Story by Cody Hoffman

Players sign balls for fans on Sunday at Fulton Center. (Photo by Cody Hoffman)

The New Mexico State Aggies are 2010 Western Athletic Conference champions, but the road to becoming champions was far from easy for them.

The WAC tournament road

The last two regular season games for the Aggies were against conference rivals Nevada and Utah State. Sadly, for Aggie fans those two games both ended up being losses to end their regular season. Coincidentally, the last two teams the Aggies played in the WAC tournament were those same teams.

This time, the games held more meaning and also featured a very different result.

The Aggies knocked Nevada out of the tournament on Friday and then took down Utah State the night after to claim the WAC Championship title and a spot in the NCAA tournament.

The celebration party

Aggie guard Johnathon Gibson looks to the television as the bracket seeding is revealed. (Photos by Cody Hoffman)

Sunday afternoon, the New Mexico State Athletics Department hosted a selection Sunday party for all Aggie fans, players and coaches. When the bracket was revealed, the sound of loud cheers rang from the room when the television screen showed New Mexico State, the 12th seed taking on Michigan State, the fifth seed. The last time the Aggies played in the NCAA tournament was in 2007. They played Texas and lost in the first round.

Coach Marvin Menzies

NMSU coach Marvin Menzies said the theme behind his team’s rise to becoming champions was based on the motto of “one more…”; Each time the Aggies took the court before a game, they always thought it as one more game and one at a time. This helped them to become WAC champions and find their way into the “big dance” on Friday.

The NCAA Tournament

The Aggies headed to Spokane, Wash., Wednesday. They play Friday night at 5:20 p.m. Their hope for the tournament is just “one more” game,  and in the NCAA bracket of 64 teams that includes exactly six more to becoming national champions.