Just seven games in, No. 20 Texas A&M men’s basketball’s schedule has been filled with plenty of early tests. From a season-opening upset loss to UCF and a close drop to Oregon and wins over then-ranked Ohio State and No. 21 Creighton, coach Buzz Williams has had his hands full thus far. For the team’s last game in the Players Era Festival for fifth place on Saturday, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights presented a new challenge on the hardwood that the Aggies ultimately overcame for a 81-77 victory.

The duo of freshmen sensation guards Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey has been better than advertised — especially the former. Harper is third in the country in scoring with 24.6 points per game with his best showing yet at Las Vegas, scoring 36 against Notre Dame and 37 on No. 9 Alabama — both the highest-scoring outputs for a freshman this season.

However, an unsung hero rose from Las Vegas, donned in Maroon and White and hailing from New Orleans: junior forward Solomon Washington. The defensive anchor was a thorn all afternoon for the Scarlet Knights, picking up Bailey and Harper and seeming to have a sixth sense every time a Rutgers player drove into the paint with a season-high four blocks — including a clutch game-saving rejection on a driving Harper.

However, before the buzzer sounded and the scoreboard showed an A&M win, both teams were locked in a close battle. The Aggies’ blue-collar brand of basketball dominated the first half, picking up four offensive rebounds in the first five minutes, led by graduate F Henry Coleman III, who ripped down three by himself. Defensively, they honed in on the two talented freshmen, sending soft hedges on screens and collapsing whenever they drove in, working to perfection. The swarming defense forced four turnovers in a span of four minutes to grab an early 17-9 lead.

Though the always-shuffling defense forced a 6-for-20 shooting performance from Harper, Rutgers’ luxury of also having Bailey came into play as the Tennessee native got into a groove. Similar to NBA star Kevin Durant, Bailey’s 6-foot-10 lengthy frame allowed him to get into spots that would’ve otherwise been impossible as he utilized his pullup midrange bag — including a crazy and-one shot as he tiptoed on the baseline and around a tough senior G Jace Carter defense for the bucket to bring Rutgers back within striking distance at 29-26.

With both teams trading free throws to close out the half, A&M held a slim 40-34 lead. Right out of the gates in the second half, the Scarlet Knights came out running and gunning, utilizing a fastbreak offense to catch the set Aggies off guard. Rutgers went on a 9-0 run to secure its first lead since 9-8, but it wasn’t headlined by Bailey or Harper; redshirt senior G Jeremiah Williams stepped up to the plate and got himself eight points in the first four minutes of second half play.

To end the scoring drought, senior F Andersson Garcia came down the lane and slammed home a thunderous dunk. With role players on both sides stepping up, both teams’ stars also came to play in crunch time. The duel between Bailey and graduate G Wade Taylor IV was like pickup basketball as the guards traded bucket-for-bucket. A turnaround Bailey jumper was immediately countered by a driving layup by Taylor; then Bailey came down the floor and knocked down a three.

Though Rutgers held a 63-54 lead, Taylor and Washington’s two-man game brought the Aggies to within three, and after A&M hadn’t made a three-pointer for the entire game, Taylor knocked down a signature deep shot to tie the ball game up.

The shifty guard did it not once, but twice, and was immediately responded to by Harper to keep the game tied at 70. In the game’s closing minutes, Taylor took advantage of Rutgers’ close defense and took it inside, finding a layup and then a foul with seconds left to go. The pressure didn’t deter the Dallas native as he sank his third and fourth free throw of the half to go up 80-77, and with the clutch block by Washington, A&M survived Rutgers’ early second half spark.

Next up, the Aggies are back at Reed Arena at 8 p.m. Tuesday to take on a hot 5-1 Wake Forest squad.