Despite holding a 10-point lead at halftime on Thursday, the Arkansas women’s basketball team let off the gas after the break and fell to Texas A&M, 73-67, in College Station.
The Aggies (17-9, 6-7 SEC) outscored the Razorbacks (18-10, 6-7 SEC) in the second half, 53-37.
Junior Samara Spencer led all scorers with 24 points, including a clutch three-pointer late in the game, to give Arkansas it’s final lead, 65-64. But A&M finished the game on a 9-2 run to put it on ice.
After trailing 15-13 at the end of the first quarter, Arkansas began to heat up in the second, outscoring the Aggies 17-8, to take a 30-20 lead into the half.
Sophomore Maryam Dauda and senior Makayla Daniels opened the second half with back-to-back threes, but allowed the Aggies to answer both shots with layups on the other end. Texas A&M went on an 8-0 run to go up 36-32 with 7:15 left in the third.
A layup by Dauda, off an offensive board, tied the game at 41-41. After the Hogs took a two-point lead, the Aggies drained a three to end the quarter with a 49-48 advantage.
An 8-2 run to start the fourth period increased the Aggie lead to seven. A three from sophomore Saylor Poffenbarger, and a pair of Spencer free throws, kept the Razorbacks within four. Spencer hit a short jumper, then a triple, to give Arkansas its final lead with less than three minutes to play.
A&M scored the next six points to secure the path to victory.
Spencer went 9-of-18 from the field, 2-of-3 from beyond the arc and 4-of-5 from the line, to record her sixth 20-point game of the season. She also registered three rebounds, two assists, two blocks and one steal.
Dauda netted 17 points, going 7-of-12 from the field and 2-of-3 from the arc, while tacking on six rebounds, two assists, two blocks and three steals. Daniels finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and three assists in 39 minutes of action, while
Arkansas will next host Vanderbilt on Sunday for “Pack for Mak” to honor Daniels’ Senior Day, with a 2 p.m. tipoff on SECN+.