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No. 18 Texas A&M beats Vandy to reach 2nd straight SEC final

AP
Mar 11, 2023

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) The Texas A&M Aggies are a win away from finishing off a rebound few saw coming in mid-December.

After starting the season 6-5 with losses to Murray State, Colorado and Memphis, the Aggies are back in the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship game for a second straight year.

Wade Taylor IV scored 25 points as No. 18 Texas A&M dominated from the opening tip in beating Vanderbilt 87-75 Saturday to put the Aggies back in the SEC Tournament final for the third time in program history.

“It’s a blessing,” Taylor said of getting back to the SEC tourney final. "We worked very hard to get back to this point. On December 25th, being 6-5, nobody thought we would be here. A blessing. We just got to complete the job."

The Aggies (25-8) were routed by Tennessee last season in Tampa and lost in overtime to Kentucky in 2016 in Nashville.

Tyrece Radford added 16 points and Julius Marble had 13 for the Aggies, who won their fourth straight.

Now they will try to beat No. 4 Alabama, a 72-61 winner over No. 25 Missouri in the first semifinal, for the second time in nine days. The Aggies beat Alabama 67-61 to wrap the regular season March 4.

“Just another chance to make history,” Taylor said of the rematch.

Texas A&M coach Buzz Williams said Alabama's success speaks for itself.

“The No. 1 seed, for sure. Are they the No. 1 No. 1?” Williams said. “I don’t know. You’d have to ask whoever is on the committee this year.”

Vanderbilt (20-14) reached the SEC semifinals for the first time since 2017 and was looking for its first berth in the tournament title game since 2012. That's when the Commodores upset eventual national champion Kentucky.

Tyrin Lawrence led Vanderbilt with 18 points. Jordan Wright had 17, and Ezra Manjon 16.

These sixth-seeded Commodores came in having played the late game each of the past two nights, including an 80-73 upset of No. 23 Kentucky on Friday night to notch the program's first 20-win season since 2014-15.

The quick turnaround took a toll on Vanderbilt, which had won 10 of its last 11 looking for its third SEC Tournament title. Coach Jerry Stackhouse said the Aggies also hit them with “a haymaker” early, but he was proud of how his Commodores fought back.

“We got back into the game after being down big,” Stackhouse said. “I think that’s the sign of a good team, the sign of a team that could do something special with the opportunity on the one-and-out format.”

Texas A&M, which beat Vanderbilt 72-66 on Jan. 28 in College Station, forced three turnovers in the first two minutes. The Aggies scored the first seven points and never looked back.

They led 49-25 at halftime, setting a program record for points in the first half at the SEC tourney. The Aggies pushed that to 52-25 on a Taylor jumper with 18:25 to go.

Vanderbilt refused to go away. The Commodores, who had won three straight over Top 25 teams for the first time since 2010-11, fought back with a 21-6 run. Wright capped the run with seven straight, and his free throw with 13:08 pulled the Dores within 58-46.

Taylor scored the next five for the Aggies, who quickly pushed the lead back to 21.

BIG PICTURE Vanderbilt: The Commodores just couldn't slow down the Aggies, and the 3-point shots that have bailed them out so often this season didn't fall. They were 4 of 12 in the first half and finished 64.3% overall in the second half (18 of 28).

Texas A&M: The Aggies couldn't have shot much better over the first 20 minutes, hitting 69% (20 of 29) overall and 58.3% from 3-point range (7 of 12). They finished 59.6% (31 of 52) for the game.

UP NEXT

Vanderbilt waits to see if its season continues in the NCAA Tournament or the NIT. The Commodores played the nation's 19th-toughest schedule with the SEC's fourth-most games against Quad 1 and 2 teams at 20. They also played Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky twice during the regular season.

“Yeah, we belong in the NCAA Tournament," Stackhouse said. "Ain’t no doubt in my mind about that.”

Texas A&M faces Alabama hoping the third time in the SEC Tournament championship game is the charm.

