COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) — When Texas A&M fell behind by double digits in the second half on Tuesday night against Alabama, coach Billy Kennedy was certain his team could get back in it if the Aggies focused on defense.
They did, holding Alabama scoreless for more than five minutes to dig out of the hole and go on to a 65-56 win.
Savion Flagg and Wendell Mitchell scored 18 points each and Texas A&M overcame the 12-point deficit in the victory.
“I challenged them defensively,” Kennedy said. “We have to keep getting back and finishing and getting rebounds … I thought we did a good job of getting stops the last 8-10 minutes.”
The Aggies (11-14, 4-9 Southeastern Conference) fought back from the deficit with a big run and the game was tied before they scored the next six points, with four from Christian Mekowulu, to make it 56-50 with about four minutes left. Alabama got within 4 about a minute later, before a turnover by Dazon Ingram.
Mitchell added a basket for A&M before a dunk by Donta Hall to get Alabama within 4 again with 1:15 remaining. He was fouled on the shot but missed the free throw. Mitchell made a 3 on the other end to make it 63-56 with 35 seconds left to secure the victory.
Flagg said remaining positive after they fell behind helped them turn things around.
“We just always have the mentality to keep fighting … and things will work out and they did,” he said.
Alabama (15-11, 6-7) got 14 points from Tevin Mack as its skid stretched to a season-long three games.
It is Texas A&M’s second win over Alabama this season after TJ Starks hit a 3 at the buzzer to give the Aggies an 81-80 lead in the first meeting. The Aggies have won three out of four after dropping their previous three games.
Josh Nebo gave A&M its first points in almost six minutes when he made two free throws with about 12 minutes left. Those free throws started a 16-1 spurt, with nine points from Flagg and capped by a 3 from Jay Jay Chandler, that erased a big lead by Alabama and made it 48-45 with 6 1/2 minutes remaining.
Alabama had four turnovers and missed five shots to allow the Aggies to erase the deficit. The Crimson Tide snapped a scoring drought of more than five minutes when Mack had a 3-point play with six minutes left to tie it again.
Crimson Tide coach Avery Johnson said not being able to put games away after getting a big lead has been a theme for his team this season.
“When we get a lead with 10 or 12 points, we can’t take it to 14 or 16 because we turn the ball over,” he said. “I’ve just got to do a better job of trying to help them make better decisions in critical situations.”
Alabama led by 6 at halftime but the Aggies used an 8-2 run to start the second half and tied it at 32-all. Brandon Mahan got things going in that stretch with a 3-pointer to open the half and capped the run with three free throws.
Kira Lewis Jr. made a 3-pointer for the Crimson Tide after that to start a 12-0 run that included five points from John Petty to put Alabama up 44-32 with about 12 1/2 minutes left. The Aggies missed six consecutive shots and had a turnover to help the Crimson Tide build the lead.
Texas A&M Basketball Postgame Notes
Texas A&M 65, Alabama 56
Reed Arena (College Station, Texas)
ABOUT THE GAME
- The Aggies improved to 11-14 on the year, 4-9 in SEC play after a resilient, 65-56, win over Alabama Tuesday night. A&M never gave up, battling back from multiple double-digit scoring sprees by the Crimson Tide to regain the lead late and never look back.
- It was a slow start to the game for both teams, but Alabama used a pair of big runs to pull away in the opening period.
- Savion Flagg scored the last five points of the first half to break up a 10-0 run by the Crimson Tide and cut the difference to six, 30-24, at the break.
- A&M used a 13-2 rally between halves to tie things up early in the second half, but another 12-0 spree by Alabama forced the Aggies to burn a timeout with 12:49 to play.
- It was Flagg again that sparked the Aggies, scoring seven of A&M’s nine unanswered points to tie the game at 45 with 7:34 remaining.
- Jay Jay Chandler drained a three with under seven minutes to play to regain a lead the Aggies would not relinquish the rest of the way.
TEAM NOTES
- After trailing 30-24 at halftime, A&M outscored Alabama 41-26 in the second half.
- The win marks the first time in the series the Aggies have claimed back-to-back wins over the Crimson Tide in the same season.
- This is the fourth time this season A&M has trailed at the half and come back to claim victory (Alabama, Kansas State, Missouri).
- The Aggies used the starting lineup of Chris Collins, Wendell Mitchell, Brandon Mahan, Savion Flagg and Christian Mekowulu for the fourth time this season (3-1).
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
- Sophomore Savion Flagg led the Aggies for the second straight game with 18 points.
- Junior Wendell Mitchell got hot late and also finished with 18 on the night, reaching double figures for the fifth time in the last six games.
- Sophomore Jay Jay Chandler gave the Aggies a spark off the bench as he added nine points and two steals.
- Billy Kennedy is now 148-112 in his eight-year tenure at Texas A&M and 359-291 in his 21 seasons as a head coach.
UP NEXT
Texas A&M returns to the road this weekend, traveling to Arkansas for a 7:30 p.m. game against the Razorbacks on Saturday, Feb. 23.
POSTGAME QUOTES
Head Coach Billy Kennedy
Opening Statement …
“It was a great win for us. I am proud of our guys for fighting. During the beginning of the game it seemed like we would be down and then catch back up. We made a run at the right time to get some separation to get the win.”
On the key to being able to get momentum back in second half…
“I thought we did a good job running offense and taking better shots. We also didn’t really turn the ball over in the second half which was key. When we were down 10 and they called a timeout I challenged them defensively. I thought we did a good job getting stops.”
On overall performance tonight …
“Overall, I thought we played very well. We came in and had two good days of practice and the guys prepared themselves to play well today and watched them play well enough to get the win.”
Sophomore Guard/Forward Savion Flagg
On what fueled their comeback …
“We just kept competing and stayed aggressive on the offensive and defensive end. Just kept pushing the pace to do what we do, and then shots will eventually fall for us. And they did.”
On the key to keeping their composure …
“We’ve just always had that mentality to keep fighting, that it’s always going to work out. We just kept competing and kept fighting. [We] kept fighting on the glass, kept fighting on the defensive end and everything just worked out for us.”
Sophomore Guard Jay Jay Chandler
On if Wendell Mitchell is their go-to guy …
“Everybody’s the go-to guy. We just gave the ball to whoever was hot. If you make the shots, you get the ball.”
On his confidence to get to the basket …
“They played very aggressive on defense, so that opens up driving lanes once you get passed the press defender. Then most of the time, they help off, so that leaves shooters open. That’s just what we work on in practice, so that’s something that we’re used to.”
On how they were able to bounce back from a loss …
“Just regroup and just play basketball. Have a next play mentality. Don’t worry about the previous game and just take one game at a time and keep pushing forward.”
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics