Texas A&M
6-0,0-0SEC
Abilene Christian
5-1,0-0Southland
No. 10 Women Lead Wire-to-Wire in 77-59 Rout of ACU
Dec 13, 2020 | Women's Basketball
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP)--Aaliyah Wilson had 12 of her 15 points in the first half and the No. 10 Texas A&M women pulled away for a 77-59 win over previously unbeaten Abilene Christian on Sunday.
Wilson added four steals and three blocks for the Aggies (6-0). N'dea Jones had 10 points and 14 rebounds, Alexis Morris scored 14 points and Jordan Nixon had 11.
Texas A&M closed the first quarter with 10 straight points and added a 14-0 run in the second quarter to build a 37-16 lead with 4:17 left in the period. The Wildcats got the deficit no closer than 17 from there.
Anna McLeod made 4 of 8 from 3-point range and finished with 18 points for the Wildcats (5-1). Kamryn Mraz added 10 points for Abilene Christian.
The Aggies were 5 of 9 from 3-point range in the first half while the Wildcats were 6 of 25 (24.0%) from the arc and 7 of 31 (22.6%) from the field.
--
POSTGAME NOTES
RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
- With the win, Texas A&M climbs to 6-0 for the first time since the 2014-15 season, while the Wildcats fall to 5-1 with the loss.
- The Maroon & White broke the tie in the all-time series against Abilene Christian, rising to 4-3 against the Wildcats and 3-0 since 1985.
- The Aggies continued their reign of dominance against non-conference opponents, extending the program's non-conference win streak to 11 consecutive games.
TEAM NOTES
- Texas A&M held ACU to five points in the first quarter of play, setting a season-best mark for points allowed in a quarter. The last time the Aggies allowed five-or-fewer points in a quarter was against Auburn on Feb. 23, 2019.
- The Aggies won the rebounding battle for the fifth time this season, outworking the Wildcats on the glass by a 42-31 margin, including a 25-21 disparity on the defensive boards.
- The shooting splits for both teams were revealing, as A&M shot .469 from the field and .412 from the three-point line, while Abilene Christian shot a dismal .375 mark from the field and .297 from three on a whopping 37 attempts from behind the line.
- Defense proved to be a decisive factor in Sunday's game, with the Aggies forcing 21 turnovers, logging 12 steals and sending back six blocks.
- A&M ran away with the margin in bench points, outscoring Abilene Christian 28-12 in the category.
- Kayla Wells, N'dea Jones and Ciera Johnson started their 70th consecutive game as a trio in Aggieland.
- The Aggies rolled with a starting lineup of Jordan Nixon, Kayla Wells, Aaliyah Wilson, N'dea Jones and Ciera Johnson for the sixth-consecutive game this season.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Aaliyah Wilson stuffed the stat sheet on Sunday, scoring 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting while pulling in five rebounds and dishing out one assist. The senior guard set a new season-high in made three-pointers, sinking both attempts from behind the arc.
- Wilson proved to be a major problem for the Wildcats on the defensive end, as the Muskogee, Oklahoma, native swiped away four steals while setting a new season-high in blocks with three.
- Wilson has collected 10 steals in the past two games.
- Jordan Nixon scored in double-figures for the third time this season, dropping a stat line of 11 points, two rebounds, two assists and a season-high tying three steals.
- Alexis Morris scored in double figures for the second time in her three appearances since being granted immediate eligibility by the NCAA. The junior guard finished with a season-high 14 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting night, also logging two assists and a steal.
- Kayla Wells dropped seven points with two assists and a block in 25 minutes of game action.
- Ciera Johnson played an all-around game on Sunday, scoring six points with five rebounds, one assist, a steal and a block.
- N'dea Jones hauled in 10 rebounds in the first half of play, finishing with a season-high 14 boards to lead all players.
- The Lawrenceville, Georgia, native scored in double figures for the fifth time this season with 10 points, logging her fifth double-double this year and the 31st of her career.
- Destiny Pitts sank two three-pointers and finished with seven points in the game, logging 17 minutes of action off the bench.
- McKinzie Green had an effective performance as the Aggies' backup point guard, distributing three assists, with two points, a steal and a rebound in 13 minutes of play.
- Freshman forward Maliyah Johnson saw a career-high 11 minutes of playing time, grabbing six rebounds and denying one block in the game.
- Sahara Jones sank her first three-point basket in the Maroon & White, finishing with three points and a rebound.
