No. 9 Texas A&M put on a clinic against Savannah State Wednesday night at Reed Arena, as the Aggies thrashed the Tigers 113-66, the most points scored by A&M since 1989.
“I thought it was a fun game,” center Tyler Davis said. “They were shooting a lot of shots, we were shooting a lot of shots … It was fun watching the guys get up and down with some highlight plays, some dunks.”
It was a big night for Aggie big-men Davis and Tonny Trocha-Morelos, who each recorded double-doubles. Davis scored 13 while nabbing a game-high 17 rebounds, one short of his career high. Trocha-Morelos added 10 points and grabbed 13 rebounds himself.
Four other Aggies scored in double figures, led by forward D.J. Hogg who recorded a game-high 18 points, and was 5-of-9 shooting from deep. Admon Gilder scored 15, Duane Wilson had 14. Off the bench, T.J. Starks recorded 12 off the bench.
“It’s good to get a chance to play everybody and I thought everybody gave us some positive minutes,” A&M head coach Billy Kennedy said. “
Both teams were trigger-happy from deep, with the Aggies matching the deep shooting intensity of the Tigers, who lead the nation in three-point attempts. For the night, A&M made a school-record 16 three-pointers on a record 38 attempts.
“They were just trying to let the guys on the outside play,” Trocha-Morelos said. “They weren’t pressuring the wing at all. We weren’t trying to shoot that many threes … If they were open, Coach Kennedy wouldn’t get mad if we got an open shot.”
Ball movement was pivotal for the Aggies, who recorded 32 assists, the most since 1986.
“It’s always good from a coaching standpoint to play a team like this where everybody gets to play and they get to play well and everybody leaves here with a smile on their face,” Kennedy said.
A&M commanded the final 20 minutes, outscoring SVST 61-33. It was the most points scored in a half by the Aggies since 1989.
“I thought we did a better job of contesting their threes in the second half,” Kennedy said. “We went inside-out. We got the ball inside and fanned it out for better shots in the second half.”
With Savannah State fielding a smaller lineup, A&M was able to dominate down low, out-rebounding the Tigers 65-35, the most rebounds the Aggies have had in a game since 1975. A&M also scored 58 points in the paint to SVST’s 24.
“Obviously they’re huge inside,” Savannah State head coach Horace Broadnax said. “We like to crash easy on the offensive glass and they got a lot of easy transition layups.”
Absent for A&M was star forward Robert Williams, who sat out due to precautionary reasons after suffering a head collision with teammate Isiah Jasey two days ago in practice. Jasey also missed the game.
“It’s a day-to-day deal,” Kennedy said of Williams’ status. “We’ll need him against both teams coming in next.”
Speedy and sloppy described the start of the game, with A&M holding a slim 24-22 advantage in the back-and-forth affair at the midway point of the first half.
A cold spell soon came for the Tigers, who proceeded to miss nine-straight shots. A&M on the other hand became red-hot, going on an 11-0 run to give the Aggies a 35-22 lead with 6:45 to go. A&M closed the fast and furious first half with a 17-3 run to build a 22-point advantage at the break, 52-33.
“They play that way against everybody on the road, the first 15 minutes it’s been a ball game … and then the last five minutes of the half it catches up with you,” Kennedy said.
A&M returns to the court next Tuesday as it hosts Northern Kentucky with tip-off slated for 7 p.m.