Texas A&M
21-1,12-1SEC
Alabama
15-7,8-7SEC
No. 3 Aggies Set Up SEC Title Showdown with 73-67 Win at Alabama
Feb 25, 2021 | Women's Basketball
TUSCALOOSA, Ala (AP)--Jordan Nixon and Kayla Wells each scored 16 points and No. 3 Texas A&M won its ninth straight game, beating Alabama 73-67 on Thursday night.
Nixon and Wells combined to contribute 10 points during a 19-3 run for the Aggies to close the second quarter which essentially put the game out of reach for the Crimson Tide.
After Texas A&M (21-1, 12-1 SEC) led for most of the first quarter, Alabama used a 10-0 run to take a 26-23 lead in the second quarter. The Aggies then used that big run to end the half taking a 42-29 lead into halftime.
Alabama (15-7, 8-7) showed fight in the fourth quarter, after trailing by as many as 21 in the second half. The Tide opened the fourth on a 16-4 run and cut the deficit to 70-65 with Jordan Lewis' 3-pointer with 1:25 left.
However, in the end, the deficit was too large for the Crimson Tide to overcome as the Aggies held on for the win.
Texas A&M senior leader N'dea Jones, who had a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds, ended the initial Alabama fourth-quarter run with a layup.
Lewis led Alabama in scoring, finishing with 21 points, five assists, and four steals. Jasmine Walker had a double-double for Alabama with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
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POSTGAME NOTES
RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
- Texas A&M climbs to 21-1 with a 12-1 record in Southeastern Conference play.
- Alabama drops to 15-7 overall with an 8-7 mark against SEC opponents.
- The Aggies improve to 10-1 in the all-time series against the Crimson Tide and 5-0 in Tuscaloosa.
TEAM NOTES
- The Aggies will play for their first SEC Regular Season Title in program history on Sunday against No. 5 South Carolina.
- They will be competing for the first regular season championship since they won the Big 12 crown in the 2006-07 season.
- Texas A&M ended the first half on a 13-0 run that gave it a 42-29 lead going into the break.
- The Aggies once again enjoyed a 10-point lead against their opponent, marking the 19th game that they have built a double-digit cushion.
- A&M shot 52.9% from the field in the first half
- The Aggies are 9-1 on the road this season, their most away wins since the 2018-19 campaign.
- The Maroon & White caused 18 turnovers and scored 22 points of those mistakes.
- Texas A&M won the battle in the paint, 36-26.
- For the 10th time this season, four Aggies scored in double digits.
- Jasmine Walker of Alabama only scored 11 points, while she has been averaging 20.8 points per game this year.
- Texas A&M started its 22nd consecutive game of the season with a lineup of Aaliyah Wilson, Jordan Nixon, Kayla Wells, N'dea Jones and Ciera Johnson.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- N'dea Jones registered her 13th double-double this season and the 39th of her career, scoring 12 points and grabbing 13 rebounds.
- Jones had 10 of her rebounds at the half against the Crimson Tide.
- N'dea Jones now has 996 rebounds in her career, only seven from surpassing A&M's all-time leader, Anriel Howard.
- Jordan Nixon had a team-high 11 points in the first half, going 4-of-5 from the field.
- Nixon finished the game with 16 points and three made 3-pointers.
- Kayla Wells posted 16 points with four assists, going 6-of-13 from the field.
- The Dallas, Texas, native notched her 12th double-digit scoring effort of the season and 62st such performance of her career.
- Aaliyah Wilson finished with 10 points, dropping double digits in points for the 17th time in the 2020-21 campaign and 36th time in her career.
- Destiny Pitts nailed three more 3-pointers, bring her season total to 45.
- Anna Dreimane came off the bench and gave valuable minutes, swatting away one shot and nabbing a steal.
- Head coach Gary Blair sees his career record improve to 834-331 overall with a 426-168 mark since taking the helm at Texas A&M in 2003-04.
UP NEXT
Texas A&M will play for the SEC Regular Season Championship at Reed Arena at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 28.
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.
