Tag: Solomon Washington

Big first half propels Texas A&M men’s basketball team to victory versus Mississippi State

For the first time in nearly a month, the Aggies have won back-to-back SEC games following a 75-69 win vs. Mississippi State on Wednesday.

For the first time in nearly a month, the Texas A&M men’s basketball team has won back-to-back games in conference play.

The Aggies (17-13, 8-9 SEC) defeated Mississippi State (19-11, 8-9) by a final score of 75-69 on Wednesday night at Reed Arena in College Station. Texas A&M outscored the Bulldogs 45-32 in the first 20 minutes of action to take a controlling lead into halftime.

Aggies junior guard Manny Obaseki tallied a team-high, scoring 17 points on 6-of-12 field goal attempts, 2-of-3 from 3-point range, and 3-of-4 from the free-throw line. Sophomore forward Solomon Washington nearly recorded a double-double with 15 points and 9 rebounds.

Wednesday’s home finale follows Saturday’s double-digit road triumph at Georgia this past weekend, which snapped a five-game losing streak. Texas A&M is on the bubble of the NCAA Tournament with the SEC Tournament beginning next week.

The Aggies conclude the regular season on Saturday afternoon at The Pavilion in Oxford, Mississippi against Ole Miss. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.

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Texas A&M receives double-digit votes in newest AP Poll after defeating Tennessee

After defeating Then No. 6 Tennessee on Saturday night, Texas A&M has received double digit votes in the newest AP Poll on Monday.

Texas A&M (15-8, 6-4 SEC) is on quite the hot streak in SEC play after defeating the then-No. 6-ranked Tennessee Volunteers 85-69 on Saturday night behind the stellar play of the Aggies’ elite guard duo, Tyrece Radford (27 points, five assists) and Wade Taylor IV (25 points 7 assists).

The days of sitting at 1-3 in the conference seem like a distant memory, as the Aggies have finally looked like the Top 15 team with National Championship hopes that entered the 2023-2024 season. With now five all-important Quad 1 wins, A&M is currently receiving some love from both the rankings, including the newest AP Top 25 Poll, earning 16 votes.

While Radford and Taylor engineered more than 50% of the scoring effort, forwards Andersson Garcia (6 points, 17 rebounds) and Solomon Washington (11 points, seven rebounds) did the dirty work inside, while the latter defender successfully guarded Vols guard Zakai Zeigler and star guard Dalton Knecht throughout the night.

Texas A&M will return on the road to take on Vanderbilt on February 13 at 6:00 p.m. CT. The game will air on ESPNU.

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After defeating Tennessee, Texas A&M has received votes in the newest USA TODAY Coaches poll

After defeating Tennessee last Saturday, Texas A&M has now received votes in the newest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.

It’s official: Texas A&M (15-8, 6-4 SEC) is on a hot streak in SEC play after defeating the then-No. 6-ranked Tennessee Volunteers 85-69 on Saturday night behind the stellar play of the Aggies’ elite guard duo, Tyrece Radford (27 points, five assists) and Wade Taylor IV (25 points 7 assists).

Now, two games over .500 in conference play, Texas A&M shot nearly 50% from the field for their second consecutive game, as head coach Buzz Williams noted the various adjustments he made to free things up and focus on driving toward the basket.

“Offensively, we made some unique adjustments that we have never done. Same, defensively.”

Defensively, forwards Andersson Garcia (6 points, 17 rebounds) and Solomon Washington (11 points, seven rebounds) were light out in the paint. At the same time, Washington’s freaky athleticism guarding speedy Vols guard Zakai Zeigler and star guard Dalton Knecht paid off tenfold.

With the win, the Aggies received nine votes in the newest USA TODAY Coaches Poll, while Tennesse moved down three spots to No. 6.

