Julius Mims led the New Mexico State Aggies to an impressive 81-72 victory over the Samford Bulldogs at the Pan American Center on Friday night, scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. With this win, the Aggies improve their season record to 4-0, while the Bulldogs drop to 3-4.
The game commenced with the Aggies surging ahead, starting with an 8-2 run. However, Samford fought back to take their first lead after Isaiah Campbell-Finch made a layup, bringing the score to 13-12. The momentum shifted again as Kyrese Mullen scored with just over 10 minutes left in the first half, putting the Aggies back in front at 19-17. From that point, NMSU maintained their lead, heading into halftime with a score of 40-32.
In terms of shooting, the Aggies displayed a strong performance, hitting 54% of their field goals (31-57) and 44% from three-point range (7-16). In contrast, Samford struggled, shooting just 40% from the field (24-60) and a mere 27% from beyond the arc (8-30).
In addition to Mims’ standout performance, Jemel Jones contributed 10 points and 3 rebounds, while Gabe Pickens had 3 points, 7 rebounds, and a remarkable 8 assists. Notably, the Aggies effectively limited Jadin Booth, who came into the game as one of the nation’s top scorers averaging 24.2 points per game, holding him to just 3 points.
Looking ahead, the Aggies will be traveling to Mexico to compete against UC Irvine on Tuesday in the Cancun Classic, aiming to continue their winning streak. This strong performance against Samford reflects the team’s growing cohesion and talent as they advance further into the season, instilling confidence in their fans and setting the stage for future successes.