---

AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25

1st Half
VAN
Commodores
25
TXAM
Aggies
49

Time		Play	Score
20:00		Quentin Millora-Brown vs. Henry Coleman III (Jordan Wright gains possession)
19:40		Tyrin Lawrence misses three point jump shot
19:38		Dexter Dennis defensive rebound
19:19		Henry Coleman III offensive foul (Quentin Millora-Brown draws the foul)
19:19		Henry Coleman III turnover (offensive foul)
18:49		Jordan Wright turnover (lost ball) (Henry Coleman III steals)
18:42		Julius Marble misses two point layup
18:40		Ezra Manjon defensive rebound
18:34		Ezra Manjon turnover (carrying)
18:17	+2	Julius Marble makes two point turnaround hook shot	0-2
17:56		Ezra Manjon turnover (bad pass)
17:43	+2	Julius Marble makes two point hook shot	0-4
17:20		Jordan Wright misses three point jump shot
17:18		Henry Coleman III defensive rebound
17:09		Dexter Dennis misses three point jump shot
17:07		Jordan Wright defensive rebound
16:58		Jordan Wright misses three point jump shot
16:56		Julius Marble defensive rebound
16:50	+3	Tyrece Radford makes three point jump shot (Wade Taylor IV assists)	0-7
16:18	+3	Colin Smith makes three point jump shot (Jordan Wright assists)	3-7
15:47	+2	Dexter Dennis makes two point pullup jump shot (Henry Coleman III assists)	3-9
15:40		Tyrin Lawrence turnover (lost ball) (Wade Taylor IV steals)
15:40		TV timeout
15:25		Dexter Dennis misses three point jump shot
15:23		Jordan Wright defensive rebound
15:19		Dexter Dennis blocks Jordan Wright's two point layup
15:17		Julius Marble defensive rebound
15:00	+3	Wade Taylor IV makes three point jump shot (Tyrece Radford assists)	3-12
14:32		Ezra Manjon misses two point layup
14:30		Quentin Millora-Brown offensive rebound
14:26		Commodores turnover (shot clock violation)
14:13		Tyrece Radford misses three point jump shot
14:11		Quentin Millora-Brown defensive rebound
13:59	+2	Quentin Millora-Brown makes two point dunk (Jordan Wright assists)	5-12
13:46	+2	Henry Coleman III makes two point dunk (Wade Taylor IV assists)	5-14
13:29		Colin Smith misses three point jump shot
13:27		Commodores offensive rebound
13:27		Tyrece Radford personal foul
13:18		Lee Dort turnover (lost ball)
12:59		Wade Taylor IV misses two point jump shot
12:57		Andersson Garcia offensive rebound
12:56	+2	Tyrece Radford makes two point alley-oop layup (Andre Gordon assists)	5-16
12:22		Commodores turnover (shot clock violation)
12:03	+3	Andre Gordon makes three point jump shot (Henry Coleman III assists)	5-19
11:36		Paul Lewis misses two point jump shot
11:34		Andersson Garcia defensive rebound
11:25		TV timeout
11:23		Andre Gordon turnover (bad pass) (Tyrin Lawrence steals)
11:18		Ezra Manjon misses two point layup
11:16		Lee Dort offensive rebound
11:16	+2	Lee Dort makes two point putback layup	7-19
11:06	+3	Andersson Garcia makes three point jump shot (Dexter Dennis assists)	7-22
10:41		Myles Stute turnover (lost ball) (Tyrece Radford steals)
10:36	+2	Henry Coleman III makes two point driving dunk (Tyrece Radford assists)	7-24
10:10	+2	Ezra Manjon makes two point driving layup	9-24
9:46	+3	Tyrece Radford makes three point jump shot (Andre Gordon assists)	9-27
9:22	+3	Myles Stute makes three point jump shot (Ezra Manjon assists)	12-27
