New Mexico
Deadspin | No. 22 St. John's meets New Mexico in battle of the Pitinos
St. John’s is about to see the degree of difficulty in its schedule increase, and the opener of that challenging stretch will be a family affair.
Unbeaten through three games and coming off its first win as a ranked team in nearly a decade, No. 22 St. John’s will host New Mexico on Sunday afternoon in New York in the fourth coaching matchup between Rick Pitino and his son Richard Pitino.
Rick Pitino is 2-1 against his son.
The Red Storm (3-0) are starting a week when they not only face New Mexico, but 12th-ranked Baylor on Thursday in the Baha Mar Hoops tournament in the Bahamas/ St. John’s might face 11th-ranked Tennessee or Virginia in that event.
St. John’s is coming off three wins in its on-campus arena in Queens over Fordham, Quinnipiac and Wagner by a combined 76 points.
“New Mexico is probably the No. 1 offensive-pace team in the country, and I know it better than anybody,” Rick Pitino said after the Red Storm earned their first win as a ranked team since Dec. 28, 2014.
“So we’ve got to get ready for this pace. They’ve got a great guard, they’ve got great support players, they’ve got a terrific inside player. This is a tough, tough test.”
The first three games featured moments when the Red Storm struggled, especially during Wednesday’s 66-45 win over Wagner. St. John’s scored 18 straight points to pull away in the final 10 minutes.
The Red Storm shot 50 percent from the field (21 of 42) but took 13 fewer shots than Wagner and missed 12 of 30 free throws.
RJ Luis Jr. scored 13 points as St. John’s top scorer, but Aaron Scott made three key shots during the decisive run and added 11. Scott made his key contributions after sitting out against Quinnipiac on Nov. 9 with an illness and tweaking his ankle in practice ahead of the Wagner game.
“We did our job against these three teams,” Rick Pitino said. “Now it’s really going to get tough.”
Pitino changed the starting lineup by having Kadary Richmond come off the bench along with Zuby Ejiofor, but both could return to starting on Sunday.
New Mexico (3-0) received 15 points in this week’s Top 25 poll and is seeking its second win over a ranked opponent this season. The Lobos knocked UCLA out of this week’s poll by beating the then-No. 22 Bruins 72-64 on Nov. 8.
New Mexico is attempting to start 4-0 for the second time in three seasons after earning a 100-81 home win over Texas A&M Corpus Christi on Tuesday, when the Lobos forced 22 turnovers following forcing 21 against UCLA.
Donovan Dent, who is averaging a team-high 19 points a game for the Lobos, totaled 25 points and 10 assists and continued his improvement from his sophomore season. Dent averaged 14.1 points on 52 percent shooting from the field but last season but is shooting 58.8 percent in 2024-25.
“It was a good win for our guys,” Richard Pitino said. “I thought they were ready to go. When you have a big win like UCLA, everyone is telling them how great they are. Then you have another big game against St. John’s coming up. I thought the mental approach was terrific to handle their business against (Corpus Christi).”
Besides Dent’s big showing on Tuesday, Kayde Dotson added 18 points and Tru Washington 15.
–Field Level Media
DONA ANA COUNTY, N.M. – (KFOX14/CBS4) — Some El Paso Electric customers in New Mexico are speaking out against a proposed rate increase that could raise the average monthly household bill by more than $40 by late next year.
The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission, which will decide whether to approve the proposal, held a public comment hearing earlier this week in Las Cruces.
During the meeting, customers and community members questioned the size of the request and whether the utility is doing enough to serve customers in southern New Mexico.
“This is a border town. It is a college town. It is a retiree town. It’s a military town. We’re not rich like Santa Fe, and the rates just keep going up and up and up,” said Kathy Lucero, a Las Cruces resident.
“We ratepayers and energy consumers should not be asked to subsidize these excessive profits,” said Lynn Moore, a Dona Ana County resident.
El Paso Electric is asking for a $70.4 million increase to its base rates for customers in New Mexico.
