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Texas A&M knocks off Florida
- Updated: February 15, 2015
With a little more than nine minutes left between Florida and Texas A&M, the Aggies’ Danuel House pointed out a couple of wet spots on the floor to the towel boys before finally taking over one of the towels himself to get the job done.
The Aggies needed that kind of workmanlike effort overall to edge the Gators 63-62 before 9,418 fans in Reed Arena — and keep their dreams alive for an NCAA tournament bid.
“Hopefully this takes some of the pressure off of us,” said A&M coach Billy Kennedy, who added that he urged his players throughout the game, “Hey, enjoy the journey. Have fun, relax and play.”
The Aggies (17-7, 8-4), who haven’t made the NCAA tournament since 2011, were feeling some pressure after opening a three-game home slate with a 62-53 loss to Georgia on Wednesday. A&M had won four of five games on the road and was expected to capitalize on finally being at home for a stretch.
“Coach (Kennedy) told us in a meeting on Thursday that we needed to put the Georgia loss in the past,” said senior forward Kourtney Roberson, who led A&M with 20 points. “I think we did.”
Barely. The Aggies, who led by 15 points late in the first half over the Gators (12-13, 5-7), watched their lead evaporate throughout the second half and needed two free throws from Jalen Jones with 1:12 remaining to lead 63-62.
Florida’s Alex Murphy later missed a 3-point attempt from the left corner as the buzzer sounded to cause an exhale in College Station. In their two previous seasons in the SEC, the Aggies’ best finish in league play was 8-10. A&M already has reached that victory total, with six regular-season games remaining.
Jones finished with 16 and House added 14, and the Aggies outscored the Gators 42-32 in the paint.
“When I got the ball in the paint I just looked to score instead of being hesitant,” said Roberson, who finished 8 of 10 from the floor.
A&M only made 2 of 12 3-pointers, but made up for their lack of long-range scoring by sinking 11 of 13 free throws (84.6 percent), including two from Jones to give the game its final score. The Aggies entered the contest shooting an SEC-worst 64.3 percent from the free-throw line.
“I just had to step up, take my time and knock them down,” Jones said.
Depth is a concern for the Aggies, after the Florida bench outscored the A&M bench 21-5, a game after Georgia’s reserves overwhelmed their A&M counterparts 12-2. Kennedy didn’t appear concerned with the extreme numbers, because he said he’s focused on playing his “older guys” — aka the veteran starters — with such pressure games down the stretch.
