Wade Taylor IV racked up 19 points that included eight in the final 3:22 of the game as No. 22 Texas A&M outlasted Texas Tech 72-67 on Sunday afternoon in the USLBM Coast-to-Coast Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas.
Texas A&M (8-2) led by as many as 11 points in the first half and by three at halftime before the Red Raiders surged to the front early in the second half. Down 52-49, the Aggies produced an 11-0 surge capped by a jumper by Zhuric Phelps to take a 60-52 advantage with 5:02 to play
The Aggies’ margin was just two points when Taylor went hard to the hole on back-to-back possessions for layups that pushed the lead to 64-58. A 3-pointer by Tech’s Chance McMillian cut lead to three but Taylor, Henry Coleman III and Solomon Washington converted free throws over the final 27 seconds to provide the deciding points for A&M.
Jace Carter added 16 points and Phelps had 12 for the Aggies, who have won four straight games.
McMillian’s 23 points were a game high, while Kevin Overton added 17 and Darrion Williams had 11 for Texas Tech (7-2), which had a three-game winning streak snapped.
The Aggies ruled the game’s first five minutes, blitzing to a 13-2 lead thanks to eight early points from Taylor and a stifling defense that forced Tech into four turnovers. The Red Raiders responded with an 8-2 run capped by a jumper by Federiko Federiko to close the gap to five points at the 10:57 mark.
Texas Tech continued to battle back, clawing to within 26-24 with 5:16 left in the first half thanks to a 9-0 run. Texas A&M boosted the margin to as many as six points after Manny Obaseki hit a layup with 2:23 remaining before McMillian canned a pair of free throws with 41 seconds to play to pull to within 34-31 at the break.
Overton led all scorers with 14 points before halftime while Carter paced the Aggies with 13.
The Red Raiders pulled even on Federiko’s jumper 46 seconds into the second half, went in front on a jumper by Elijah Hawkins with 18:22 to play and pushed their advantage to five points on another Hawkins jumper at the 16:30 mark of the half.
The Aggies swung back, tying the contest at 49 when Washington sank a 3-pointer with 10:48 left, setting the stage for the furious finish.
–Field Level Media
