January 18, 2006
Takia Starks scored 16 points for Texas A&M, but it was Sophia Young?â„¢s 28 points that led No. 8 Baylor to victory, 60-49, Wednesday at the Ferrell Center in front of 7,319.
The win was the 25th straight at home for Baylor (13-2, 3-2) while A&M fell to 14-4 overall and to 3-2 in the Big 12 Conference.
The teams played an even first half as A&M led at the break, 27-25.
Baylor came out in the second half and started on a 15-0 run as Young scored nine of the points to give the Lady Bears a 40-27 lead at the 15:03 mark.
?I had already used two timeouts in the first half and thought we could play the last 30 seconds with a media timeout coming up,? A&M coach Gary Blair said. ?But we made a couple of costly turnovers and gave up some easy baskets.
?We came back from that 15-0 run and I thought showed a lot of fight.?
The Aggies answered with an 11-0 run close the gap to 40-38 with 10:20 to play.
Then Baylor put together a stint of 14-2 as Chameka Scott started it as she hit a three pointer from the left corner. Young added seven more points to her total taking the Lady Bears to a 54-40 lead with 4:41 left.
Baylor outscored the Aggies 20-11 the final 10 minutes. It was the 11th straight loss to Baylor by A&M.
?It?â„¢s starting to be a rivalry,? Blair said. ?It was a winnable game, particularly at 40-38. But Scott hit that dagger in the corner.?
Young grabbed eight rebounds and blocked four shots with three steals. Abiola Wabara tallied a double-double with 10 points, 11 rebounds, six blocked shots, and four assists.
?Give Wabara and Young credit,? Blair said. ?They should probably be on the volleyball team since they spent more time in the air than on the ground. Young played like she supposed to play.?
In addition to Starks?â„¢ 16 points and five rebounds, the Aggies received 10 points and five rebounds from A?â„¢Quonesia Franklin and 11 rebounds from Patrice Reado.
Baylor shot 50 percent in the second half and it blocked 13 A&M shots. It was the most blocks by an A&M opponent this season.
Baylor used a 10-0 run early to take a 12-4 lead on the Aggies as Young scored six of the points. She wrapped the half with 10 points.
But the Aggies answered with a 14-4 run to retake the lead 18-16. The run was highlighted by six points from Franklin.
A&M?â„¢s largest lead was 25-21 with two minutes to play in the half. Lenka Zimova paced the Aggies late in the half with seven points. She finished with nine points.
The Aggies?â„¢ post players kept the Lady Bears in check in the first half. Reado grabbed five defensive rebounds as part of her eight in the first half. She also scored eight points in the frame.
Baylor scored 27 points in the game off of 19 A&M turnovers. Baylor committed 17 turnovers as it was the first time this season that A&M lost the turnover battle.
?We used to hope to play close and get in a position to win,? Blair said. ?Tonight we came here to win.?
A&M returns home to face Missouri on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Reed Arena. The game will feature the return of former players and coaches which will be recognized at halftime.
NOTES?-Patrice Reado was selected as the State Farm Player of the Game.