Here is the entire Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports:

Rank Team Record Points Change
1 UConn 22-2 792 (24) –
2 Purdue 22-2 776 (8) –
3 Houston 21-3 722 +2
4 Marquette 18-5 647 +3
5 North Carolina 19-5 643 -2
6 Arizona 19-5 642 +2
7 Kansas 19-5 635 -3
8 Duke 18-5 529 +2
9 Tennessee 17-6 524 -3
10 Iowa State 18-5 510 +4
11 South Carolina 21-3 475 +9
12 Auburn 19-5 421 -1
13 Baylor 17-6 402 –
14 Illinois 17-6 356 -2
15 Alabama 17-7 337 +1
16 Creighton 17-7 242 +2
17 BYU 17-6 202 +2
18 Dayton 19-4 195 -1
19 St Mary’s 20-6 185 +7
20 Kentucky 16-7 136 -5
21 Wisconsin 16-8 117 -12
21 Oklahoma 18-6 117 +10
23 Virginia 19-5 109 +7
24 Indiana State 22-3 106 +3
25 Colorado State 19-5 96 +4

Schools Dropped Out

No. 21 Utah State; No. 22 Florida Atlantic; No. 23 Texas Tech; No. 24 San Diego State; No. 25 New Mexico

Others Receiving Votes

Utah State 94; Texas Tech 89; Florida Atlantic 63; Clemson 38; Gonzaga 35; San Diego State 34; Nevada 27; TCU 20; Washington State 18; Grand Canyon 13; Texas A&M 9; New Mexico 8; Florida 8; Northwestern 6; South Florida 5; Wake Forest 4; VCU 4

Texas A&M will return on the road to take on Vanderbilt on February 13 at 6:00 p.m. CT. The game will air on ESPNU.

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Everything Tyrece Radford & Solomon Washington had to say after the win over Florida

Here’s what Texas A&M players Washington and Radford had to say after the win at home over Florida.

Texas A&M (13-8, 4-4 SEC) stormed back in the second half to defeat a hot Florida Gators (15-7, 5-4 SEC) team on Saturday afternoon.

The Aggies needed a win to keep pace in a very competitive SEC where there was a log jam in the middle of the conference with five teams at 3-3.5 games out of the top spot.

While A&M did go cold from the field after starting hot, they continued to attack the basket and play solid defense, leading to a much better second half. Tyrece Radford went off for a game-high 26 points, and sophomore forward Solomon Washington’s defense caused multiple turnovers down the stretch to seal the win. Both sat down after the game to discuss their performances after the victory.

“it’s a team win it wasn’t just only me my big game I think. Manny played big minutes Solo played big minutes everybody who played really did a good job at what they was supposed to do”

-Radford

“I told them put me on zero simple, uh we lost the last game on that type of shot, so I feel like I’m the best defender on the team, so I just accepted the challenge I said I wanted them and I want a match up right now”

– Washington

Below, you can watch the full post-game presser with Solomon Washington & Tyrece Radford.

Texas A&M will be back on the road to take on the Missouri Tigers on February 7th at 8:00 pm CT

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Texas A&M Basketball stays pat in newest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

After a tremendous comeback to beat Iowa State 73-69, Texas A&M stays pat in the newest USA TODAY Coaches Poll.

Texas A&M Basketball played one of their best games under head coach Buzz Williams in quite some time, coming back from a 21-point deficit against Iowa State in the ESPN Invitational Consolation round on Sunday to defeat the Cyclones 73-69, all while missing two key starters in senior forward Henry Coleman III, and senior guard Tyrece Radford.

Sitting at an impressive 6-1 on the year, the Aggies will now travel to face Virginia in Charlottesville on Wednesday as just another game in their already tough schedule to prepare for the gauntlet that is SEC play in early January.

On Monday, the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll released its updated men’s basketball poll. The Aggies stayed put at No. 13 after sustaining their first loss against FAU. Texas A&M is the third-highest ranked SEC team below Kentucky (No. 12) and Tennessee (No. 11).

Outside of Texas A&M, Kentucky, and Tennesse, Alabama (No. 20) and the surprise team in the SEC thus far, the undefeated Mississippi State Bulldogs (No. 22) fill out the rankings, perfectly representing the conference for its dominance on the court.

