosphere than the Don Haskins Center.

The UTEP players held a loud rally in the entrance tunnel before coming out on court.  While the program showed 12 players, they only brought 9.  I felt somewhat insulted that they didn’t bring their whole team.  Perhaps they had some injuries.  (Perhaps the TV or radio call would have helped.)  Tamara Seda was a very impressive-looking 6’4” from Mozambique and solidly built.  Katarina Zec was an extremely eye-catching Serbian blonde on the team.  They never mention important things like that on radio or TV broadcasts.  We’d be watching Katarina for reasons beyond her looks during the game. 

The Aggies didn’t come out of the tunnel with the same level of swagger frankly.  (It wasn’t the same without the band.)  I was a bit concerned about this game myself.  Since I’d been listening to the Miners this season, I could tell you that they were a good team, and the Aggies were stumbling so far this season.  Brooke Salas seemed to have worse body language than usual.  Argh!  She drives me crazy.  Brooke is so talented, but just doesn’t have the right attitude to go with it.  UTEP’s enthusiasm continued with their player introductions.  They formed another rally circle on the middle of the court.  They were loud enough that it delayed the Aggie player introductions.  

First Quarter

My note taking and scorecard keeping started off in a shaky manner.  I was making corrections and hoping for the best on the scorecard.  My only note was about a UTEP fan.  There was a lady behind their bench that stood for the whole game.  She was the most vocal of the group.  After a call didn’t go the Miners’ way, she yelled out, “Go back to your day job!”  Everybody heard that.  Well, she was passionate.  Her and the Old Man could get together and trade cheering tips.  At least both teams came out shooting well.  UTEP was shooting three’s well late in the first, but the Aggies stayed right with them.  It was 20-14 Aggies after 10 minutes.

Second Quarter

Or not.  After a review, the last Aggie three was called a two.  Unfortunately, I didn’t note who shot it, though I corrected it on the scorecard.  19-14 Aggies.  Tamera William, from last season’s team, came down the stairs with, I’m guessing, a boyfriend.  She was wearing a slinky dress which really showed off her curves.  I’d mentioned to Ron about meeting her a couple of weeks ago.  “This is why I was excited about meeting her,” I told him.   

Back at the game, a couple of Aggie turnovers tightened up the game.  The Aggies went pretty cold shooting at the end, but still kept it close.  34-33 Miners at the half.  The Miners had the lead and also the lowlight of the game as Roeshonda Patterson actually fell trying to shoot a free throw and caused a lane violation.

Halftime

I went to the bathroom for halftime.  When I came back, I saw the end of a musical chairs competition with a bunch of kids, who had to shoot a layup when the music stopped.  Ron had a good time watching it.  The halftime stats were pretty even between the teams.  They were both shooting over 40% from the field. 

Third Quarter

The Aggies came out playing a very tight, full-court defense.  It worked.  Zaire Williams grabbed a rebound and took it in for a layup to give the Aggies a 10-point lead.  Timeout Miners.  Brooke Salas, who’d gotten two fouls in the first and sat out the second, came out on fire.  She hit an NBA three-pointer, got a great assist to feed Zaire on a break, and stepped in front of a pass for a steal and a layup.  She finished with 10 points for the quarter.  UTEP started playing nervous, as they made a couple of turnovers on bad passes.  58-47 Aggies after three quarters.

  

Fourth Quarter

Gia Pack, who was having a steady game, had an awesome play taking it to the rim by herself, surrounded by three defenders.  It was worrying afterward that there was a timeout immediately and she came out.  The camera showed her in pain on the bench.  I thought her wrist may have gotten injured as a trainer looked at her.  Gia played okay when she came back in, so maybe it was a cramp or she took a shot to the ribs.

Brooke was still on fire shooting and pouring it on.  The Miners went on a run late when the Aggies went cold again.  Here I will again mention Katarina Zec.  Her awesome three-point shooting probably kept the Miners in the game.  The Miner section was going crazy, but the rest of the arena joined in.  The final blow to UTEP came near the end as Jasmine Cooper stood in the lane and bravely took a charge from Tamara Seda, which waved off a basket.  Coop came up smiling, as the Miners were out of fouls to give for the quarter.  Our final: Aggies 76, Miners 68.    

With 29 points, Brooke Salas is our player of the game.  She fouled too often during the game, but really blew it out in the second half with 6 three-pointers and contributed all over the court.  Gia Pack and Zaire Williams also had great games.  For the Miners, Katarina Zec put on a clinic with 7 three-pointers and 22 points.  Whoever was producing the video broadcast and the camera operators made sure to give her a close up whenever possible, which I appreciated.  Whew!  Nice. 

The PA announced that the Women’s Basketball booster club was meeting at the Barbara Hubbard Room for a get-together after the game.  I wanted to crash it, since my goal is now to get back into the Hub as often as possible, but we left.  Ron was happy.  He started the humming the Aggie fight song afterward as a sure sign of that.  I’m sure Coach Brooke Atkinson was happy to see four quarters of defensive effort out of her team.  I liked what I saw with the girls shooting well and defending well.  It was great to see Brooke go off and Gia and Zaire shooting well.  All three of these girls scoring in double figures every game is a key to the teams’ future success.  Both coaches (Atkinson and Kevin Baker) are in their first year with their programs.  The Miners have started out well.  I think the Aggies have taken longer to find their footing.  The Miners are a good team and this was a great win for the Aggie girls.