Aggies Falter in WAC Opener

For the first time in a WAC opening game, the New Mexico State men's basketball team suffered a 68-47 loss at UT Arlington (6-3, 1-0). The Aggies are 5-1 in conference openers under head coach Marvin Menzies.

Sophomore guard Daniel Mullings scored a game-high 21 points for the Aggies (6-7, 0-1) with his fourth 20-point effort of the season. Freshman center Sim Bhullar was also in double figures with 14 points and a career-high five blocked shots.

The Aggies struggled offensively and shot 33.3 percent from the field (17-of-51), and were out-rebounded for only the fourth game this season, 44-37.

After a sluggish start in the first half, the Aggies trailed UTA at halftime, 37-24. Mullings led NM State with a team-high nine points on 3-of-4 shooting, and Bhullar added seven points.

As a team, the Aggies only shot 32.1 percent (9-of-28) from the field in the first half. The Mavericks took advantage of a nearly four-minute scoreless span for the Aggies with 7-0 run that gave UTA a 28-14 lead. Before the break, the Aggies utilized 8-0 run to trim the Mavs lead to single digits, 32-24.

The Aggies continue their conference-opening road trip at Louisiana Tech, Monday, Dec. 31 at 6 p.m.