UP NEXT
No. 10 Texas A&M remains in Bryan-College Station this week, as the Aggies get set to take on the Sam Houston State Bearcats in a 2 p.m. matchup on Tuesday at Reed Arena.
POSTGAME QUOTES
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach Gary Blair
Opening Statement…
"I thought that we were really ready to play. Our kids did a very good job defensively in the first half, but they [Abilene Christian] were eventually going to take and make some threes. They got into their offense in the second half and did a very good job, but we really just had to keep them in their offense and wait for them to make a mistake late in the shot clock. Give them a lot of credit, because this is a team that will compete to win their league if they keep everyone healthy. I like what [Abilene Christian head coach] Julie Goodenough does. We ran our offense very well early on and hit some timely threes. When I play fourteen players our score is going to stay down, because it's sometimes difficult to get into the flow of the game. These kids work hard every day in practice, and after the first quarter we had decided to get Maliyah [Johnson] and Sahara [Jones] some playing time. Now, we move forward to our next game against Sam Houston State."
On using a deep rotation in Sunday's game…
"We're playing three games in six days, so I wanted to make sure our team stayed fresh. I was able to limit our players' minutes. I didn't want to sit back and worry about stats and making sure our players got their numbers. Some teams play seven or eight players, and I've been known to do that in the past, but I'm trying to develop these players coming off the bench. This team has a lot of graduate students that might be playing professionally next year, so I'm trying to teach as I go. Our kids are young, and they want playing time, so I do my best to accommodate them."
On A&M's three-point shooting tonight…
"The threes we took were excellent in the first half because we were sharing the basketball. Normally, you'll never see one of my teams take 37 threes in a ball game, because I have an inside game that I have to trust to draw fouls on the other team. We want balance. Just like [Texas A&M football head coach] Jimbo Fisher wants balance between the run game and passing game, I want balance between drives, free throws, three pointers and post play. You win ball games with post play when you get into your conference schedule."
Senior forward N'dea Jones
On the large number of three-pointers to open up the middle…
"We try to work on spacing out the floor. We know with Ciera [Johnson] and I, we are more of a post threat down low. We also know teams are most definitely going to help. We work on the other team doubling and helping off of corners. I think our team does a good job at reading that and kicking it out through ball movement. If I see something, I'll sometimes set up a back screen if I know they are all the way fronting me. I will screen them so that the ball can get to the corner. We focus on trying to ball passes and movement along with fake passes since some teams will read that."
On the game plan against Abilene Christian…
"I give credit to the other team. They scouted us well. I also give credit to my team for reading and reacting to that. Coach Blair and our staff did a great job today calling certain plays. We were able to think ahead of what the other team was going to do. When the other team is on defense, we are used to the pressure, especially me. I know that I will probably get doubled teamed, and the same goes for Ciera [Johnson]. We still have to work hard to post up. My goal is, if I can't get it open in the half-court, I will try to get my points in transition by sprinting ahead. That also helps with opening up shots for my teammates, since so many defenders get pulled into the paint."
Sophomore Guard Jordan Nixon
On the team's comfort level…
"I think going on the road brought us together. When we're playing at home, there is an element of comfort that we had been missing. I think it felt good to be out there in front of our Aggie fan base and pick up a win today."
On her takeaways from Sunday's game…
"We have to get better. We talk about our next best action and how the next game is the most important game of the year. That is 100% true. Sam Houston State is coming in here Tuesday and we want to protect our home court. There are some good things from today that we want to build on, but there were also some areas of improvement that we will be working on in our film session tomorrow. Hopefully, you will see a better Texas A&M team on Tuesday."
ABILENE CHRISTIAN QUOTES
Head Coach Julie Goodenough
On what her team learned in tonight's performance…
"First off, I think Alyssa [Adams] and Makayla [Mabry] did a great job with Ciera Johnson. I think the points she ultimately scored were from offensive rebounds and put backs. Ciera and N'dea will be in the WNBA if that is the path they want to take. That was a huge challenge for our girls. I thought they did a good job to at least take away the direct feed. N'dea is such a great athlete, and we knew we couldn't keep her from rebounding all night. I thought Alyssa and Makayla played well through that. We won't face post players like that again unless we make it to the NCAA tournament. I was proud of our team's effort tonight."
FOLLOW THE AGGIES
Visit 12thman.com for more information on Texas A&M women's basketball. Fans can keep up to date with the A&M women's basketball team on Facebook, Instagram, and on Twitter by following @AggieWBB.
