Aggie Women’s Basketball Falls to Missouri, 78-69

WTAW 1620 Aggie Basketball

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Texas A&M women’s basketball team fell to Missouri, 78-69, on the road Sunday night at Mizzou Arena.

Kayla Wells led the team with 14 points and tied Karla Gilbert’s program record of 143 games played. Also in double figures were Destiny Pitts (13), Sydnee Roby (13) and Qadashah Hoppie (11). Hoppie led A&M (11-8, 1-6 Southeastern Conference) with a season-high six assists.

Missouri (15-5, 4-3 SEC) jumped out early to a 14-7 lead behind a barrage of threes where it went 4-of-7 from deep. The Aggies responded with a 12-2 run over the final five minutes of the period, forcing four turnovers during the span and establishing a 19-16 lead after the first quarter.

Defense stole show in the second quarter, as the Maroon & White didn’t allow a made field goal by the Tigers until the 2:43 mark in the second quarter. Mizzou would string together an 11-0 run to regain the lead, but Pitts drilled a timely triple as time expired to give the Aggies a 31-29 advantage going into the break.

Nixon and Wells erupted on the offensive end to start the second half. The duo scored the first 15 points of the third period for the Aggies, going 6-of-7 from the field as a pair. Both teams’ offenses were lighting up the scoreboard in the third, with Mizzou and A&M combining for 50 points in the period. The Tigers won the quarter and took a 57-53 lead into the fourth.

The Maroon & White overtook the lead, 60-59, with 6:26 remaining. However, the Tigers went on a 19-8 run to close out the game, winning by a 78-69 margin. Mizzou’s 16 triples, and Hayley Frank’s 28 points proved too much for A&M to overcome.

Up Next
The Texas A&M women’s basketball team has a week off before returning to SEC play at Mississippi State on Sunday, Jan. 30 at 3 p.m. CT.

POSTGAME NOTES
RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
Texas A&M falls to 11-8 overall this season and 1-6 in conference play.
The Maroon & White is now 20-11 all-time versus Missouri.

TEAM NOTES
The Maroon & White has made eight-or-more triples in nine games this season, after draining eight threes against Mizzou.
Four Aggies scored in double figures for the first time since Jan. 9 versus Florida.
Texas A&M utilized a starting lineup of Jordan Nixon, Qadashah Hoppie, Destiny Pitts, Kayla Wells and Sydnee Roby for the fourth time this season (2-2).

INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Kayla Wells has scored in double digits every game this year, after scoring 14 points against the Tigers. She has now scored 10-or-more points in 83 games throughout her career.
Wells has tied Karla Gilbert’s program record of 143 games played.
Qadashah Hoppie played 40-or-more minutes for the third game this season.
Hoppie dished a season-high six assists to lead the team. This is the second game this season she has posted five-or-more dimes.
Jordan Nixon has led the Aggies in rebounds for three-consecutive games, grabbing six boards against Mizzou.
Destiny Pitts hit three triples to lead the team. This is the seventh game she has hit three-or-more threes in a game this season.
Women’s Basketball Hall-of-Famer Gary Blair falls to 849-341 in his career with a 441-178 record at Texas A&M.

POSTGAME QUOTES

Head Coach Gary Blair
Opening Statement…
“We were playing pretty well throughout the game. We are getting better. But are we getting smarter? I made up my mind that I was not going to zone a 3-point shooting team as good as Missouri. I was going to play them man. Their offense was basically pick, screen and drift, and they did it very well. We let [Hayley] Frank go for 28 points. It didn’t matter what we scored in the paint; it was what they were able to score with how efficient their offense was. Eventually, your threes will run dry, just like they ran dry for us. You have to have balance.”

Graduate student Destiny Pitts
On trying to get back into the game after being down…
“It was hard when we were trading threes for twos. When they went on their run, they were making threes and we weren’t getting any stops. We needed those stops. I think that was the difference between the first half and the second half. In the first half we were able to get those stops.

Redshirt Junior Jordan Nixon
On what challenges the Mizzou offense presented…
“We know who Mizzou is. They have proven time and time again that they can shoot the basketball. When you are playing a team that has five players on the court that can shoot the ball, you have to be on you Ps and Qs. We didn’t do what we needed to do, and that was to communicate on the defensive end.

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