8:59	+2	Andre Gordon makes two point pullup jump shot (Andersson Garcia assists)	12-29
8:28		Myles Stute misses three point jump shot
8:26		Dexter Dennis defensive rebound
8:02		Myles Stute shooting foul (Dexter Dennis draws the foul)
8:02		Dexter Dennis misses regular free throw 1 of 2
8:02	+1	Dexter Dennis makes regular free throw 2 of 2	12-30
7:35		Tyrin Lawrence misses three point jump shot
7:33		Hayden Hefner defensive rebound
7:28		Wade Taylor IV turnover (bad pass) (Tyrin Lawrence steals)
7:13	+2	Tyrin Lawrence makes two point driving layup	14-30
7:13		Wade Taylor IV shooting foul (Tyrin Lawrence draws the foul)
7:13		TV timeout
7:13		Tyrin Lawrence misses regular free throw 1 of 1
7:13		Dexter Dennis defensive rebound
6:52	+2	Julius Marble makes two point layup (Hayden Hefner assists)	14-32
6:21		Tyrin Lawrence misses two point jump shot
6:20		Commodores offensive rebound
6:20		Commodores turnover (shot clock violation)
6:09	+2	Julius Marble makes two point turnaround jump shot (Dexter Dennis assists)	14-34
5:47		Hayden Hefner personal foul (Jordan Wright draws the foul)
5:36		Jordan Wright offensive foul (Solomon Washington draws the foul)
5:36		Jordan Wright turnover (offensive foul)
5:13	+2	Julius Marble makes two point jump shot (Hayden Hefner assists)	14-36
4:48		Jordan Wright misses three point jump shot
4:46		Dexter Dennis defensive rebound
4:39		Hayden Hefner offensive foul (Quentin Millora-Brown draws the foul)
4:39		Hayden Hefner turnover (offensive foul)
4:12		Tyrin Lawrence turnover (out of bounds)
3:53		Julius Marble offensive foul (Quentin Millora-Brown draws the foul)
3:53		Julius Marble turnover (offensive foul)
3:53		TV timeout
3:30	+2	Ezra Manjon makes two point driving layup	16-36
3:19	+3	Wade Taylor IV makes three point jump shot	16-39
2:51		Tyrin Lawrence misses two point layup
2:49		Henry Coleman III defensive rebound
2:43	+3	Wade Taylor IV makes three point jump shot (Tyrece Radford assists)	16-42
2:26	+3	Colin Smith makes three point jump shot (Jordan Wright assists)	19-42
2:03		Tyrece Radford misses three point jump shot
2:01		Quentin Millora-Brown defensive rebound
1:49	+2	Jordan Wright makes two point driving layup	21-42
1:35		Wade Taylor IV misses three point jump shot
1:33		Aggies offensive rebound
1:33		Colin Smith personal foul
1:32	+2	Tyrece Radford makes two point layup (Wade Taylor IV assists)	21-44
1:32		Ezra Manjon shooting foul (Tyrece Radford draws the foul)
1:32	+1	Tyrece Radford makes regular free throw 1 of 1	21-45
1:18		Jordan Wright turnover (bad pass) (Henry Coleman III steals)
1:13	+2	Solomon Washington makes two point dunk (Henry Coleman III assists)	21-47
1:01	+3	Colin Smith makes three point jump shot (Jordan Wright assists)	24-47
0:55		Solomon Washington personal foul (Quentin Millora-Brown draws the foul)
0:55	+1	Quentin Millora-Brown makes regular free throw 1 of 2	25-47
0:55		Quentin Millora-Brown misses regular free throw 2 of 2
0:55		Solomon Washington defensive rebound
0:41		Dexter Dennis misses two point jump shot
0:39		Dexter Dennis offensive rebound
0:39	+2	Dexter Dennis makes two point putback layup	25-49
0:16		Trey Thomas misses three point jump shot
0:14		Solomon Washington defensive rebound
0:01		Wade Taylor IV misses two point jump shot
0:00		Tyrece Radford offensive rebound
0:00		End of period

