Sitting at 5-9 in the SEC headed into any matchup, it’s easy to give up, take mediocre shots and finish out the season lacking a reason to fight.
However, on Tuesday, Feb. 22, Texas A&M pumped some life back into its men’s basketball program and came out on top over Georgia. Since A&M’s last matchup against Georgia to open SEC play, this team has been through it all — approached mountaintops, slid into the lowest valleys and felt every emotion in between.
With all those feelings swirling in the back of their heads, the Aggies hammered Georgia, seeing perfect shooting performances from two key players.
From the tip, a 3-pointer from senior guard Quenton Jackson kicked off his perfect game and proved his impact as a starter. On an 8-0 run, Jackson lived up to his nickname of “Fly Guy Q” and sailed to the rim. This was just the start of Jackson’s perfect and career-tying night.
Jackson shot 100% from the field on 11 attempts, the second player in A&M history to do so, with a minimum of 10 attempts.
Jackson said he has never shot 100% in a game before.
“I was just hooping,” Jackson said. “I let the game come to me.”
Sophomore forward Henry Coleman III said Jackson’s performance didn’t come as a surprise.
“We just finished around the rim,” Coleman said. “Q[uenton Jackson] works in the gym every single day, so it’s not a shock to me or shock to the team.
Freshmen guards Manny Obeseki and Wade Taylor IV joined the starting lineup against Georgia. Normally starting at guard, sophomore Marcus Williams saw the game take place from the bench because of a “coaching decision.”
A&M’s defense started out strong, even causing a shot-clock violation to halt the Bulldogs’ offensive efforts.
In the span of the next two minutes, it became a battle of the three. During this time, the Bulldogs shot four behind the arc, swooshing 75% of them. On the opposite end, the Aggies shot four as well, only sinking one.
The Aggies responded with a run of their own and found their way back in the paint.
A pair of layups from sophomore guard Hayden Hefner and a duo of 3-pointers from junior guard Andre Gordon contributed to A&M’s 14-0 run.
To end the half, Jackson concluded his impressive 17-point performance with a flashy pass to Coleman and added onto the Aggies’ 48-37 lead.
“It was a heck of a play by Q[uenton Jackson],” Coleman said. “We had fun tonight. It was one of the first games in a while where it felt like everyone was having a ton of fun.”
In the first 10 minutes of the second half, the Aggies held a consistent 10-point lead over the Bulldogs. Additionally, Coleman’s boards complimented Jackson’s continued offensive efforts. Jackson tied his career-high point total with 31 on the night, also doing the same against Central Arkansas on Dec. 29. The pair shot a perfect 17 for 17.
The last 10 minutes were conducted as smoothly as ever all season. A slam dunk from Obaseki reminded fans that this team’s youth talent has many years to grow. Obaseki and junior guard Tyrece “Boots” Radford finished with 10 apiece.
“The numbers speak for themselves,” Coleman said. “When we continue to play with that mindset [and] do the things that Texas A&M is supposed to do, this is the result.”
A&M maintained control throughout the entire 40 minutes, made quality looks and got the job done: 91-77.
“Our effort, our tenacity, our intensity, our competitive spirit, our connectedness was the best it’s been all year long, and I think that was the difference in the game.” A&M coach Buzz Williams said.
