News release from Texas A&M Athletics:
BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION –Texas A&M had five scorers in double digits as the No. 13 Aggies rolled to a wire-to-wire 87-55 victory over East Texas A&M on Friday at Reed Arena.
The Aggies raced to a 7-0 lead to start the game and their advantage bulged to double digits less than five minutes into the game. The Lions never got within single digits of the Maroon & White over the final 45 minutes of the contest. Texas A&M’s largest lead of the night was 35 at 66-31 at the 12:34 mark of the second half.
Senior transfer Zhuric Phelps energized the Aggies in his playing debut with a game-high 18 points in just 18 minutes off the bench. Phelps showed off his explosiveness as he scored seven of his eight field goals via layup. He also pulled five rebounds and made three steals in his introduction to the 12th Man.
Other Aggies chipping in double-digit scoring nights were Henry Coleman III with 14 points, Hayden Hefner with 13, Manny Obaseki with 13 and Wade Taylor IV with 10. Taylor distributed six assists while only suffering a single turnover. Coleman and Andersson Garcia controlled the boards with a game-high eight rebounds each.
Texas A&M shot a red-hot 56% from the field, connecting on 34-of-61 shots, including 54 points in the paint. The Aggies reeled in 15 offensive rebounds which led to 25 second-chance points, while A&M’s defense didn’t allow a single second-chance point by the Lions. Texas A&M also showed off its depth with 50 points coming from its bench.
Notables:
- Manny Obaseki reached a couple of milestones as his 14 points and three rebounds pushed him over the 500-point and 150-rebound plateaus
- In a rarity, Zhuric Phelps was often guarded by his brother, Evan Phelps, who is a sophomore guard for the East Texas A&M Lions
- Jace Carter’s two rebounds pushed him over 500 for his career at Illinois-Chicago and Texas A&M.
Quotables:
Head Coach Buzz Williams
On the maturity of the team…
“We have to use our maturity and our experience and our wisdom to our advantage and within that maturity and experience, our growth rate has to be really fast relative to the schedule we’re going to play. So in truth we’re going to have to respond in real time in order to achieve the growth rate needed. We’re not going to be able to give hours or minutes away to emotional kumbaya sessions, I’ve done that in the past.”
Senior Guard Zhuric Phelps
On playing against his brother…
“That’s my little brother – I make him better, he makes me better on and off the court. We went to State together my senior year of high school at Duncanville. My mom and my father came…my dad had a half Commerce half A&M shirt on.”
Senior Guard Manny Obaseki
On rebounding from UCF game
“I don’t let one bad game, one bad night, determine the player I am. I told myself a long time ago I’m not going to look back, I’m just going to keep going forward and keep going.”