It will be a quiet flight home for the Texas A&M men’s basketball team after being routed 65-44 by Alabama in their conference opener Tuesday night in Tuscaloosa, AL.
The Aggies (9-4, 0-1 SEC) were without leading scorer and rebounder Jalen Jones in Tuesday’s matchup with the Crimson Tide (11-3, 1-0 SEC) due to an ankle injury suffered in practice. Jones averaged 13.3 points per game while grabbing six boards as well.
Alabama started the game on an 11-4 run before A&M went on a run of their own to cut the lead down to one at 11-10. The Aggies did not score for the next four minutes, allowing Alabama to extend their lead to 21-10.
A&M’s inability to score came possibly from the lack of junior guard Danuel House, who was forced to the bench early after picking up two quick fouls.
The Aggies managed to find some momentum in the final six minutes of the first half by going on a 14-3 run, capped off by a layup made by freshman guard Alex Robinson as the time expired.
The game was tied early in the second half, but that was as far as the Aggies could get. The Crimson Tide surged to a 14-5 run and never looked back. Things would only get worse for the Aggies when they scored only nine points in the final 10 minutes.
A&M finished the game shooting 31 percent from the field, while Alabama shot nearly 45 percent. The Crimson Tide also converted 18-for-25 free throws, while the Aggies managed to only get to line four times, making 6-for-7.
Junior guard Alex Caruso continued his streak of impressive play for the Aggies, despite limited scoring. He dished out six assists while grabbing two rebounds and one steal. Caruso currently leads the SEC in assists and assists per game.
Freshman Peyton Allen was the lone bright spot for the Aggies, being the only one in double figures with 13 points on 4-out-of-8 shooting.
A&M returns home for a highly anticipated matchup against the top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats at noon Saturday in Reed Arena.