Texas A&M (19-7, 11-2 SEC) entered Wednesday night’s matchup vs. the Arkansas Razorbacks (17-9, 6-7 SEC) with a substantial amount of outside pressure concerning the SEC standings after the No. 1 ranked Alabama Crimson Tide fell on the road to No. 10 Tennesee just minutes before Tip-off, Alabama’s loss meant that if the Aggies go undefeated in their next six games starting with the Razorbacks, the chance of a conference championship is 100% in their future. In one of the roughest SEC matches of the season, Texas A&M fought back from a nine-point halftime deficit to defeat Arkansas 62-56 to win their 19th game on the season, and 11th in SEC play.
In a game where the Aggies only shot 35% from the field, they were a solid 50% from 3-point land, where Wade Taylor IV’s next-level performance included 3-5 from deep and a game-high 18 points on the night. Dexter Dennis was equally impressive with a 14 points 11 rebound double-double, followed by 12 points from Tyrece “Boots” Radford. Reserve forward Andersson Garcia provided his usual defensive presence off the bench, grabbing 10 rebounds with several in key moments down the stretch.
This game was a clear-cut defensive win for the Aggies, recording 36 rebounds, including 9 offensive boards and 9 steals, all while succeeding at the free throw going 18-22 (81.8%), shooting more than 80% at the stripe in their second straight contest.
In the loss, Arkansas was led by Devonte Davis with 14 points, and Mahki Mitchell with 11 points and 9 rebounds. while shooting 44 % from the field, but only 31.3% from 3-point territory, and 50% (7-14) from the free-throw line.
Now, as we know, Head coach Buzz Williams constantly preaches to his team to take it one game at a time, and after falling to the Razorbacks 81-70 inside Bud Walton Arena on Jan. 31st, simply seeking revenge took a back seat to vastly improving on the areas they struggled the most in the loss, specifically scoring near the rim.
Those improvements did not immediately transpire, as the first half was utterly abysmal offensively for both teams but controlled by outstanding defensive efforts from both squads, as the Aggies started the game a whopping 1-14 from the field, trailing 10-4 with just 11 minutes left in the half. Arkansas on the other hand was equally terrible, going on a nearly six-minute scoring drought of their own, but were still shooting in the 40% range. At the 4:44 mark, after Henry Coleman III hit a layup and attached a foul shot, both teams began trading baskets at a fast clip, including five points from Tyrece “Boots” Radford. Trailing 28-21 with 2:32 left, Texas A&M’s offense stalled out yet again, driving to the basket at a consistent rate, but coming up short due to contested shots and a lack of open lanes.
From the 2:32 mark to the end of the first half, the Aggies’ offense consisted of the following sequence: miss, miss, miss, miss, miss, and a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from guard Hayden Hefner, who made his first three in five games, giving the Aggies a slight boost of momentum going into halftime. However, Arkansas hit their final nine shots, completely dominating the final eight minutes of the half.
Texas A&M at the half: Field goal percentage: 29%. 3-point percentage: 28.6%. Free throw percentage: 75%. Rebounds; 14. Arkansas at the half: Field goal percentage: 52%. 3-point percentage: 66.7%. Free throw percentage: 50%. Rebounds: 20.
HALFTIME: Arkansas: 33, Texas A&M: 24
Looking to regroup and recapture their second-half turnaround magic from last week’s comeback against the Auburn Tigers, it seemed that Hayden Hefner’s last-second deep shot injected the Aggies with new life, as leading scorer Wade Taylor IV took over as we’ve witnessed time and time again, scoring 11 points including two 3-pointers and the go-ahead layup for a 14-4 Aggie run, as Texas A&M led 38-37 at the 16:10 mark. The Razorbacks would not go away, scoring five quick points to retake the lead 42-40, and after a cylinder foul under the basket on Dexter Dennis, the Aggies would already rack up five fouls with over twelve minutes remaining.
Texas A&M’s performance on defense and at the free throw line in the second half can’t be understated, shooting 81% from the stripe thus far, and shutting down Arkansas’ half-court offensive sets, though a 7-0 nothing run from the Razorbacks forced Buzz Williams to call a timeout with 9:17 left, trailing 49-44. Needing a run of their own after a 2:30-minute scoring drought, the offensive looked disjointed, needing to establish some sort of continuity to avoid Arkansas from extending the lead even further. Suddenly breaking through with a 7-2 run, Wade Taylor IV, scoring 16 points in the second half, hit a game-tying 3-pointer to tie the game at 51-51 with 6:43 remaining.
The final four minutes of regulation were an absolute slugfest, as both squads struggled around the rim, Dexter Dennis hit the go-ahead put-back layup with 2:43 left to take a 55-53 lead, where Aggies led in offensive rebounds 8-5 in the most vital moments of the game. After four straight free throw misses by the Razorbacks combined with three consecutive failed offensive possessions, Henry Coleman’s putback layup with 34 seconds left to put the Aggies up 57-53, resulting in consecutive fouls by the Razorbacks. Co-game MVP Dexter Dennis hit four free throws while recording a steal on Arkansas’s inbound attempt, followed by one last free throw made by Tyrece Radford to seal the 62-56 victory, reaching their best start in the SEC at an incredible 11-2 in conference play, and staying perfect at home in the conference as well.
Texas A&M’s upcoming schedule doesn’t do them any favors going forward, traveling to Columbia, Missouri to take on the Missouri Tigers on Saturday afternoon. But please, don’t let that instill any doubt in the most resilient college basketball team this season, because no matter the challenge presented or the adversity felt throughout any game this season, this team has responded time and time again, so expect nothing less in the final five regular season games. Gig ‘Em, and BTHO Missouri.
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