WBB: No. 15 A&M blows past Florida 66-46 on 'Pink Out' Day

It was the annual ‘Pink Out’ in support of breast cancer awareness at Reed Arena on Sunday.

But for the visiting Florida Gators, it was more of a freak out.

Behind 11 points and eight rebounds from Courtney Williams and 10 points and six rebounds from Achiri Ade, the 15th-ranked Texas A&M women’s basketball team defeated the Gators 66-46 in front of 5,631 fans at Reed Arena.

With the win, the Aggies improve to 22-6 overall and 10-4 in SEC play, keeping them in line for a top-four seed in the SEC Tournament and in good standing to host the first two rounds of the NCAAs next month.

“We really came out ready to play and were fired up to start the ball game,” said A&M head coach Gary Blair. “I thought it was just a good team effort. We’ll take the win and go back and figure out what we need to do for Missouri.”

From the very start, A&M played the aggressor, jumping out to a quick 12-2 lead almost five minutes into the game after a pair of free throws from Courtney Walker. During that stretch, the Aggies held the Gators to 1-of-7 shooting and also forced four turnovers to set the pace for the afternoon.

“We were playing a very good team that is very concerned about seeding and things you’re supposed to be concerned with this time of year,” said Florida head coach Amanda Butler. “We didn’t respond to the challenge.”

The Gators hung tough after the slow start and even cut the A&M lead down to as little as three late in the first half, but a 15-2 Aggie run midway through the second period pushed the A&M advantage out to as many as 21 and allowed the home team to cruise to victory.

“We put the hammer down when we had to,” said Blair. “Right before the half and to start the second half … we got up by 20 and it didn’t matter who we put in there, everyone was playing effectively."

Overall, it was a very balanced performance from the Aggies as all five of A&M’s starters scored at least eight points with none having more than 11. Walker and Williams were both held below their season averages, partially due to both sitting much of the first half with foul trouble.

However, the A&M reserves were up to the task and picked up the slack, even allowing the Aggies to extend their lead with four and sometimes five starters sitting on the bench.

The trio of Jada Terry, Chelsea Jennings and Tori Scott saw 10+ minutes of action each on Sunday and all three turned in strong performances. Terry scored six points on 3-of-3 shooting, Jennings added five points and eight rebounds and Scott threw in an addition five points as well.

“We got into foul trouble with the two CWs (Walker and Williams), but I trust my bench,” said Blair. “They came in and did an excellent job. I thought Jennings was very good, Scott came in and looked like her old self today. We played 10 players in the first 10 minutes of the game and there was no drop off.”

Also worthy of note was yet another strong performance from freshman post Khaalia Hillsman. Hillsman, who has seemingly turned the corner the past couple of weeks, provided six rebounds and nine points on 4-of-5 shooting and is averaging seven points and more than eight rebounds in her last five games.

“It’s just been in practice,” Hillsman said of why her game has improved recently. “Our coaches have stressed working hard in practice before it converts to the court, so I’ve been coming in with the mindset of getting better every day so that when I get on the court it’s not so hard.”

With one more regular season home game at Reed Arena this year, the Aggies are on the cusp of running the table with their home schedule for the first time since the 2006-2007 season.  Protecting the home court is something Blair constantly preaches, but it means even more to Hillsman in particular.

“At my high school, we were undefeated at home all four years,” said Hillsman. “Winning at home is a really big deal to me and I really hope that I can stay undefeated while I’m here at home.”

The chance at home perfection comes Thursday night as the Missouri Tigers come to town for the second meeting between the two teams this year. The Aggies tamed the Tigers 55-48 earlier this season and will need to duplicate that performance to not only close out the home slate, but to also stay on track for their post-season aspirations.