Aggies Rally, Knock off Virginia Tech 68-65

Friday, November 25

Fullerton, Calif.

4:30 PM

Texas A&M

4-1

Virginia Tech

4-1

Texas A&M

Virginia Tech

Photo by: ESPN Images

Nov 25, 2016 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box: A&M 68, VT 65 (PDF)Photos

By: Associated Press/Texas A&M Media Relations

FULLERTON, Calif. (AP) -- DJ Hogg scored 13 of his 17 points in the second half to lead Texas A&M to a 68-65 win over Virginia Tech in a Wooden Legacy semifinal on Friday.

Texas A&M (4-1) will play in the tournament championship while Virginia Tech (4-1) plays in the third-place game. Both games are Sunday in Anaheim.

Hogg also grabbed 10 rebounds for his first career double-double, and scored the final five points for the Aggies.

Ahmed Hill had 18 points for Virginia Tech. Justin Robinson missed his first four shots but made his final two attempts of the first half and finished with 14 points.

Seven players scored for Virginia Tech in the first half as it ran out to a 38-25 halftime lead. The Aggies made eight consecutive shots to pull to 57-54, and later cut the lead to 63-61 on a layup by Admon Gilder.

Texas A&M Basketball
Postgame Notes
Texas A&M 68, Virginia Tech 65
Nov. 25, 2016 - Titan Gym (Fullerton, Calif.)

RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
- Texas A&M advanced to the finals of the 2016 Wooden Legacy following a come-from-behind 68-65 victory over Virginia Tech on Friday inside Titan Gym at Fullerton, Calif.
- The Aggies now lead the all-time series with Virginia Tech 3-1 … today's meeting was the first between the schools on the hardwood since 1980.

TEAM NOTES
- Texas A&M trailed by 17 during the second half before outscored the Hokies 32-12 during the game's final 14:04 to complete the comeback … the game stands out as the biggest come-from-behind win of the Billy Kennedy era at A&M.
- The Aggies dominated the paint during the contest, owning a 44-18 edge for points in the paint and a 49-30 advantage in the rebounding column.
- Virginia Tech, boosted by seven first-half 3-point baskets, owned a 38-25 lead at the intermission.
- Texas A&M used the starting lineup combination of JC Hampton, Admon Gilder, DJ Hogg, Tonny Trocha-Morelos and Tyler Davis for the fifth time this season (4-1).

INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- A trio of Aggies posted double-doubles in the win – DJ Hogg (17 points / 10 rebounds), Robert Williams (13 points / 10 rebounds) and Tyler Davis (12 points / 10 rebounds) … for Davis it stood out as his fourth career double-double, while it was the first such performance for Hogg and Williams.
- Sophomore guard Admon Gilder also enjoyed an impressive outing, finishing with 14 points and a career-high seven assists.
- Texas A&M head coach Billy Kennedy improved to 103-71 in his sixth season at Texas A&M and 314-250 in 19 seasons as head coach.

UP NEXT
- The Aggies will face the winner of tonight's Nebraska-UCLA match-up in the Wooden Legacy championship game on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. (CT). The game will be televised live on ESPN.

Texas A&M Coach Billy Kennedy - "Virginia Tech is a very, very good team. I think first half we got too emotional, frustrated and in the second half we did a good job of having some composure. Virginia Tech is a good team and that was a great win for us."

On second half adjustments – "They shot the ball extremely well. There was a stretch they got a little fatigued and I was hoping they'd miss shots. We just matched up with their perimeter and tried to get to the foul line. We're big inside and I think it bothered them some. We didn't take quick shots, we moved the ball, and started to put the pressure on them."

On strategy going into the game – "One of our goals was to keep them 65 points or less. I think the first half was a track meet but the second half became a half-court game. We didn't think we could score 70-75 points. We controlled the tempo a little bit offensively. Keeping them at 65 was one of our goals and we were fortunate enough to get it. I know our team, if we could get to 70 we could win most games if we can control the tempo."

On what it means to play UCLA and on John Wooden – "I had the chance to meet Coach Wooden and what he represents. I have a lot of respect for him and to play UCLA would be a good opportunity for us. Anytime you're involved with something Coach Wooden is part of is a true blessing."

Texas A&M's Admon Gilder's on Robert Williams' athleticism – "Robert can jump out of the gym. He has almost a 44-inch vertical jump and it's impressive to see someone his size able to jump like that. His play takes a lot of pressure off of us guards. It was surprising to see that from him."

On second half adjustments – "I think it was probably the best thing for us to open it up and show we can lose at any time. Coaches had us playing inside out and we're doing a good job with that."

Virginia Tech Head Coach Buzz Williams on today's game down the stretch? – "We just did not close out the game. I thought their offensive execution and their offensive rebounding was strong. Down the last 15 minutes we were not able to finish possession or get stops on defense and that hurts."

On today's rebounding differential? – "That difference is too much of a spread. It puts so much pressure on your team, relative to every other category. If those numbers are that drastic relative to the spread that means that you not only are not getting shots and your first shot field goal percentage defense is pretty good, but then they are getting (the ball) back. They shot the ball five more times and turn the ball over six more times than we did. The variation is because of the offensive rebounding."

On the play of Texas A&M's Robert Williams?- "I think he is the best prospect. That's what we told our team and I was very impressed. He has a great skill level and he's an elite level athlete for his size. He is a game changer relative to what he can do on both ends of the floor and that's not to take away from the other players they have."

On moving forward? – "Anytime you play in an event like this, whether you win or lose you want it to be a learning experience. As a group we will have to do a better job of protecting our space and preventing put-backs and extra possessions. That would be priority number one. Priority number two would be putting more pressure on the rim than what we did and that's hard as big as they were."

Virginia Tech Guard Ahmed Hill on the team's first half play?- "We penetrated the lanes and guys hit open shots. We attacked the basket and shots were falling for us in the first half. The second half we did the same thing but they kept coming up with the offensive rebounds and we couldn't get the stops we needed to."