By Ricky Kim
The BYU women?s basketball team lost its third straight game Wednesday night, this time 54-52 to New Mexico State.
The defeat in the Marriott Center marked the first three-game losing streak for the Cougars (3-5) since January 2004.
?It?s an uphill battle for us right now,? BYU coach Jeff Judkins said. ?Tonight we had many, many, many opportunities to win the game. We have a difficult time making a play to get us over the hump.?
In a back-and-forth game, BYU found itself trailing by four with 30 seconds left to play. After a timeout, the Cougars? Mallary Gillespie-Carling got fouled on top of the key with 9.3 seconds remaining. She sank both free throws, then immediately fouled the Aggies? Sherell Neal. Neal missed the front end of a one-plus-one, giving the Cougars a chance to tie, but Shawnee Slade missed a last-second baseline shot.
?We just need to execute,? Carling said. ?We lost three games in a row and that?s hard.?
After scoring a season-high 22 points against Sacred Heart on Saturday, Carling?s first points came in the second half on a three-pointer. She was 0-for-5 from the field in the first half. She finished Wednesday?s game with 16 points and six assists.
At one point in the game BYU appeared to be pulling away from New Mexico State, at 22-14, but a few key steals and defensive stops put the Aggies right back in the game. NMSU outscored BYU 12-4 the rest of the way for a 26-26 halftime score.
The Aggies gradually pulled away in the second half, leading by as much as seven points.
?If you look at the stats they are pretty even,? Judkins said. ?The difference of the game was the first six minutes of the second half.?
?It?s just a slow process for us because we are a young team,? BYU?s Lauren Riley-Varley said.
The Cougars next play Utah Valley State 1t 5 p.m. Saturday in the Marriott Center.
–BYU Athletic Communications contributed to this report
