BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Texas A&M’s big man tandem of Henry Coleman III and Julius Marble powered the Aggies to a 83-64 win over the SMU Mustangs in front of a crowd of 6,956 on Wednesday at Reed Arena.
For the second straight game, the Aggies led from start to finish as they won their third straight and improved to 5-2, while SMU fell to 3-4.
The rugged duo were in the starting lineup together for the first time against the Mustangs and they controlled the paint with a combined 33 points and nine rebounds. The 6-foot-8 Coleman led the way with a season-high 23 points and five rebounds and the 6-foot-9 Marble added 10 points and four boards. The Aggies scored a whopping 48 points in the paint, while limiting the Ponies to just 18 close-range points.
Also chipping in double figures was Wade Taylor IV with 13 points and he dished out a career-high nine assists, which was the most by an Aggie since Duane Wilson had 11 assists vs. Buffalo in 2017. Tyrece Radford led the team with six rebounds and also added nine points.
The Aggies hit just shy of 50% of their field goal tries (30-of-61) and the team dished out 17 assists. Texas A&M hit double digits in steals for the fourth time this season with 11. The Aggies forced 19 SMU turnovers, which they converted into 24 points.
Texas A&M Men’s Basketball Postgame Quotes/Notes
Texas A&M 83, SMU 64
Reed Arena (Bryan-College Station, Texas)
Head Coach Buzz Williams
On new starting five…
“We haven’t figured out all of that yet, but there is a lot of confidence in all of those guys that were playing so we’re still trying to put it all together, not just on who starts, but on the best groupings, when to sub, how to get guys the appropriate rest and some based on how they’re doing in that moment in time. Today, those starters were based on how they’ve done in practice over the last two and a half days.”
On challenge of SMU, Boise State…
I am very thankful and excited for the step we took tonight. We’ll treat our guys’ bodies and brains right tomorrow, but we’ve got to have a good day of work on Friday. Our staff has done a lot of prep work leading into what will be two-days before tomorrow, because we need to take the next right step on Saturday night.
On the 10-minute stretch of dominant defense…
They just played with overwhelming effort. The one thing that hurt us within that stretch was that we didn’t finish enough of those possessions with a defensive rebound. We were flying around. Guys that were making mistakes, we had guys behind them covering up those mistakes. I thought our effort and communication within that effort was as good as it’s been. There was a lot of times where we weren’t surprised and I know because he’s about to this, I know what I have to do next.
On key to success in the paint…
As good as Henry (Coleman III) was, I didn’t think he started well. I got on the court pregame to touch our guys individually and told him that his poise and pace in the DePaul game was great and that we need to get back to that. We put pressure on the rim all night.
Junior forward Henry Coleman III
On if he expected if they could do what they did tonight…
“We prepared to score from the outside and inside. I guess it was just our night inside. I thought Julius [Marble] played really well. Andersson [Garcia], when he came in, played unbelievable. Solomon [Washington] probably had his best game defensively. So, I think us being able to control the low block changes this team.”
On the physical test of playing hard…
“It’s just the work we put in over the summer and the work that we put in each and every day. We know that college basketball is a high-level game. It’s a very physical game, especially when you’re playing a good team like SMU, and when you’re going into the SEC coming up, you have to be prepared to take hits and not receive calls. You kind of have to play through it, so, credit to Coach Gephardt and his ability to keep us strong and keep us going at a high level.”
Sophomore guard Wade Taylor IV
On how the defense sparks the offense…
“I just told everyone in the huddle just to take a breath, just relax, and just worry about the next play. You know, just get one stop at a time, because whenever we get the defensive rebound, we’re probably one of the best teams in transition for scoring off the rebound. So, I feel like all we had to do is get one stop, each possession, get a turkey (three defensive stops in a row), and we’ll be fine.”
RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
The Aggies improved to 88-91 in the all-time series against the Mustangs, winning eight of the last 11 games against SMU.
The Maroon & White won its eighth straight game at Reed Arena, dating back to a 56-55 win over Florida on February 15, 2022.
The Aggies finished the month of November with a 5-2 overall record and a 3-0 record at home.
TEAM NOTES
Texas A&M scored 48 of its 82 points in the paint.
The Aggies matched a season-high 11 steals, which was previously done against ACU on November 11.
Texas A&M also tied a season high in blocks with four.
A&M forced 19 turnovers, scoring 24 points off turnovers.
The Aggie bench combined for 26 points.
Texas A&M’s 19-point victory ties the second highest margin of victory in seven games.
Six players hauled in three-or-more rebounds.
A&M scored 80-or-more points for the fourth time this season.
Texas A&M used the starting lineup combination of Dexter Dennis, Wade Taylor IV, Henry Coleman III, Tyrece Radford and Julius Marble for the first time this season (1-0), marking the fourth starting lineup combination of the year.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Henry Coleman III
- Led the team with a season-high 23 points, just four points shy of his career high (27).
- Led the team in points for the second time this season.
- Finished 10-for-18 from the field. The last Aggie to make 10 field goals was Quenton Jackson (11) against Georgia on February 22, 2022.
- Scored 11 of his 23 points in the first half.
- Logged double digit points for the third consecutive game and fifth time this season.
- Slammed in his team-leading sixth dunk of the season.
- Tallied five rebounds.
Andrew Gordon
- Registered two 3-pointers for the second time this season.
- Tied his season highs in both points (6) and assists (3).
Julius Marble
- Logged 10 points to tally double figures for the fourth time this season and 12th of his career.
- Tied a career high in steals with two.
Manny Obaseki
- Finished with seven points and a season-high three assists.
- Collected a steal for the second straight game.
Tyrece Radford
- Recorded nine points and six rebounds.
- Led the team in rebounds for the second time this season and 18th of his career.
Wade Taylor IV
- Registered double figures for the third consecutive game and sixth time this season after tallying 13 points.
- Has scored double digit points in all but one game this season.
- Dished out a career-high nine assists.
- Collected four rebounds, just shy of his career high of five.
- Led the team in steals for the second consecutive game after snagging three.
Story by Brad Marquardt, Assistant AD/Athletics Communications