2nd Half
VAN
Commodores
50
TXAM
Aggies
38

Time		Play	Score
19:46		Quentin Millora-Brown turnover (bad pass) (Julius Marble steals)
19:30		Julius Marble misses two point jump shot
19:28		Tyrece Radford offensive rebound
19:14		Quentin Millora-Brown shooting foul (Julius Marble draws the foul)
19:14		Julius Marble misses regular free throw 1 of 2
19:14	+1	Julius Marble makes regular free throw 2 of 2	25-50
18:55		Ezra Manjon misses two point jump shot
18:53		Henry Coleman III defensive rebound
18:25	+2	Wade Taylor IV makes two point pullup jump shot (Tyrece Radford assists)	25-52
18:14	+3	Colin Smith makes three point jump shot (Jordan Wright assists)	28-52
17:48		Tyrece Radford misses two point jump shot
17:46		Aggies offensive rebound
17:42		Tyrece Radford misses three point jump shot
17:40		Dexter Dennis offensive rebound
17:19		Wade Taylor IV turnover (bad pass)
17:04	+2	Jordan Wright makes two point driving finger roll layup	30-52
16:43		Ezra Manjon shooting foul (Wade Taylor IV draws the foul)
16:43		Wade Taylor IV misses regular free throw 1 of 2
16:43	+1	Wade Taylor IV makes regular free throw 2 of 2	30-53
16:32	+2	Tyrin Lawrence makes two point floating jump shot (Ezra Manjon assists)	32-53
16:17		Tyrece Radford turnover (bad pass) (Jordan Wright steals)
16:12		Tyrece Radford shooting foul (Jordan Wright draws the foul)
16:12	+1	Jordan Wright makes regular free throw 1 of 2	33-53
16:12	+1	Jordan Wright makes regular free throw 2 of 2	34-53
15:52		Wade Taylor IV misses three point jump shot
15:50		Colin Smith defensive rebound
15:50		Henry Coleman III personal foul (Colin Smith draws the foul)
15:50		TV timeout
15:40		Tyrin Lawrence turnover (lost ball) (Henry Coleman III steals)
15:25		Dexter Dennis misses two point jump shot
15:23		Tyrin Lawrence defensive rebound
15:13	+3	Colin Smith makes three point jump shot (Ezra Manjon assists)	37-53
14:58		Colin Smith personal foul (Henry Coleman III draws the foul)
14:57		Jordan Wright personal foul (Tyrece Radford draws the foul)
14:49		Tyrin Lawrence shooting foul (Tyrece Radford draws the foul)
14:49	+1	Tyrece Radford makes regular free throw 1 of 2	37-54
14:49		Tyrece Radford misses regular free throw 2 of 2
14:49		Colin Smith defensive rebound
14:26		Andersson Garcia shooting foul (Ezra Manjon draws the foul)
14:26	+1	Ezra Manjon makes regular free throw 1 of 2	38-54
14:26	+1	Ezra Manjon makes regular free throw 2 of 2	39-54
14:22	+2	Tyrece Radford makes two point driving layup	39-56
14:12	+3	Jordan Wright makes three point jump shot (Ezra Manjon assists)	42-56
13:57	+2	Henry Coleman III makes two point driving layup	42-58
13:35		Ezra Manjon misses two point layup
13:33		Jordan Wright offensive rebound
13:31	+2	Jordan Wright makes two point putback layup	44-58
13:13		Andre Gordon turnover (bad pass) (Jordan Wright steals)
13:09		Tyrece Radford shooting foul (Jordan Wright draws the foul)
13:09	+1	Jordan Wright makes regular free throw 1 of 2	45-58
13:09	+1	Jordan Wright makes regular free throw 2 of 2	46-58
12:53		Henry Coleman III turnover (lost ball) (Jordan Wright steals)
12:53		Henry Coleman III personal foul (Jordan Wright draws the foul)
12:35		Myles Stute misses three point jump shot
12:33		Andersson Garcia defensive rebound
12:24		Myles Stute shooting foul (Henry Coleman III draws the foul)
12:24		Henry Coleman III misses regular free throw 1 of 2
12:24		Henry Coleman III misses regular free throw 2 of 2
12:24		Myles Stute defensive rebound
12:11		Myles Stute misses three point jump shot
12:09		Henry Coleman III defensive rebound
12:01	+2	Wade Taylor IV makes two point floating jump shot	46-60
11:50	+2	Jordan Wright makes two point driving layup	48-60
11:40	+3	Wade Taylor IV makes three point pullup jump shot	48-63
11:38		Aggies 30 second timeout
11:38		TV timeout
11:21		Jordan Wright misses three point jump shot
11:19		Wade Taylor IV defensive rebound
11:03		Jordan Wright personal foul (Wade Taylor IV draws the foul)
11:03		TV timeout
11:03	+1	Wade Taylor IV makes regular free throw 1 of 2	48-64
11:03	+1	Wade Taylor IV makes regular free throw 2 of 2	48-65
10:41		Jordan Wright misses three point jump shot
10:39		Dexter Dennis defensive rebound
10:24	+2	Julius Marble makes two point dunk (Dexter Dennis assists)	48-67
10:02		Dexter Dennis shooting foul (Ezra Manjon draws the foul)
10:02	+1	Ezra Manjon makes regular free throw 1 of 2	49-67