El Paso Electric seeks $70.4M hike; average NM bills could rise nearly $42 a month
The utility says the request is needed to recover costs from more than $400 million in New Mexico system investments, including upgrades, reliability improvements and rising costs.
After the hearing, Israel Chavez, a local civil rights attorney, said accessibility is also a concern as the utility asks customers to pay more.
“El Paso Electric closed its office on Water Street. There is no physical office to go to if you live with a disability, if you don’t have the technology to access your utility bill or to talk to somebody, there is no place to go unless you go to El Paso. And I think it’s wrong for El Paso Electric to cut services and then increase rates,” Chavez said.
In a statement addressing concerns about access, El Paso Electric said, “El Paso Electric continues to provide reliable service, along with a range of customer support resources to meet diverse needs, including assistance with account access, bill understanding, and payments.”
The utility added, “We recognize that changes like this can have its challenges, particularly for customers who may face barriers to technology or prefer in-person support. However, we remain committed to ensuring our customers feel supported and have access to the help they need when they need it.”
El Paso Electric said customers can still manage their accounts online, call customer care, or use authorized payment kiosks throughout its service area.
The New Mexico PRC has not made a final decision on the rate request.
If approved, the increase would start taking effect next year in two phases.
FULL PUBLIC COMMENT HEARING
Final community meeting on proposed EPE rate hike in New Mexico draws mixed reactions
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CHIMAYO, N.M. (KRQE) – A suspect is dead following a shooting involving the Rio Arriba County Sheriff’s Office in Chimayo on Highway 76. Deputies are said to be okay. New Mexico State Police is investigating the shooting.
KRQE News 13 will provide updates as they become available.
LAS CRUCES, N.M. (KFOX14/CBS4) — A leader in the New Mexico Republican Party was arrested Wednesday, accused of a deadly hit-and-run in Las Cruces.
Former Treasurer of the Republican Party in New Mexico, Kimberly Ann Skaggs, 54, was arrested Wednesday and charged with leaving the scene and tampering with evidence, jail records show.
Police documents show the charges stem from a deadly hit-and-run crash that happened Monday afternoon, which killed 40-year-old bicyclist, Andrew Brown.
Investigators believed Skaggs was involved after an investigation revealed that Skaggs allegedly was driving fast in the area, fled the scene after the crash and then tried to hide the vehicle from authorities.
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The investigation
According to police documents, a witness at the scene of the crash– 850 N. Fairacres Rd.– described seeing a dark blonde-haired woman flee in a black Cadillac Escalade SUV.
Afterwards, investigators said they saw on Flock cameras– A.I. powered license plate readers– a black Cadillac Escalade traveling near the site of the crash minutes before the incident.
READ MORE: Dona Ana County expands Flock license plate cameras as officials cite crime-solving gains
The license plates showed that the vehicle belonged to Skaggs and that, in September 2025, the Las Cruces Police Department had given her a citation for “racing on streets-exhibition driving.”
Investigators stated that a business on Picacho Ave. captured what they alleged was the same black Cadillac Escalade driving fast.
Then, the documents described how investigators tracked down the Escalade using OnStar’s live GPS tracking, discovering the SUV was at a property on the 5000 block of Northwind Road, which investigators said the Dona Ana County Assessors Office confirmed is a property owned by Skaggs.
On Tuesday, at around 6:41 p.m.– over 24 hours after the deadly hit-and-run– investigators executed a search warrant on the property and described finding the black Cadillac Escalade behind a home, under a red metal carport.
Investigators noted damage on the SUV consistent with the crash, highlighting that there was blood splatter near one of the front tires, markings on the front bumper consistent with hitting a bicycle and parts missing, which investigators said were the same parts found at the scene.
Dona Ana County jail records show Skaggs was booked on Wednesday afternoon and remains jailed without a bond.
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About Skaggs
On the official website of the Republican Party of New Mexico, Skaggs was listed as the treasurer before she was removed.
KFOX14/CBS4 has reached out to the Republican Party to learn more and are waiting for a comment regarding the arrest.
Also, according to election statistics, Skaggs ran for State Representative in District 36 in 2022 and 2024, losing both times to Democrat Nathan P. Small.
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