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SEATTLE – An off-night for Seattle University men’s basketball saw the Redhawks drop a 60-87 decision against visiting New Mexico State on Thursday night at the Redhawk Center.
Delante Jones led the Redhawks (12-7, 0-4 WAC) with 18 points, his fifth consecutive double-figure scoring night. Battling early foul trouble, Myles Carter chipped in 13 points before drawing his fifth foul with 9:45 to play.
The Aggies (14-4, 3-1 WAC) took the game by storm from the opening jump, finishing the frame shooting better than 62 percent from the field and 50 percent from three. JoJo Zamora led the Aggies with 12 points in the first half.
Short Matej Kavas due to a knee injury, and battling foul trouble, the Redhawks struggled to find offensive flow. They managed just 9-29 from the field and 1-7 from beyond the arc in the first half. NM State would go 8-12 from the charity stripe and Seattle U was just 5-10.
Jones and Carter chipped in seven points apiece in the frame to keep the Redhawks afloat, but the Aggies would close out the half with a 32-13 run, leaving Seattle U with 24-50 deficit to deal with at halftime.
The Redhawks fared better in the second half as Jones scored 11 of his team-high 18 in the frame. Aaron Nettles added six points off the bench and Carter had six on 3-5 shooting before fouling out. Morgan Means finished just 3-11 from the field for eight points. The junior added a team-high four assists, two steals and four rebounds.
Shooting 50 percent from the field, the Redhawks made a game of the second half, 37-36 in favor of the Aggies, but the first half hole was too much to overcome.
"New Mexico State played really, really well tonight. That's the main story," said Head Coach Jim Hayford. "On the other hand, we're having to gain some valuable experience right now and the hardest part of experience is gaining it. I don't make excuses for injuries. Someone else has to step up and we have to find a place to have that person step up.
"But with that said, a lot of the problems in terms of defending, rebounding, making an extra pass...we as coaches, need to bring the right chemistry back together and see it through these dark days of the season," Hayford continued. "We need to coach harder, players need to focus and we need to come together and keep improving as a team."
Seattle U looks to bounce back on Saturday, Jan. 14 as it concludes a two-game WAC homestand against UTRGV. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at the Redhawk Center.