Alabama vs Texas A&M was yet another can’t-miss matchup in the SEC, and the game completely delivered on everything it was promised to be. The keys to the game included rebounding, bench points, and ultimately, free throws. All in all, Alabama notched a big-time road win, prevailing 94-88.
Texas A&M Narrowly Missed Out On Another Big Comeback Win
Texas A&M found themselves down early but stayed attached through most of the game. The Aggies did not shoot well, particularly from three-point land, but were still able to fight back and be in the game at the end thanks to effort plays, tough defense, and physical play on both ends.
Texas A&M had 9 steals and forced Alabama into 15 turnovers. They also had 32 second-chance points, which were fueled by 22 offensive rebounds. Pharrel Payne was a monster off the bench, finishing with 23 points, 9 rebounds (6 offensive) and 4 blocks on the night.
steal it ➡️ score it
📺 ESPN#GigEm | @hencoleman3 pic.twitter.com/jH17cULaFP
— Texas A&M Basketball (@aggiembk) January 12, 2025
Star guard Wade Taylor IV was not able to go for the second straight game, but Zhuric Phelps was more then ready to deputize again. Phelps had 24 points and also contributed 9 rebounds. Although Phelps led the way in the scoring column, his 24 points came on 29 shots. Henry Coleman III also deserves praise for his 12-point, 11-rebound double-double. He also came away with 3 steals.
Zhu from the arc!!👀👀#GigEm pic.twitter.com/qX9sE47pP6
— Texas A&M Basketball (@aggiembk) January 12, 2025
After being down 15 with 7 minutes to play, A&M showed their fight once again. After a big comeback against Oklahoma in their previous game, the Aggies seemed determined to do it again. However, Alabama made enough plays down the stretch to hold them off.
Controlling the Glass Was Essential for Alabama
Alabama put their size advantage to good use on Saturday, outrebounding one of the best rebounding teams in the country 54 to 46. Five players had over 5 rebounds on the night. Grant Nelson struggled to shoot the ball, only having 6 points, but still gathered 8 rebounds. Jarin Stevenson was his usual self in the paint, adding 5 rebounds to 3 important blocks. Star freshman Labaron Philon showed he was ready and willing to join the scrappy affair on the glass, grabbing 6 rebounds of his own. That all being said, the rebounding MVP for the Tide was Clifford Omoruyi.
Omoruyi was hobbled by an ankle injury entering the game, but still contributed 10 boards, which led the team, despite playing only 16 minutes. Coach Nate Oats said that he was proud of the way Omoruyi “manned up” and fought through the pain to help the team.
Alabama finished the game with several key possessions fueled by offensive rebounds. On one occasion, with the score 84-80 with around two minutes to play, it took two offensive rebounds and kickouts to Mark Sears for the senior to finally drain a dagger three-pointer. Sears had a sparkling 27 points on the evening, which led the team.
#BlueCollarBasketball pic.twitter.com/W1u5FifdU9
— Alabama Men’s Basketball (@AlabamaMBB) January 12, 2025
Bench points were also mentioned as a key to the game, and while Texas A&M had Payne, Bama had the trio of Derrion Reid (11 points), Chris Youngblood (14 points), and Aiden Holloway (15 points) all come through in a big way.
It Came Down to the Free Throw Line
As much as the game was a physical battle on the boards, the game came down to the free throw line. With 58 combined fouls, the game saw a staggering 88 total free throw attempts. Alabama has been a poor free throw shooting team all year, and only shot 67.5% from the line as a team, but Texas A&M, also not a great team from the line, was even worse, going just 28-48 in a shockingly poor 58.4%.
🔥 @AlabamaMBB gets a BIG W over the Aggies!
There were 88 free throws attempted in this game 😱 pic.twitter.com/wdhSxRMC0P
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) January 12, 2025
Many of the fouls stemmed from the teams’ efforts on the boards. Over the back fouls were all too common. In a game where both teams were inefficient from the field, converting free throws proved to be the difference. Oats said that his team was “fortunate” that A&M struggled so much from the line. Aggies head coach Buzz Williams was clearly disappointed by his team’s free throw performance and mentioned that it was very out of the ordinary for his team to get so many attempts and fail to put them away.
Alabama is home against #23 Ole Miss on Tuesday, and Texas A&M travels to Rupp Arena to face Kentucky also on Tuesday.
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