BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M men’s basketball team rallied for a hard-fought 64-52 victory over the Northwestern State Demons on Tuesday night at Reed Arena.
Down by as many 15 in the first half, the resilient Aggies (7-5) battled to within five points at halftime and then grabbed their first lead of the game less than two minutes in the second period. The Aggies were dominant in the second half, outscoring the Demons, 36-19, as they cruised to the 12-point margin of victory.
Junior Henry Coleman III poured in a season-high 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while graduate Tyrece Radford posted a double-double with 21 points and a game-high 10 boards. The aggressive Aggies continued a season-long trend of getting to the free throw line and hit 21 freebies on 27 attempts from the charity stripe.
The Aggies controlled the boards with 45 rebounds, which was the most since having 47 in the season-opener vs. Abilene Christian. Texas A&M had an impressive 36-6 advantage on points in the paint and also had 17 second-chance points.
Texas A&M Men’s Basketball Postgame Quotes/Notes
Texas A&M 64, Northwestern State 52
Reed Arena (Bryan-College Station, Texas)
Tyrece Radford
On defense before and after halftime:
“Everything was pretty much the same. We knew coming into the game that they were a good shooting team, they’re gonna shoot contested threes and we’re twos. So at half, we really didn’t change what we did, we just changed how we did it. Just came out more aggressive.”
On if issues from previous games have been fixed:
“I could say we made adjustments, and it starts with us as a team, minus the coaches and the rest of the staff. We took that approach as a team. As far as stats part of it, maybe fixed, but it’s basketball: it can go either way. We just have to stick to our roots.
On if he likes the label of being a “comeback team”:
“We don’t really want to be labeled as a comeback team. We want to jump out as soon as the game starts. It’s what we’ve been working on, it’s what we have to get back to being. We don’t want that label of “comeback team.” We want to put fear in hearts from the start of the game, halftime, to the end of the game.”
Buzz Williams
On importance of getting back in the win column for morale and momentum:
“In some respects, we needed to win a game like that. We didn’t need to win a blowout. We needed to win in the ways that we have lost. The ways that we have lost have been: when you have to get a stop, we haven’t; when you have to get a rebound, we haven’t; when you have to make a lay-up, we haven’t. I think they all realized over the last 30 minutes that ‘it has to be this.’”
RECORDS & SERIES NOTES
- Texas A&M defeated the Northwestern State Demons, 64-52, Tuesday night at Reed Arena.
- The Maroon & White improve to 7-5 overall and 5-1 at home.
- The Aggies are 11-2 in the all-time series against the Demons, winning their 11th straight game against Northwestern State.
TEAM NOTES
- Two players finished with 20-or-more points for the second time this season with the last time coming at DePaul on Nov. 25.
- Texas A&M had a player record a double-double for the second time this season.
- The Aggies scored 36 points in the paint, limiting the Demons to just six points in the paint.
- The Maroon & White outrebounded Northwestern State 45-30, recording the second-most rebounds this season. (Season high is 47)
- The Texas A&M bench scored just two points, a rarity for the Aggies, with the starters combining for 62 of A&M’s 64 points.
- Texas A&M used the starting lineup combination of Henry Coleman III, Dexter Dennis, Julius Marble, Tyrece Radford and Wade Taylor for the third time this season (2-1).
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Henry Coleman III
- Registered a season-high 24 points, while hauling in seven rebounds.
- Scored 16 of his points in 17 minutes of action in the first half.
- Recorded 20-or-more points for the second time this season and the eighth time this season in double figures.
- Finished a perfect 8-8 at the charity stripe.
- Marked the third time this season he’s led the team in points.
Dexter Dennis
- Matched his season high in steals with two.
- Tied his season high in steals with seven.
- Recorded his second dunk of the season and the 31st of his career.
- Scored six points.
Andersson Garcia
- Grabbed six rebounds, just shy of his season high of seven.
- Registered a season high in assists with three.
- Swatted his second block of the season and also added a steal.
Tyrece Radford
- Finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds to tally his first double-double of the season and the sixth of his career.
- Scored eight points at the half and was 4-for-5 from the field to finish the game 8-for-10 from the field.
- Marked the sixth time in double figures this season.
- Was a perfect 5-5 from the free throw line.
- Matched his season high in rebounds with 10.
Wade Taylor IV
- After have zero points in the first half, scored nine points in the second half.
- Dished out three assists and had a steal.
Story courtesy of Brad Marquardt, Assistant AD/Athletics Communications