Texas A&M will travel to Charlottesville, Virginia, to face the Virginia Cavaliers on Wednesday, Nov. 29. The game will air on ESPN2 at 6:15 CT.

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No. 12 Texas A&M storms back to beat Iowa State 73-69 in consolation game of the ESPN Invitational Tournament

Texas A&M erased a 21-point deficit in a big comeback win over the Big 12’s Iowa State

No. 12 Texas A&M (6-1) beat Iowa State (5-1) for the third-place finish at the ESPN Events Invitational on Sunday.

Missing Tyrece Radford and Henry Coleman, the Aggies had an arduous task and needed a lot of help from the bench. It was a very rocky journey after Jace Carter tied the game 2-2 early as Iowa State would go on a 24-10 run before the Aggies would score again. After falling down big to Iowa State, the Aggies would soon go on an 11-0 run to pull within 10 to close out the 1st half down 35-25.

Texas A&M clawed their way back into the game to get the deficit down to four with 15 minutes left. Then back-to-back Wade Taylor scored, finally tying the game up a minute later. The Aggie got their first lead in the second half when Anderson Garcia scored on a putback off an offensive rebound to go up 45-43.

After taking the lead, they held Iowa State at bay, never allowing them to get back ahead the rest of the game. Whenever it looked like the Cyclones could retake the lead, the Aggies answered for a final score of 73-69 for an Aggie 3rd place finish in the tournament.

Below are the Aggie critical contributors from the game:

Wade Taylor IV: 14 points / 4 assists / 2 rebounds

Solomon Washington: 18 points / 6 rebounds

Andersson Garcia: 9 points / 6 rebound

Texas A&M will be back in action at 6:15 p.m. C.T. on Wednesday when they travel to Charlottesville, Va, to take on No. 24 Virginia on Nov 29th.

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Texas A&M basketball lands in ESPN’s latest Way-Too-Early Top 25 projections

ESPN is predicting a strong year ahead for Texas A&M basketball as they landed in the latest Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings for the 2023-24 season.

It’s never too early to prepare for the coming college basketball season, and the worldwide leader in sports unveiled their early projections.

Texas A&M is coming off a 25-10 season (15-3 SEC) in which they appeared in the SEC title game for consecutive years and reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018. That level of success has the media forecasting a strong season ahead for the Maroon and White.

The Aggies landed at No. 19 in ESPN’s latest Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings. The plethora of returning talent has them equipped to pick up where they left off at the close of last season:

Will the Aggies pick up where they left off in the second half of 2022-23, when they won 19 of 22 games before falling in the SEC championship game and the first round of the NCAA tournament? Having Wade Taylor IV back to run the show is a huge plus, while Buzz Williams also has three other returning starters after Tyrece Radford decided to come back. Dexter Dennis is the lone starter leaving, but transfers Jace Carter (UIC) and Eli Lawrence (Middle Tennessee) will help replace him.

After putting together a resounding turnaround campaign last year, it will be a different story in 2023. Texas A&M is no longer under the radar, rather, they are expected to reach new heights with one of the more well-rounded rosters in the country. Wade Taylor IV and the returning Tyrece Radford headline a group that leads the SEC in returning production next season.

To put it bluntly, reaching the SEC title game or merely appearing in the NCAA Tournament are no longer applicable barometers of success. It’s time for the Aggies to win the conference and make a deep run in the month of March. Don’t believe us? Well, head coach Buzz Williams sang the same tune earlier in the offseason.

The Maroon and White did well in the transfer portal with the additions of Jace Carter, Eli Lawrence, and Wildens Leveque. Carter and Lawrence should serve as apt replacements for Dexter Dennis, while Leveque has an opportunity to help mentor a promising frontcourt led by Solomon Washington and Henry Coleman III. All in all, there’s no reason to doubt why Texas A&M can’t be a true contender when it’s all said and done this year.

The Aggies will kick off their 2023-24 campaign against Texas A&M-Commerce on Monday, Nov. 6, from Reed Arena.

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