WBB: #5 Texas A&M defeats Rice 76-55 in home opener

There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home, there’s no place like home.

Yes, the 2014-2015 Texas A&M women’s basketball team has some new faces this year. However, none of them are named Dorothy, Toto hasn’t been seen since the 1980s and College Station isn’t exactly the Emerald City.

Yet, those five words made famous by The Wizard of Oz still ring true.

On Wednesday night, the fifth-ranked Texas A&M women’s basketball team dropped the Rice Owls 76-55 in front of a crowd of 3,592 in the 2014-2015 home opener. With the victory, the Aggies move to 4-0 on the young and 11-1 in their last 12 openers at Reed Arena.

SEC Player of the Week Courtney Walker led the Aggies with 18 points while point guard Jordan Jones recorded her fourth career double-double with 11 points and 10 assists.

“It felt so good (to be back at home),” said Jones. “It was the best feeling just being in front of our family, friends, boosters and fans. Being on the road early for so long, we were just ready to be back and to perform for College Station.”

Walker set the pace for the Aggies by opening the game shooting 3-of-4 over the first 3:32 to give A&M an early 8-2 advantage on a jumper with 16:28 left in the first half. The Aggies then grew their lead to as many as 12 in the first half before Walker nailed a jumper just seconds before the halftime buzzer to make the score 37-27 in favor of the home team going into the break.

Not only did the basket once again give the Aggies a double-digit lead, but it also gave Walker 1,000 points in her A&M career, making her just the 26th player in school history to accomplish such a feat.

“It’s significant,” said Walker of her milestone. “Being just one of 26, I’m thankful for that and for my teammates who I couldn’t have done it without.”

When asked about the best way to defend Walker, Rice head coach Greg Williams offered up one solution.

“Pray,” stated Williams. “You make a mistake against her and she’s going to knock it down. She got 18 points on 13 shots, that’s fantastic. She’s a bona fide great player.”

In the second half, the Aggies struggled to push their lead farther until an 11-2 run capped by a pair of free throws from Curtyce Knox with 3:21 remaining gave them a 20 point lead before ultimately closing in on the 76-55 win.

Although the team won by more than 20 points, Jones wasn’t thrilled with the team’s play.

“We’re still not where we’re supposed to be,” said Jones. “Tonight we got the win by 20+, but as a team, it’s still not what we want. Boxing out is still a problem; taking care of the ball – starting with myself – is still a problem. We’re not going to be perfect this early in the season, but we’re just trying to get better day by day.”

While Jones was critical of her own play, Texas A&M head coach Gary Blair thought otherwise.
“I thought Jordan Jones played a heck of a ballgame,” said Blair. “Sometimes she tries the homerun pass a little too much, but she’s solid and she defends well.”

One piece of the puzzle that will help the Aggies get to where they need to be will be the addition of guard/forward Courtney Williams when she returns from her indefinite suspension. Suspended for a violation of team rules on November 8th, the All-SEC second-teamer will provide yet another weapon for the Aggies.

“Courtney Williams is another threat we have in our four-headed monster at the three position (Taylor Cooper, Chelsea Jennings and Tori Scott being the other three),” said Jones. “Courtney Williams is a prolific player and we miss her a lot. When she returns she’ll fit into her place and we’ll go on from there.”

Although there is still no set date for her return, Blair emphasized that she’s taking the necessary steps to get back in good graces as fast as possible.

“I expect her back sooner than later,” said Blair. “She’s doing everything right that a student athlete needs to do. She’s in practice every day and is working hard.”

It still remains to be seen how long Williams will be out, but regardless, the team will have tomorrow off before beginning prep for Monday’s contest with Prairie View A&M.

“Our kids will be off tomorrow,” said Blair. “I’ll be on the recruiting trail for a couple of days and we’ll start back on Saturday morning and Sunday, then it’s time to play Prairie View on Monday.”