Taylor IV leads Aggies’ fiery offense to defeat Vandy

Nashville, Tenn. — No. 2 seed Texas A&M (25-8, 15-3 SEC) advanced to the SEC Tournament Championship Game with an 87-75 win over No. 1 seed Vanderbilt. 6 in the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament semifinals Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Aggies remained consistent and rode out a 24-point halftime lead to outlast the Commodores’ second half surge.

Wade Taylor IV scored 25 points on 8-of-13 shooting with four 3-pointers and four assists to lead the Aggies’ highest SEC Tournament performance since 1994. Tyrece Radford scored 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting with two 3-pointers , four rebounds and five assists. Julius Marble contributed 13 points and four boards while Dexter Dennis scored nine and grabbed seven off the glass.

Despite a slow start, four Commodores found themselves in double-digit scores. Tyrin Lawrence led the surge in the second half, scoring 16 of his 18 points in the game’s final half on 8-of-13 shooting. Jordan Wright scored 15 of his 17 points and Ezra Manjon scored 12 of his 16 as Vanderbilt pulled off a second-half frenzy. Colin Smith scored nine of his 25 points in the first half from behind the arc, totaling 15 on the day with two more three-pointers in the second.

Wright led off the glass with seven boards and Quentin Millora-Brown followed with five. Manjon racked up seven assists as Wright was just behind with six. With his outstanding performance, Wright marked his second game of the season with more than 15 points, five rebounds & five assists. The last Vanderbilt player to record that stat in an SEC Tournament game was Jermaine Beal in 2010.

Texas A&M set the tone with a seven-point surge to start a 12-3 run in the opening minute on 3-pointers by Radford and Taylor IV. Millora-Brown knocked one down in an attempt to break the Aggies’ momentum, but she responded with a dunk of her own as part of a six-point spurt to build a 14-point lead, 19-5, with 12:04 left in the half.

After a brief exchange of baskets, the Aggies extended their lead further, 42-16, with a 10-2 run capped by two Taylor IV 3-pointers in back-to-back possessions with 2:43 to go in the first period. With just over a minute to go in the half, Henry Coleman III grabbed the ball from Jordan, sent it down the court to Solomon Washington as he flew to the rim on the fast break, slamming it down for the biggest lead of the first half in the. 26 points, 47-21.

The Dores didn’t give up when Smith drilled one from long range and Millora-Brown made one of two shots from the free throw line, but Dennis closed the first half with a layup to set up a 49-25 halftime advantage. buzzer.

Texas A&M shot 69% (20-of-29) from the field in the first half, the second-highest first-half field goal percentage in the past 10 seasons. The 24-point halftime lead was tied for the second-largest against an SEC opponent since joining the SEC. The Aggies’ seven 3-pointers were the most in a half this season as Taylor IV hit three and Radford hit two of seven.

The Commodores turned the ball over 12 times in the first half after having just 11 turnovers in a regular season game against Texas A&M. They also found themselves behind the glass, 15-7, at the half. Vanderbilt struggled to find the net in the first period, shooting 24% from the field (10-of-24).

Vanderbilt came into the second half fired up and ready to fight. A few points by Texas A & M will set the biggest lead of the game with a 27-point advantage, 52-25, but it will not last long.

The Commodores pressed on with a 7-0 run as a 3-point jump shot by Smith sent the crowd to its feet and solidified a career-high scoring performance. Vanderbilt fans were stunned when Wright hit a three and put in a layup in the stuff from behind before stealing the ball and making a pair of free throws to close the gap, 58-46, with 13:27 to play. .

But Taylor IV proved difficult to slow down, splashing his fourth 3-pointer of the contest and a pair of free throws before Marble slammed one down to set the Aggies two by 19, 67-48, midway through the second half. Texas A&M achieved a 23-point differential before Vanderbilt began to chip away again with a 16-4 run powered by Lawrence’s nine, bringing it within 11 at the 2:22 mark, 80-69.

However, the Commodores ran out of time before they could complete the comeback as the Aggies’ outstanding halftime performance and explosive offensive performance secured an 87-75 victory and a chance at the SEC Tournament title.

Until Next Time

Texas A&M will face 1-seed Alabama in the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship Game on Sunday at 1 PM ET — the game will be televised on ESPN.

Vanderbilt (20-14, 11-7 SEC) was eliminated from the tournament.