Texas A&M narrowly defeated the LSU Tigers 73-69 inside a packed Pete Maravich Assembly Center on Saturday afternoon, earning their second win in SEC play behind a collective team effort, led by star guard Wade Taylor IV’s 19 points, all coming in the second half.
After another slow start, falling 9-0 in the first five minutes, Taylor incurred multiple fouls, sending him to the bench for most of the first half. Needing the rest of the starting unit to step up, veteran guard Tyrece Radford (15 points, 9 rebounds) and transfer guard Jace Carter (13 points, 6 rebounds) provided enough offensive production, including six 3-pointers, to keep pace with the Tiger’s hot shooting day.
However, scoring was not the story behind the Aggies’ success, as senior forward Andersson Garcia (10 points, 10 rebounds) led the way for his third double-double of the year, helping out-rebound LSU 48-34, with 21 offensive rebounds compared to the Tiger’s 6. For reference, A&M is the country’s No. 1-ranked offensive rebounding team, averaging nearly 19 offensive boards per contest.
While the Aggies’ 11-7 (2-3 SEC) record is underwhelming on its face, Texas A&M holds an impressive 4-4 Quad 1 win record. At the same time, only four teams (Purdue, Arizona, UConn, Wisconsin) have more Quad 1 victories on the year. With the win, A&M has also risen five spots in the newest NET Rankings from 44th to 39th and is on the verge of hitting their stride as the SEC with two consecutive home games against Missouri and Ole Miss this week.
Note: If LSU continues to stack wins in conference play, Saturday’s win could result in the Aggies’ 5th Quad 1 victory at the end of the regular season.
Texas A&M will return home on January 23 to take on the Missouri Tigers at 8:00 PM CST in Reed Arena. The game will air on the SEC Network.
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