WBB: Williams leads A&M in 73-39 rout of Nicholls State

For big time schools in major conferences, taking on smaller schools from lesser known leagues is usually elementary.

That proved true on Tuesday afternoon when the No. 24 Texas A&M women’s basketball team defeated the visiting Nicholls State Colonels, 73-39, in front of 7,188 fans at Reed Arena. Of that number, over 4,000 were fourth- and fifth-graders from elementary schools in the Bryan-College Station area.

“The kids were really excited to come to the game,” said A&M forward Courtney Williams. “Some of them had never been to Reed Arena before. With the atmosphere they were giving, it made us want to go out and play hard for them.”

After swapping scores to start the contest, A&M (7-3) used an early 20-4 run to open up a 22-6 lead with just over 11 minutes to play in the first half. That advantage would grow to as many as 24 before settling at 40-19 at the end of the period.

With an already large lead at the break, A&M head coach Gary Blair used the second half to grow his bench players and to try alternate lineups the Aggies may need later in the season.

While A&M could have pushed its lead even farther, Blair was happy with the tradeoff in order to experiment with his lineup.

“This game could have been larger [in terms of margin of victory],” said A&M head coach Gary Blair. “But due to us playing 14 kids, it’s hard to maintain continuity. I was pleased that they all got in.

“We wanted to work on our ‘five-out’ offense in the second half where we use four guards and Courtney Williams and get things done with a press. Our press was bad today, but I told them we were going to press until we got it right.”

In total, twelve Aggies saw double-figure minutes — but no single player was on the floor for more than Williams, who put in 23 minutes of work.

Williams not only led the team in minutes played, but also paced the Aggies with 14 points and eight rebounds. It was the fourth straight game in which the sophomore from Houston registered double-figures and the 14th of her career.

“I know this team needs me,” said Williams. “I just tried to crash the boards hard and get as many rebounds as possible both offensively and defensively. Luckily, my shot was just falling today. I feel like if I just take my time, I can knock them down.”

Also of note was the play of the Aggies on the defensive end of the court.

Coming into the contest, A&M ranked in the top 20 nationally in both points allowed per game (18th) and in points allowed per possession (16th).

That trend continued. The Colonels were held to just 23% from the field (13-of-57) and a season low in points at just 39, including just five field goals in the second half.

With another win in its belt, A&M now heads to New York City to take on the St. John’s Red Storm in the Maggie Dixon Classic from Madison Square Garden next Sunday.

“It’s a great opportunity to play at Madison Square Garden,” said A&M center Karla Gilbert. “I’m very excited and the team is very excited and we can’t wait to get there.”

And although it’s fun to see the sights of the big city, focus is on the task at hand and coming away with a victory.

“We need a statement win, not just a win,” concluded Blair. “The most important thing about us going to New York is the reason why we are going to New York. St. John’s might be down a little this year, but we aren’t on all cylinders yet.

“Hopefully we’re going to get there.”