Friday, January 2
Las Cruces, N.M.
8:00 PM ET/6:00 PM MT
Liberty University
7-5,1-0CUSA
67
at
62
New Mexico State
4-9,0-1CUSA
1st quarter1
2nd quarter2
3rd quarter3
4th quarter4
FinalF
Liberty
7
16
14
30
67
New Mexico St.
11
13
18
20
62
JaKayla Thompson
Liberty Wins CUSA Opener with Late 11-0 Run
1/3/2026 12:03:00 AM | Women's Basketball
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Liberty began defense of its CUSA title with a gritty 67-62 win at New Mexico State, Friday evening at the Pan American Center. The Lady Flames trailed for most of the contest, including a seven-point deficit early in the fourth period. But Avery Mills scored eight of her career-high 25 points during a late 11-0 surge which put Liberty on top for good.
The Lady Flames are now 7-5 overall and open CUSA play with a road win for the second year in a row after snapping a three-game losing streak. After a cold shooting start, Liberty hit 80 percent (8-of-10) of its field goals during a 30-point fourth quarter to improve to 6-0 all-time against the Aggies.
New Mexico State drops to 4-9 overall and 0-1 in CUSA action despite leading for 32:10 of the contest and by as many as eight points. The Aggies got a career-high 29 points from Imani Warren but went more than five minutes between made field goals as Liberty made its fourth quarter comeback.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Mills – 25 points, 5-8 3FG; Emmy Stout – 15 points, 9 rebounds; Ify Nwaobi – 9 points, 6 rebounds, 4-5 FG; Elisabeth Aegisdottir – 7 points, 9 rebounds; JaKayla Thompson – 7 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists.
New Mexico State Individuals: Warren – 29 points, 5 assists, 4 steals, 12-20 FG; Lucia Yenes – 16 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals; Morane Dossou – 8 points, 6 rebounds.
Key Team Stats: Liberty finished at 42.6 percent (23-of-54) from the field, including 56 percent (14-of-25) after halftime. The Lady Flames shot 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from beyond the arc after missing their first 10 triples of the night. Liberty was 68.2 percent (15-of-22) at the line, including 73.3 percent (11-of-15) in the fourth quarter. New Mexico State countered at 44.8 percent (26-of-58) from the floor, 33.3 percent (6-of-18) from three-point range and 66.7 percent (4-of-6) from the charity stripe. The Lady Flames enjoyed a sizeable 41-26 rebounding advantage, aided by 15 offensive boards. Liberty committed 19 turnovers, but only one during the decisive final period.
Turning Point
Loes Rozing hit both of her free throw attempts with 3:02 left in the contest, giving New Mexico State a 54-51 advantage.
Mills countered with a game-tying triple on Liberty's next possession, kick-starting the aforementioned 11-0 surge.
Stout came up with a steal which led to her own pair of made free throws.
Mills then knocked down what proved to be the dagger, a three-pointer over Aggie center Dossou late in the shot clock. The sophomore's shot from the wing swished through the net with 53.3 seconds remaining, extending the lead to 59-54.
Liberty then connected on eight of 10 free throw attempts the rest of the way to seal its come-from-behind triumph.
Notes and Nuggets
Liberty will wrap up its road swing by making a quick trip down I-10 to face UTEP (9-3, 1-0 CUSA). Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. Eastern on Sunday at the Don Haskins Center, and the game will air on ESPN+.
The Lady Flames are now 7-5 overall and open CUSA play with a road win for the second year in a row after snapping a three-game losing streak. After a cold shooting start, Liberty hit 80 percent (8-of-10) of its field goals during a 30-point fourth quarter to improve to 6-0 all-time against the Aggies.
New Mexico State drops to 4-9 overall and 0-1 in CUSA action despite leading for 32:10 of the contest and by as many as eight points. The Aggies got a career-high 29 points from Imani Warren but went more than five minutes between made field goals as Liberty made its fourth quarter comeback.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Mills – 25 points, 5-8 3FG; Emmy Stout – 15 points, 9 rebounds; Ify Nwaobi – 9 points, 6 rebounds, 4-5 FG; Elisabeth Aegisdottir – 7 points, 9 rebounds; JaKayla Thompson – 7 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists.
New Mexico State Individuals: Warren – 29 points, 5 assists, 4 steals, 12-20 FG; Lucia Yenes – 16 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals; Morane Dossou – 8 points, 6 rebounds.
Key Team Stats: Liberty finished at 42.6 percent (23-of-54) from the field, including 56 percent (14-of-25) after halftime. The Lady Flames shot 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from beyond the arc after missing their first 10 triples of the night. Liberty was 68.2 percent (15-of-22) at the line, including 73.3 percent (11-of-15) in the fourth quarter. New Mexico State countered at 44.8 percent (26-of-58) from the floor, 33.3 percent (6-of-18) from three-point range and 66.7 percent (4-of-6) from the charity stripe. The Lady Flames enjoyed a sizeable 41-26 rebounding advantage, aided by 15 offensive boards. Liberty committed 19 turnovers, but only one during the decisive final period.
Turning Point
Loes Rozing hit both of her free throw attempts with 3:02 left in the contest, giving New Mexico State a 54-51 advantage.
Mills countered with a game-tying triple on Liberty's next possession, kick-starting the aforementioned 11-0 surge.
Stout came up with a steal which led to her own pair of made free throws.
Mills then knocked down what proved to be the dagger, a three-pointer over Aggie center Dossou late in the shot clock. The sophomore's shot from the wing swished through the net with 53.3 seconds remaining, extending the lead to 59-54.
Liberty then connected on eight of 10 free throw attempts the rest of the way to seal its come-from-behind triumph.
Notes and Nuggets
- Mills' career-high 25 points were the most by a Lady Flame since Bella Smuda had 27 at Tennessee on Nov. 16, 2024, and she equaled her career high of five triples during her fourth 20-point game of the year.
- Mills posted 21 points after halftime, marking the highest-scoring half by a Liberty player since Feb. 29, 2024. That day, current assistant Emma Hess tallied 24 second-half points in a 60-56 win at New Mexico State.
- Stout scored in double figures for the 10th time this season (15 points) and narrowly missed a double-double with her nine boards (six offensive).
- Aegisdottir's nine rebounds set a season high.
- Nwaobi notched seven of her nine points during the fourth quarter.
- The Lady Flames scored more points during the fourth quarter (30) than during the game's first 24:48 (29).
- Liberty improves to 3-0 at the Pan American Center, but all three wins have been decided by 10 points or fewer.
- The Lady Flames began conference play with a road game for the 10th time in the last 12 seasons, dating back to their time in the Big South.
Liberty will wrap up its road swing by making a quick trip down I-10 to face UTEP (9-3, 1-0 CUSA). Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. Eastern on Sunday at the Don Haskins Center, and the game will air on ESPN+.
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Team Stats
Lib
NMSU
FG%
.426
.448
3FG%
.316
.333
FT%
.682
.667
RB
41
26
TO
19
13
STL
10
13
Game Leaders
Pts
25
FGM
9
3FGM
5
FTM
2
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
7
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
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