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Aggies Outlast Abilene Christian, 81-80, in Double Overtime
Nov 12, 2021 | Men's Basketball
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) -- Andre Gordon scored 17 points, Tyrece Radford added 15 and Hassan Diarra hit a tightly-contested 3-pointer with 0.9 seconds left and Texas A&M slipped past Abilene Christian 81-80 in double overtime on Friday night.
Quenton Jackson had 13 points, Marcus Williams scored 12 and Diarra finished with nine points for Texas A&M (2-0).
Reggie Miller made a 3-pointer to give Abilene Christian (0-2) a 78-75 lead with 2:01 to play in the second overtime. Gordon answered with a 3 on the other end and a layup by Airion Simmons gave a Wildcats a 80-78 advantage with 25 seconds remaining. Jackson missed a short jumper on the right side with eight seconds left but Henry Coleman III grabbed the offensive rebound and was fouled on the putback attempt. The Duke transfer missed both free throws but the second went out of bounds off Abilene Christian with 5.9 seconds to go and Diarra made a step-back 3 to put the Aggies in front.
Miller had 18 points and nine rebounds, Coryon Mason also scored 18 points and Mahki Mason added 15, hitting 4 of 5 from 3-point range, for Abilene Christian. Cameron Stelle had 11 points and Simmons finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Mason played for the final shot of regulation, dribbling down the clock before driving to the right elbow where defender by Marcus Williams forced an air ball just before the buzzer. Morris hit a 3 at the end of the overtime to make it 73-all and force a second OT.
.@hassan_diarra11 called game! pic.twitter.com/t0rlpP8oPs
— Texas A&M Basketball (@aggiembk) November 13, 2021
Texas A&M Men's Basketball Postgame Notes
Texas A&M 81, Abilene Christian 80
Reed Arena (Bryan-College Station, Texas)
RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
- Texas A&M defeated Abilene Christian in overtime, 81-80, Friday night at Reed Arena. The overtime win marks the first Aggie overtime-victory since defeating Tennessee, 68-65, on Feb. 22, 2014.
- The game also marked the Aggies' first overtime game since they faced LSU on Jan. 4, 2020.
- The win is the first time Texas A&M has gone into two overtimes since they defeated Northern Iowa in dramatic fashion, 92-88, on Mar. 20, 2016 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
- The Aggies are 6-0 all-time against the Wildcats.
TEAM NOTES
- With the game tied at 17-17 at the 7:39 mark of the first half, the Aggies went on an 11-1 run over the next 5:46, to give them a 28-18 lead. The Maroon & White entered the break with a 28-20 advantage.
- The Aggies hauled in 40 rebounds, the most since Dec. 6, 2020, when they recorded 41 rebounds against UTRGV. A&M also scored 81 points, the most since their 81-68 victory over UTRGV last season.
- After being down six with 3:43 left in the game, Texas A&M went 4-for-4 from the charity stripe and 2-for-2 from the floor over the next 2:28 to tie the game, eventually sending it to overtime.
- Four Aggies scored in double digits for the first time since Mar. 10, 2021, against Vanderbilt.
- Texas A&M used the starting lineup combination of Javonte Brown, Henry Coleman III, Andre Gordon, Tyrece Radford and Marcus Williams for the second time this season (2-0).
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Andre Gordon led the Aggies in scoring with 17 points, including a career-high four 3-pointers made.
- Gordon also played a career-high 42 minutes while recording a team-high four assists.
- Quenton Jackson shot 9-of-10 from the free-throw line and scored 13 points.
- Henry Coleman III registered a career-high nine rebounds during a career-high 35 minutes of play.
- Marcus Williams recorded his 24th career game with 10-or-more points, finishing the night with 12 points.
- Javonte Brown hauled in a career-high four rebounds.
- Tyrece Radford tallied his 25th career game in double digit scoring, ending the night with 15 points. Radford also matched his career-high of two 3-pointers made. The Baton Rouge, Louisiana, native shot an efficient 5-6 from the free-throw line.
- Hassan Diarra scored nine points, including the game-winning 3-pointer with less than a second remaining.
UP NEXT
- Texas A&M hosts A&M Corpus-Christi on Sunday, November 14 at Reed Arena at 2 p.m. on SEC Network+.
POSTGAME QUOTES
Texas A&M Assistant Coach Devin Johnson
On how Hassan Diarra finished…
"I told Hass (Hassan Diarra) if the play breaks down, just go make a play for use because he is so tough and loves those moments. He practices those moments and that's what he did for us. He went and made a play."
On Hassan Diarra's work ethic…
"For a player to mimic his leader (Buzz Williams), he is a great example of that. He mimics what Coach Buzz is. He is going to give you everything he possibly can every day, no matter what he does."
On this game's importance…
"For us to get this test in November is huge, but for us to get this test in November without our leader here is even bigger because now when the leader comes back and we have this same test in January, February or March, now we know how to handle it."
On the timeout before the final play…
"At the timeout I brought the guys in and told them that this is an opportunity for us to show the world who we are and an opportunity for us to show each other that we can pull these types of victories out and we did that."
Texas A&M Guard Hassan Diarra
On how it felt when he shot the game-winner…
"I got the ball, and I was counting from five down in my head and I got a little bit of room and pump faked and shot and I knew it was good."
On coming back after losing the lead…
"We definitely showed a lot of fight today. We showed a lot of heart and we showed that we can win tough games. We can win close games, and if it's going to be a dogfight, were ready to fight."
