It was just about as good of a start to the season as Aggie basketball could have hoped for on Friday night.
Behind the “Fab Four” and the stellar play of the veterans on the team, A&M ran away from USC-Upstate 104-64 in their season opener at Reed Arena.
It was an impressive debut for the highly-anticipated recruiting class. D.J. Hogg led all scorers with 20 points, six rebounds and one assist in 23 minutes of play. The “freshman four” of Hogg, Admon Gilder, Tyler Davis and Elijah Thomas combined for 63 points, 22 rebounds, and all together, they shot a blinding 21-for-29 (72 percent) from the floor.
“It’s fun to see our good players play,” A&M head coach Billy Kennedy said. “Our seniors do a good job of getting them the ball in places where they can score…they are good players, and they are only going to get better.”
House, after missing the end of last year with an injury, had a solid return, dropping 15 points and shot 50 percent from the floor. Tonny Trocha-Morelos had a good night as well, chipping in 12 points and five rebounds. Overall, six Aggies reached double-figures, including all four freshman.
“I was a little nervous,” Hogg said after his first college game. “I just tried to play my game and play hard. If my shot is falling, just keep shooting.”
The Aggies struggled a bit early on, but found their groove behind the hot shooting of Hogg and House. They hit seven straight shots at one point — including back-to-back three pointers — to build a 24-point advantage in the first half at one point. A&M led 52-32 going into the break.
As a team, the Aggies caught fire early, shooting 64-percent in the first half, and a crisp 58-percent from behind-the-arc. A&M also moved the ball well, dishing out 32 assists as a team.
Anthony Collins had a nice debut as an Aggie, and though he did not score, the transfer from South Florida dished out eight assists and was a commander of the offense at point guard.
The Aggies opened up their lead to as much as 42 points in the second half behind more of the same hot shooting and good ball movement.
It was A&M’s 15th straight season-opening win, and 16th straight win in their home opener at Reed Arena. It was the most points A&M has scored in a game since scoring 109 against Northwestern State in the opener last season.
“It just shows we can score the basketball and that we can possibly be a top 25 team if we play the right way and share the basketball,” House said. “But we have to let this game go because we have a quick turnaround with a game on Monday.”
Next up, the Aggies host Southeastern Louisiana Monday night at Reed Arena.
