After dropping its first exhibition of the 2024-25 season to No. 4 Houston, No. 13 Texas A&M basketball fought a rare season opener on the road against UCF in Orlando, Florida. 

Aggie men’s hoops has not seen an away game to start the season in over 20 years, and it did not help them this time as they fell to the Knights in a nail-biting, 64-61 loss.

Tough defense and a halftime comeback

Throughout the first five minutes of play, the Aggie defense managed to pressure UCF to a rough, zero for eight start in field goals, while also forcing two turnovers as graduate guard Hayden Heffner landed a steal and newcomer transfer from SMU, center Pharrel Payne churned out a block over junior G Keyshawn Hall as he attempted a layup. 

UCF was held to one of nine from beyond the arc throughout the first nine minutes as A&M committed to providing a tight-shot selection for the Knights.

UCF began to mount their comeback on the Aggies with eight minutes left in the first half, starting with a 3-pointer from senior G Darius Johnson which was answered by Payne with a layup. Then, the Knights heated up with two back-to-back threes by fifth-year UTSA transfer Jordan Ivy-Curry and Johnson again, forcing a timeout. 

Johnson ended the evening with 24 points, finishing five for 11 on 3-point attempts with the addition of seven free throws.

Only up 25-20, the Fightin’ Farmers were pressed into a shot-clock violation as graduate G Wade Taylor IV was trapped in the corner of the 3-point arc before he could get the ball out.

Following the turnover, senior G Manny Obaseki committed a costly foul in which UCF capitalized on with Ivy-Curry making both free throws to bring the Knights closer.

After Ivy-Curry and Johnson went back-to-back once more with 3-point shots, UCF took its first lead change of the game, 28-27.

Battling for the lead before half, the Aggies got a much-needed block as senior F Andersson Garcia stretched the court to channel his inner Dennis Rodman, after a two-on-one break.

Following another Obaseki turnover — his third of the half — the Aggies played sticky defense to push the game to a 29-29 stalemate going into the half.

Second half choppiness

Out of the gate, UCF’s Johnson traded three-pointers with Taylor as he responded with his second. 

Making a statement now, both players continued to trade long shots once again showing off their range. Taylor finished the night with 13 points and seven assists.

Payne built off Taylor’s success beyond the arc with his own in the paint, securing four points through two layups. Payne’s 15 points were the most of any Aggie, as he made his regular season debut in the Maroon and White.

UCF appeared to panic slightly in the following minutes, committing turnovers and fouls left and right. 

Wear and tear of Aggie ball

Before heading into a timeout, the Taylor-to-Garcia link was ignited as the graduate guard dished out a dime to the center as he rolled the ball off his fingers into a beautiful driving finish. 

Continuing the approach of dominating on the glass, Buzz’s boys secured four offensive rebounds in a row, and they finally knocked the rock in with graduate G CJ Wilcher’s second three of the night. 

While Taylor might have not had a usual high-scoring night, he picked up his fifth assist of the night to Garcia, who drove through several defenders to put the ball through the net with 7:45 left to play, the Aggies up by 10.

Putting up a Hail Mary from the UCF logo, Taylor put the distance back in the Aggies’ favor with the long 3-pointer.

With only three minutes left, A&M up 60-54, Hall made the difference on the Knights’ offensive side as he bashed through Payne to force a three-point try with the foul after his made shot.

Mayhem ensues after the play; Payne heads to the bench with five fouls, but Taylor gets revenge for his new teammate as he drew a charge on Hall to force him out of the final minutes of the game. 

Turnovers and sloppy play (left UCF in the game) 

With the feelings of a NCAA Tournament matchup, coach Buzz Williams called a timeout after UCF brought the game within one point as sophomore forward JJ Taylor slammed a put-back dunk after his teammate missed the three-point try.

Post-timeout, JJ Taylor grabbed the defensive rebound from a missed 2-pointer from senior G Jace Carter and then the rock ended up in senior C Benny Williams’ hands as he powered through the Maroon and White defense for the deciding dunk, UCF taking the lead 63-61. 

While the Aggies won the rebound fight 43 to 35, they committed 12 turnovers and 24 personal fouls, giving the Knights a total of 31 free throw attempts, of which they made 22. 

If this road opener was any indication on how the season will go, A&M will need to limit their mistakes if they want to go further than the milestones set by last season. 

Next, the Aggies will head home to Reed Arena, in preparation for Texas A&M Commerce on Friday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. on ESPN+.