Texas A&M
18-1,9-1SEC
Arkansas
14-7,4-6SEC
Nixon's Late Shot Drops No. 16 Arkansas, 69-67
Feb 07, 2021 | Women's Basketball
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP)--Kayla Wells had a season-high 21 points and Jordan Nixon made a layup with eight seconds remaining to lift No. 7 Texas A&M to a 69-67 win over No. 16 Arkansas on Sunday.
A 3-pointer by Amber Ramirez tied it at 67-all with less than 90 seconds to go. Both teams missed a shot on their next possession before Nixon drove into the lane for the basket to put the Aggies up for good.
Ramirez missed a 3-point attempt after that to secure A&M's sixth straight win.
This victory comes after the Aggies (18-1, 9-1 SEC) escaped with a 74-73 win in Fayetteville in the first meeting with Arkansas (14-7, 4-6) this season.
The Razorbacks were led by Ramirez, who had 21 points, with five 3-pointers to give her four straight games with five or more 3s. The Aggies did a good job of slowing down leading scorer Chelsea Dungee, who finished with 12 points, after entering the game averaging 22.4.
Texas A&M led by 8 after three and opened the fourth quarter with a 6-2 spurt to make it 62-50 with about seven minutes to go. The Razorbacks took over after that, scoring 11 straight points, with five from Amber Ramirez, to tie it at 62-all with three minutes remaining.
Wells scored A&M's first points in more than four minutes with a 3-pointer soon after that to put the Aggies on top.
The Aggies were up by 5 in the third before the Razorbacks used an 8-0 run, with five points from Erynn Barnum, to take a 47-44 lead.
Texas A&M ending its scoring drought soon after that and ended the quarter with a 12-1 run to take a 56-48 lead into the fourth quarter.
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POSTGAME NOTES
RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
- Texas A&M advances to 18-1 with an 9-1 record in Southeastern Conference games, the best start since the 2010-11 National Championship Team.
- Arkansas drops to 14-7 with a 4-6 record against SEC opponents.
- The Maroon & White and collected their 14th victory in the all-time series against the Razorbacks.
TEAM NOTES
- The Aggies are 7-0 against ranked teams, which is the most ranked vicories in the country.
- A&M rises to 11-0 inside Reed Arena this season.
- In each of the last three meetings between A&M and Arkansas, the final score was decided by two-or-fewer points.
- The Maroon & White utilized an 8-0 run starting at the 2:11 mark of the third quarter to take a 56-48 lead.
- Texas A&M enjoyed a lead of 10-or-more points for the 17th time this season. A&M led by as many as 12 points, 62-50 at the 6:48 mark of the fourth quarter.
- With under a minute to play, the game was tied 67-67. Jordan Nixon drove down the lane and laid the ball up with 8 seconds remaining to seal the victory, 69-67.
- Texas A&M outrebounded Arkansas by a 46-18 margin, headlined by a 14-2 advantage on the offensive glass.
- Texas A&M outscored its opponent in the paint for the 16th time this season, beating Arkansas 30-24 in the category.
- The Maroon & White excelled in the passing game, winning the assist battle 17-11.
- The Aggies capitalized on offensive rebounds, winning the battle for second chanced points, 14-3.
- Ciera Johnson, Aaliyah Wilson and Kayla Wells finished scoring in double-digits, combining for 58 of the team's 69 points.
- Texas A&M opened the game with a lineup of Aaliyah Wilson, Jordan Nixon, Kayla Wells, N'dea Jones and Ciera Johnson for the 19th consecutive game.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Jordan Nixon sank the go-ahead basket with :8.0 seconds remaining to give Texas A&M its 18th victory of the season. Nixon has hit game-winning baskets in both games against the Razorbacks this season.
- Kayla Wells finished as the game-high scorer with 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting, marking her ninth double-digit scoring performance this season and 59th of her career.
- Wells scored in double figures for her fourth-straight game, while recording five rebounds and four assists.
- Aaliyah Wilson registered her second career double-double, logging 14 points along with 10 rebounds.
- The Muskogee, Oklahoma, native tied her career high in rebounds with 10, hauling in nine boards on the defensive end. Wilson last achieved the double-digit rebounding mark against Lamar on Dec. 2 of last year.
