The No. 12 Texas A&M women’s basketball team closed out the regular season with a loss to No. 1 South Carolina on Sunday.
The Aggies (22-7, 10-6 SEC) fell by eight to South Carolina (29-1, 16-0 SEC) with a final score of 60-52. This was each team’s final regular season game, leaving South Carolina undefeated in conference play.
A&M’s starting line-up consisted of senior guard Shambria Washington, junior guards Aaliyah Wilson and Kayla Wells, junior forward N’dea Jones and junior center Ciera Johnson.
Wells led the Aggies with 15 points, her 22nd game this year to score in double digits. Right behind her with 12 points was Jones, who recorded double-figure rebounds for her 23rd time this season. Jones is the nation’s fourth leading rebounder.
South Carolina and A&M have the No. 1 and 2 scoring defenses, respectively.
A&M’s bench was active as well, scoring 17 points for the maroon and white. Junior guard Chennedy Carter advanced her double-digit scoring streak to 61 games.
The Aggies were able to keep the game close at the beginning, but a four-minute scoring drought allowed the Gamecocks to increase their lead to 19-12 by the end of the first period. By halftime the Aggies were down by nine, with a score of 31-22.
The maroon and white fought hard and were able to get within six points during the third quarter, but South Carolina quickly pulled ahead once again.
Within the final minute of the game, the Aggies were able to get within single digits of the Gamecocks. The Aggies outscored South Carolina 14-9 in the fourth quarter but that was not enough to overcome the deficit. This was the Aggies’ seventh consecutive loss to the Gamecocks.
The Aggies will travel back to South Carolina for the SEC Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville.
The team secured a spot as the fourth seed which makes this the second-straight year to earn the double-bye for the tournament. Consequently, the Aggies automatically qualify for the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament. The SEC tournament will begin on Wednesday and run until Sunday, March 8.