Manny Obaseki poured in a season-best 25 points and Wade Taylor IV added 19 points that included five 3-pointers as visiting Texas A&M made a statement with an 86-60 win over Ole Miss on Saturday afternoon in a Southeastern Conference clash in Oxford. Miss.
The contest was the final regular season game for both teams, with neither assured a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Texas A&M (18-13, 9-9 SEC) has won three straight games and has out itself into serious consideration while Ole Miss (20-11, 7-11 SEC) heads to the SEC tournament likely needing to win the championship to earn place in the Big Dance.
Tyrece Redford had 19 points and 10 rebounds for A&M, with Solomon Washington racking up 10 points and 10 rebounds and Andersson Garcia taking 13 boards. Texas A&M shot 50 percent from the floor and from 3-point range (13 of 26) and had a 50-21 edge in rebounds in the win.
Jaylen Murray led the Rebels with 21 points while Matthew Murrell added 11 and Jaemyn Brakefield had 10. Ole Miss hit just 39.3 percent of its field goals and was 8 of 28 from beyond the arc.
The Aggies roared out of the gate, scoring the game’s first 14 points over the initial four-plus minutes, with Obaseki hitting five points on the run. Obaseki poured in a 3-pointer at the 13:15 mark to expand A&M’s lead to 23-5 and the rout was on for good.
Ole Miss responded with 15-4 run capped by Murray’s layup to pull within 27-20 with 6:43 remaining in the half. Two free throws by Brakefield 30 seconds later trimmed the deficit to six points before Texas A&M later swung back via 3-pointers by Redford and Taylor to push its advantage to 35-22.
Taylor’s jumper with 1:44 remaining in the half produced the final points before halftime as the Aggies carried a 42-29 lead to the break.
Obaseki led all scorers with 15 points before halftime while Radford added 12 for Texas A&M. The Aggies held Ole Miss to 38.5 percent shooting and outrebounded the Rebels 23-12 in the half.
–Field Level Media