- Wilson scored in double figures for the 14th time in the 2020-21 campaign and 33rd time for her career.
- Ciera Johnson compiled 13 points and seven rebounds in her 31 minutes of play.
- This was Johnson's 15th double-digit scoring performance of the season and the 63rd of her career.
- N'dea Jones was the game-high rebounder, finishing with 13 boards.
- The senior grabbed 10-or-more rebounds for the 14th time this year and 60th time in her career. She now stands at 973 career rebounds, only 29 shy of the Texas A&M program record of 1,002 set by Anriel Howard.
- McKinzie Green hit a jumper as the third quarter expired to give A&M a 56-48 advantage.
- Gary Blair climbs to 831-331 in his career as a head coach with a 423-168 record since joining the Texas A&M program in 2003-04.
UP NEXT
The No. 7 Texas A&M women's basketball team prepares for a weeklong hiatus before continuing its home stand on Thursday, Feb. 18, as the Aggies host the Missouri Tigers inside Reed Arena at 7 p.m.
POSTGAME QUOTES
TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach Gary Blair
Opening Statement…
"Another typical Arkansas and A&M game. We know each other so well, we know our tendencies. Normally, we're playing a little bit better in the second quarter. We actually got off to a reasonable start being up 17-14, and I thought that was great for us the way it was going. But I'm worn out. It seems like we've had so many of these ball games but I have to trust my veterans down the stretch to keep making plays and they're doing it. Of course, our rebounding was good because they did not send that many to the boards by design. That's why they usually stay out of foul trouble. And that's why I believe in his system as much as I believe in my system. (Aaliyah) Wilson and (Kayla) Wells both did a lot of other things in the ball game. Early on, I thought we were trying to stare down the post players and we were waiting too long to throw it into Ciera (Johnson) or N'dea (Jones) you have to have ball movement; you have to have some passes entered from the high, not just from the wings to the guards, but eventually we have enough post touches in there to do some damage in there. I thought Ciera was solid throughout the game besides her foul problems. But Wilson, she does so many other things besides score. She's our shutdown defensive player for the majority and she's been struggling a little on that. Wells, this was her best complete game of the year. We were isolating her in the third quarter, and a little bit in the first half, just running ball screens to her and told her if the three isn't there just keep driving the ball."
On trusting the veterans down the stretch, specifically, Jordan Nixon…
"I can put her in, but the best thing about Jordan is she can play loose and not be afraid to make a mistake because she knows that there's two people backing her up that are ready to go in at any time.
I want her playing flat-out, making decisions, sometimes making bad mistakes, but I want her playing just like that because I'm not trying to play her for 40 minutes. I'm trying to get the lead for her to run my tempo and for her leadership and all that good stuff. I trust Jordan Nixon, and this was a great weekend that her mom came down and was able to watch both ballgames."
Sophomore guard Jordan Nixon
On facing struggles during the game but faced with having to hit the game-winning shot…
"Just trust. Trust carries me in those moments, trusting my coaches and my teammates. We initially called something, but it didn't really work out. Coach Blair and Coach Bond-White, everyone was just like, if it comes down to it, make a play. So that's what I was able to do, and I'm so glad."
On the play that lead to her game-winning layup…
"Well, we ran some backend, and it didn't quite work out. There was just an opportunity, and I was able to take it, but no, it wasn't necessarily designed for me. That's the beauty of this basketball team. Anybody at any given moment can make a big shot."
Senior guard Kayla Wells
On teammate Jordan Nixon's game-winning layup…
"We talked about just in case there was a broken play, one middle for Jordan (Nixon), get her going downhill, get here attacking. When I saw her driving, I knew she was going to make the layup. I mean, she does it time after time in practice and in games, so I had nothing but faith in her, and I knew she was going to make the layup.
On the team's composure in a 67-67 late 4th quarter game…
"I was going to say that it is because we are a veteran team, but I just feel like we've been in this position so many times. We know that all of us are in the gym; we put in work so much, so we know if it's our shot, we're going to make it, or we're going to make something happen to make a play. So I just feel like us being there so many times and us getting repetition and putting in work. That just creates confidence for us."
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