10:02		Ezra Manjon misses regular free throw 2 of 2
10:02		Julius Marble defensive rebound
9:50		Julius Marble misses two point jump shot
9:48		Tyrece Radford offensive rebound
9:47		Tyrece Radford misses two point layup
9:45		Jordan Wright defensive rebound
9:41	+2	Tyrin Lawrence makes two point driving layup	51-67
9:23	+2	Wade Taylor IV makes two point floating jump shot	51-69
9:12	+2	Ezra Manjon makes two point driving layup	53-69
8:54	+2	Wade Taylor IV makes two point driving layup	53-71
8:45		Tyrin Lawrence offensive foul (Andersson Garcia draws the foul)
8:45		Tyrin Lawrence turnover (offensive foul)
8:25	+3	Hayden Hefner makes three point jump shot (Wade Taylor IV assists)	53-74
8:07		Jordan Wright misses two point layup
8:05		Julius Marble defensive rebound
7:54		Quentin Millora-Brown personal foul (Wade Taylor IV draws the foul)
7:54		TV timeout
7:54	+1	Wade Taylor IV makes regular free throw 1 of 2	53-75
7:54	+1	Wade Taylor IV makes regular free throw 2 of 2	53-76
7:35		Tyrin Lawrence misses two point jump shot
7:33		Quentin Millora-Brown offensive rebound
7:32		Solomon Washington shooting foul (Quentin Millora-Brown draws the foul)
7:32		Quentin Millora-Brown misses regular free throw 1 of 2
7:32	+1	Quentin Millora-Brown makes regular free throw 2 of 2	54-76
7:09		Quentin Millora-Brown blocks Henry Coleman III's two point layup
7:07		Colin Smith defensive rebound
6:59	+3	Tyrin Lawrence makes three point jump shot (Ezra Manjon assists)	57-76
6:25	+3	Hayden Hefner makes three point jump shot (Tyrece Radford assists)	57-79
6:09	+2	Ezra Manjon makes two point driving reverse layup	59-79
5:49		Solomon Washington turnover (lost ball) (Ezra Manjon steals)
5:44	+2	Ezra Manjon makes two point driving layup	61-79
5:15		Quentin Millora-Brown shooting foul (Tyrece Radford draws the foul)
5:15	+1	Tyrece Radford makes regular free throw 1 of 2	61-80
5:15		Tyrece Radford misses regular free throw 2 of 2
5:15		Myles Stute defensive rebound
4:58		Ezra Manjon misses two point jump shot
4:56		Hayden Hefner defensive rebound
4:36		Andre Gordon misses two point layup
4:34		Quentin Millora-Brown defensive rebound
4:30	+2	Tyrin Lawrence makes two point driving dunk (Ezra Manjon assists)	63-80
4:05		Andre Gordon misses three point jump shot
4:03		Jordan Wright defensive rebound
3:44	+2	Tyrin Lawrence makes two point driving layup	65-80
3:39		Commodores 30 second timeout
3:22		Andre Gordon turnover (lost ball) (Jordan Wright steals)
3:20	+2	Jordan Wright makes two point driving layup (Paul Lewis assists)	67-80
2:56		Wade Taylor IV misses three point jump shot
2:54		Andersson Garcia offensive rebound
2:54		Myles Stute personal foul (Andersson Garcia draws the foul)
2:54		Andersson Garcia misses regular free throw 1 of 2
2:54		Andersson Garcia misses regular free throw 2 of 2
2:54		Jordan Wright defensive rebound
2:35		Tyrin Lawrence turnover (lost ball) (Solomon Washington steals)
2:27		Hayden Hefner turnover (lost ball) (Jordan Wright steals)
2:22	+2	Tyrin Lawrence makes two point layup (Jordan Wright assists)	69-80
1:55		Andersson Garcia misses two point layup
1:51		Commodores defensive rebound
1:38		Jordan Wright turnover (bad pass) (Andersson Garcia steals)
1:29		Aggies 30 second timeout
1:10	+2	Dexter Dennis makes two point stepback jump shot	69-82
0:57		Jordan Wright misses three point jump shot
0:55		Tyrece Radford defensive rebound
0:54		Myles Stute personal foul (Tyrece Radford draws the foul)
0:54	+1	Tyrece Radford makes regular free throw 1 of 2	69-83
0:54		Tyrece Radford misses regular free throw 2 of 2
0:54		Jordan Wright defensive rebound
0:49	+2	Ezra Manjon makes two point layup	71-83
0:40		Myles Stute personal foul (Dexter Dennis draws the foul)
0:40	+1	Dexter Dennis makes regular free throw 1 of 2	71-84
0:40	+1	Dexter Dennis makes regular free throw 2 of 2	71-85
0:35		Andersson Garcia shooting foul (Ezra Manjon draws the foul)
0:35	+1	Ezra Manjon makes regular free throw 1 of 2	72-85
0:35		Ezra Manjon misses regular free throw 2 of 2
0:35		Andersson Garcia defensive rebound
0:32		Paul Lewis personal foul (Andersson Garcia draws the foul)
0:32	+1	Andersson Garcia makes regular free throw 1 of 2	72-86
0:32	+1	Andersson Garcia makes regular free throw 2 of 2	72-87
0:28	+3	Tyrin Lawrence makes three point jump shot (Ezra Manjon assists)	75-87
0:00		End of period

+ 3

Tyrin Lawrence makes three point jump shot (Ezra Manjon assists)