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Texas A&M Women's Basketball

No. 25 Texas A&M falls to 0-2 in SEC play following loss at No. 7 Tennessee

January 6, 2022
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The Aggies dropped their SEC opener on Sunday against LSU and were looking to flip the script against No. 7 Tennessee on Thursday night.

What started as a promising start quickly got away from No. 25 Texas A&M (10-4, 0-2) as the Lady Volunteers (14-1, 3-0) managed to take care of the Aggies, 73-45.

“It was a bad night, and we’ve had too many of those lately,” Texas A&M head coach Gary Blair said. “It all starts with me as the head coach.”

The Aggies got off to a hot start, shooting a blazing 80 percent from behind the arc in the first quarter. Coming into this matchup, the Aggies were the best 3-point shooting team in the country. A&M guard Qadashah Hoppie had seven points, and guard Destiny Pitts added six points in the quarter.

On the other side, the Lady Vols struggled early, shooting only 9-22 in the quarter. A&M led by as many as eight points but got outscored 27-7 heading into halftime. The Aggies struggled on the glass and were outrebounded 24-18 as Tennessee took a 42-28 lead into the break.

“We have to take a look in the mirror from the players to the coaching staff. I got talent and leadership on this team, but at the same time, this was an embarrassment.”
- A&M head coach Gary Blair

“Give credit to them,” guard Destiny Pitts said. “They are a really good team, but our energy and effort weren’t there tonight, and that’s just unacceptable.”

A&M couldn’t keep up coming out of halftime.

Tennessee’s Jordan Horston secured a double-double in the third quarter. She finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds and paved the way for the Lady Vols.

“She would have had a triple-double if this game was closer,” Blair said of Horston. “She can go like a Michael Jordan or a Kobe. I didn’t see too many bad shots. She took the shots we were giving her, and she filled up the stat sheet.”

The Aggie offense never got going and was outscored 31-17 in the second half. Three Aggies finished in double figures. One of the few bright spots was Pitts, who finished with 12 points, two assists and five rebounds.

“We’re not overrated,” Blair said. “We have been playing like this the last four to five ballgames. We have to take a look in the mirror from the players to the coaching staff. I got talent and leadership on this team, but at the same time, this was an embarrassment.”

The Aggies look to get back on track on Sunday afternoon as they take on the Florida Gators. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. CT at Reed Arena.

Discussion from...

No. 25 Texas A&M falls to 0-2 in SEC play following loss at No. 7 Tennessee

2,168 Views | 6 Replies | Last: 2 yr ago by aggieFann
aggiedrjdub
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AG
I agree. Embarrassing, and the blame should be on the coaching staff. Two conference games. Both lost by double digits and tonight by almost 30. If the coaches cannot motivate the team or impact the team, get out of the way and let Ross Bjork hire a coaching staff that can.
aggieFann
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I feel like we hear the same thing after ever loss, "this is on me and we will get better ." While I appreciate the accountability I would also prefer more honest feedback. I'd be interested to know what in the world we are doing in practices since we aren't trending in the right direction.
I'd also like to stop seeing all these multiple lineups. Pick one and stick with it already!!
Additionally, I'm curious to know what our record is when we start Roby, Patty, Hoppie, Wells, and Nixon this season.
aggiedrjdub
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AG
aggieFann said:

I feel like we hear the same thing after ever loss, "this is on me and we will get better ." While I appreciate the accountability I would also prefer more honest feedback. I'd be interested to know what in the world we are doing in practices since we aren't trending in the right direction.
I'd also like to stop seeing all these multiple lineups. Pick one and stick with it already!!
Additionally, I'm curious to know what our record is when we start Roby, Patty, Hoppie, Wells, and Nixon this season.
Bingo - same excuses after every loss. To hear a coach say that they've been this way the last 4-5 games makes me think the coaches are not impacting the players. GB will make a great basketball analyst next year, but the standard for excellence in the WBB program has been lost. Our best years were 7-10 years ago; what could have developed into a consistent top 5 program has slowly regressed into a "maybe" top 25 program. TBH - I don't think we are even top 30 right now.
Rudybryan
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aggieFann said:

I feel like we hear the same thing after ever loss, "this is on me and we will get better ." While I appreciate the accountability I would also prefer more honest feedback. I'd be interested to know what in the world we are doing in practices since we aren't trending in the right direction.
I'd also like to stop seeing all these multiple lineups. Pick one and stick with it already!!
Additionally, I'm curious to know what our record is when we start Roby, Patty, Hoppie, Wells, and Nixon this season.
Oh do we have short memores......last year you all were complaining he never gave the bench players enough time .......tis year it because he gave them to much,

Ella didn't want to sit behind Ceira Johnson


aggiedrjdub
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AG
I don't believe I've mentioned anything about playing time. I don't give a crap who plays. Just win. How about that?
aggieFann
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Rudy I didn't mention anything about bench play this year. I just want a consistent starting lineup. I'm perfectly fine playing multiple players throughout the games but your core five players should be set at this point. It really helps with chemistry.
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