Bucky McMillan and Texas A&M Basketball get the victory in Austin for the first time since 2002, beating the Longhorns 74-70. This was the first time making the trip to Austin for first-year Aggie coach Bucky McMillan, and he got the win against long time high-major head coach Sean Miller.
With the victory, the Aggies will improve to 14-4 on the season and 4-1 in SEC conference play. The Longhorns will fall to 11-7 overall and 2-3 in conference. This was a big win for the Aggies' NCAA tournament hopes as they pick up another quad 1 win and were commonly hovering around the bubble. This win could put them in a much more comfortable position, while the loss for the Longhorns will likely put them on the outside looking in.
Texas A&M picks up needed and emotional win over Longhorns in Austin
Shooting was much better as a team today, especially early in the second half. The Aggies shot 51% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc while the Longhorns only shot 42% and 29%, respectively. Rylan Griffen and Rashaun Agee led the way for the Aggies with 17 points apiece. Dominguez was the only other Aggie with over 10 points. The Aggies continued to distribute the ball, however, with 6 other players scoring.
So how was the game as close as it was? Naturally, this team still struggled to pull away and close games out, but clutch Jacari Lane free throws and poor Longhorn clock management got the job done down the stretch. The Longhorns were also much better at the free throw line going 20-26 while the Aggies only went 12-19. The Aggies once again were outrebounded, losing the battle 37-30. Luckily, they didn't cost the team in crunch time.
Although the Aggies only were able to force 8 turnovers, they only gave up 6 themselves and limited the Longhorns to a measly 6 points off the bench. The Longhorn core of Pope, Swain, Mark, and Vokietaitis accounted for 61 of the 70 total team points which will be hard to be a sustainable model for the Longhorns as the season rolls on.
The Aggies have a very manageable week coming up with home games against Mississippi State on Wednesday and South Carolina on Saturday. Both teams are currently in the bottom half of conference standings but will be hungry for a quad 1 road win in College Station. Check back on Tuesday for my full preview of Wednesday's matchup against Mississippi State.