BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas A&M women’s basketball held Texas State to 28.6% shooting from the field, propelling the Aggies to Wednesday night’s 67-46 victory over the Bobcats inside Reed Arena.
A relentless Aggie defense limited the Bobcats to 18-of-63 from the floor, including 3-of-18 (16.7%) from 3-point range.
On the offensive end, Texas A&M canned a season high in 3-point field goals, shooting 8-of-16 (50.0%) from long range.
The Aggies spread out the offensive output with four players hitting double digits in the scoring column for the first time on the season. Junior guard Sahara Jones had 11 points, six rebounds and three assists. Fifth-year senior Aaliyah Patty also registered 11 points and six rebounds. Sophomore guard Tineya Hylton matched her career highs with 10 points and six assists. Freshman forward Janiah Barker logged 10 points and five rebounds.
In the first quarter, the Aggies held Texas State without a point until the 4:48 mark as the Maroon & White built a 6-0 advantage. Patty made two buckets in the waning minutes of the opening period to stretch the margin to 19-8 at the break. The Aggie defense limited the Bobcats to 21.4% (3-of-14) shooting from the field in the quarter.
Hylton hit a pair of free throws at the 8:17 mark of the second frame to give the Aggies their biggest lead of the first half, 23-8. Texas State immediately responded with a 9-0 run keyed by Da’Nasia Hood’s five points, shaving the margin to six points just past the midway point of the period.
The Maroon & White headed into the halftime intermission with a 30-21 edge. Jones led the charge in the first half with 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field and three rebounds.
Hylton sank a 70-foot shot at the buzzer to give Texas A&M a 51-28 lead heading into the final quarter. The Aggies went on runs of 8-0 and 9-0 as the Maroon & White outscored Texas State 21-7 in the period.
Texas State did not cut the gap closer than 20 points in the fourth quarter and the Aggies grabbed their biggest lead of the contest when sophomore forward Jada Malone hit a jumper to give A&M a 63-35 cushion at the 5:49 mark.
Up Next
The Aggies are set to take on Rice at home on Sunday at 2 p.m.
POSTGAME NOTES
RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
- Texas A&M moves to 4-1 in the 2022-23 regular season.
- The Aggies’ series advantage against Texas State improved to 14-2 as the Maroon & White tallied its 10th consecutive victory against the Bobcats.
- Joni Taylor improves her record to 144-76 all-time and to 4-1 in her first season with the Aggies.
TEAM NOTES
- The Aggies had four players score in double digits for the first time since Jan. 23, 2022, including Sahara Jones (11), Aaliyah Patty (11), Janiah Barker (10) and Tineya Hylton (10).
- It marked the fifth time this season the Aggies had at least three players score in double digits.
- Texas A&M improved to 4-0 inside Reed Arena in 2022-23.
- Texas A&M utilized a starting lineup of Sydney Bowles, Janiah Barker, McKinzie Green, Sahara Jones and Aaliyah Patty for the fifth time this season (4-1).
- Texas A&M held an opponent under 50 points for the third time in 2022-23.
- Texas A&M held an opponent to single digits in the points column in two different quarters for the second time in 2022-23.
- The Aggies limited Texas State to seven points in the third quarter, a season-best for the Maroon & White defense.
- The Aggies limited Texas State to two field goals in the third quarter, a season-best for the Maroon & White defense.
- The Aggies limited Texas State to 28.6% (18-of-63) field goal shooting for the game, a season-best for the Maroon & White defense.
- The Maroon & White defense held the Bobcats 41 points under their season average for offensive output.
- The Aggies drained a season-best eight 3-point field goals and they hit on 50.0% (8-of-16) from long range for the second time in 2022-23
- Texas A&M dished out a season-high 19 assists, besting the 15 posted against Army and A&M-Corpus Christi
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Janiah Barker
- Scored 10-or-more points for the fourth-consecutive game.
- Hit a 3-point field goal in her fifth-consecutive game.
- Added five rebounds, one block and one steal.
Sydney Bowles
- Brought down a career-high seven rebounds and two steals
- Hit a 3-point field goal in the fifth-consecutive game.
Tineya Hylton
- Equaled career highs with 10 points and six assists.
- Hit a 70-foot shot at the buzzer to end the third quarter.
Jada Malone
- Equaled a career high with six points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field.
Sahara Jones
- Scored 10-or-more points for the fourth time in 2022-23 and the sixth time in her career.
- Hit a season-high 71.4% (5-of-7) from the field, including 1-of-1 from 3-point range.
- Added six rebounds, three assists and one steal.
Aaliyah Patty
- Scored 10-or-more points for the second time in 2022-23 and the 41st time in her career.
- Added six rebounds and two assists.
- Registered a season-high 11 points.
POSTGAME QUOTES
Head Coach Joni Taylor
On shooting well from a distance…
“That’s one thing we do have is some people who can stretch the floor. We either had open looks or if they took that away then it opens things up in the high post area and we can play high-low. For us, it was about making the right read and making the right pass to get to the score if that was inside or if that was making one more pass to a guard on the way.”
On the second quarter…
“It was just not being locked in. It goes back to being able to put four quarters together, right? When we do that, we do some things really well and when we don’t, we do some things really poorly. I think a little bit of it could have possibly been that, but I don’t want to let them off the hook. I think we didn’t have the same energy; we didn’t talk, and we need to be more focused and locked in.”
Junior Forward Saharah Jones
On the second quarter difference…
“I believe it was us having energy on our defensive side mostly, that’s what basically got us through the game. We know our offense is going to work and sometimes it’s a bit shaky, but the defense is what we can rely on at all times. In the second quarter, we knew we weren’t giving enough energy so the third and fourth quarters had to be almost perfect.”
Sophomore Gaurd Tineya Hilton
On four scorers in double figures…
“I feel like when the team executes the plays properly, it can help us a lot. Defensively, we can come together as a team and get stops but also on offense we have a lot of talent on our team, especially young players. We know as individuals we are talented, and it will all fall into place.”
On making the half-court shot…
“Honestly, I just shot it and if it went in, it went in. I hoped it had gone in, which it did. That was definitely my first half-court shot so it was pretty exciting.”