Texas A&M
25-7
George Washington
28-3
George Washington 59, Texas A&M 47
Mar 19, 2007 | Women's Basketball
March 19, 2007
Sophomore Takia Starks (Houston, Texas) scored 15 points as fourth-seeded Texas A&M fell 59-47 to fifth-seeded George Washington Monday night in the second round of the Dallas Regional.
The Aggies (25-7) had won their first tournament game since 1994 with a 58-50 win over Texas-Arlington in Saturday?™s first round. Sophomore Danielle Gant (Oklahoma City, Okla.) registered nine points and seven rebounds, while sophomore La Toya Micheaux (Missouri City, Texas) had eight points and seven points in the loss to the Colonials (28-3).
With star post player Jessica Adair on the bench for much of the game and a step slow when she was in it, George Washington won with smallball. Kimberly Beck scored 18 points and made a three-pointer that put the game away with 1:40 to play and fellow guard Sarah-Jo Lawrence added 12 points for the Colonials. This will be GWU?™s first trip to the Sweet 16 since 1997. They will face either top-seeded North Carolina or ninth-seeded Notre Dame in Dallas.
The 6-foot-4 Adair picked up her fourth foul with 15:02 to play and sat out nearly nine minutes. She had 10 points and five rebounds after getting 15 points and a career-high 21 rebounds in George Washington?™s first round win over Boise State.
The Colonials relied instead on perimeter jumpers and breakaway layups from the gangly, 5-8 Beck. She shot 6-for-12 from the field and scored seven points during a 15-5 run to close the first half that gave George Washington a 23-21 halftime lead.
A jumper and a three-pointer from Starks, cousin of former Knicks sharpshooter John Starks, just after Adair sat down tied it at 29 with 13:47 left.
But the Colonials outscored the Aggies 23-11 over an eight-minute span in the middle of the second half, capped by a layup from a resurgent Adair and another from Kenan Cole to take an 11-point lead 54-43 with 3:25 to go.
In a sluggish first half that saw as many turnovers as field goals, the Aggies rebounded their way to an early lead, hitting the offensive boards hard and taking advantage of a slow start from Adair on the way to a 16-8 lead.
Adair hardly touched the ball early. She didn?™t score for nearly six minutes and didn't have a rebound for over six minutes to start the game. Adair?™s sister, Jazmine, played in her place for much of the game and went 4-for-6 from the field for eight points.
Postgame Notes?...Texas A&M closes out the season with a 25-7 overall record?...The Aggies finished the year with their second-most victories and fewest losses ever in school history?...The Aggies shot 32.8 percent from the floor (19-of-58) which tied as the fourth-lowest field-goal percentage in a game this season?...A&M is now 3-4 all-time in NCAA Tournament games?...The Aggies are now 9-5 this season when shooting in the 30 percent range?...George Washington leads the all-time series 1-0?...It was a first time meeting between the Aggies and Colonials?...The Aggies scored 10 of their first 12 points in the opening minutes of regulation on turnovers by GW?...They ended the game with 17 points off of 13 miscues by the Colonials?...Sophomore Takia Starks scored in double figures for the 26th time this season with a team-high 16 points?...Freshman reserve forward Damitria Buchanan (Houston, Texas) scored her first points in a contest since a two-point outing at Oklahoma State on Feb. 17?...She had back-to-back lay-ins with under 10 minutes remaining in the first half of play to record four points?...Her seven rebounds in the game tied a career-and season-high?...A&M?™s 21 first-half points were the third lowest points scored in a half this season next to 18 first-half points at Texas on Jan. 21 and 20 first-half points at Oklahoma on Jan. 25?...The Aggies outrebounded the Colonials, 39-32...Both teams lost two of their best players to foul trouble in the early minutes of the second half with Texas A&M?™s Danielle Gant and George Washington?™s Jessica Adair both getting called for their fourth foul in the early minutes of the second half.
