Aggies fall in SEC title game in another OT thriller with Kentucky, 82-77

It was decided when: Kentucky’s Jamal Murray hit a three-pointer with 15 seconds remaining in overtime for an 81-75 lead.

Turning point: The rebound on a Tyler Ulis miss with 1:30 showing went out of bounds to Kentucky. Derek Willis then took advantage with a three-pointer for a 78-75 lead.

Star of the game: Ulis scored a career-high 30 points for Kentucky. A&M's Danuel House hit a career-high 32 points.

Key stat: Kentucky hit 10 three-point shots and scored 20 points off A&M turnovers.

Next: NCAA Tournament.

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NASHVILLE — A fine line — the three-point line — separated Kentucky and Texas A&M on Saturday.

Kentucky hit a pair of three-point field goals in the final minute to eke out an 82-77 basketball overtime victory over the Aggies in the Southeastern Conference Tournament final.

Derek Willis made a second-chance three-pointer with 1:01 remaining in overtime for a 78-75 lead and Jamal Murray hit another with 15 seconds left clinch the victory before a partisan Wildcats crowd at Bridgestone Arena.

The Aggies (26-8) were unable to notch a ninth consecutive victory, but they did seem to prove a point in a hard-fought contest that was tied 10 times, featured eight lead changes and saw neither team lead by more than seven points.

Some observers, including the majority of the 19,613 in attendance on Sunday, dismissed A&M’s 79-77 victory over Kentucky on Feb. 20 as a fluke.

Instead, the Aggies proved they can be a dangerous team in next week’s NCAA Tournament.
 
“All week long everybody was talking about Kentucky as a Final Four team the way they’ve been playing,” A&M coach Billy Kennedy said. “And I said, ‘If they’re a Final Four team then we just showed that we’re a Final Four team.’”

But the Aggies did not come to Nashville seeking moral victories or favorable comparisons. They were intent on winning the tournament and almost pulled it off behind a brilliant performance from a resurgent Danuel House, who scored a career-high 32 points.

House nailed a three-pointer with 1:55 left in overtime to forge a 75-75 tie.

Then, he came tantalizingly close to pulling in what would have been a key rebound after Tyler Ulis missed a three-pointer on Kentucky’s ensuing possession.

As the basketball bounced toward the sideline House tried to save it to a teammate, but came up just short.

“I thought I got it,” House said. “I tapped it back, but my arm or something was probably on the line.”

Given a second chance, Willis hit from the corner to give Kentucky the three-point lead.

“There was no doubt in my mind I was going to go to Derek Willis that last play,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said. “It was supposed to be the play before, and Tyler (Ulis) went the other way into a pick-and-roll, and I look at him and said ‘We’re running the drive play.’ He drove right at Derek and Derek threw that dagger.”

House then missed a three-point attempt and Murray hit the game-clinching trey.

Caruso had a layup and Ulis added a free throw to complete the scoring.

Ulis scored a career-high 30 points to lead Kentucky (26-8). Murray had 17, while Willis, Isaiah Briscoe and Alex Poythress all had 10.

House’s 32-point effort was complemented by Jalen Jones with 15 and Caruso with 11.

The Aggies, who led 38-34 at halftime, often fell behind but always found a way to come back much to the chagrin of the pro-Kentucky crowd.

Indeed, when Murray hit a 3-pointer to give Kentucky a 67-60 lead with 4:01 left in regulation, the throngs of Wildcats fans broke into a chant of “Go Big Blue.”

However, Davis put back a House miss and then blocked a Poythress shot. Caruso picked up the rebound and passed down court to Jones for a dunk that brought A&M back within 67-64.

House brought the Aggies within 71-69 on a 3-pointer with 1:25 to play and – after Poythress missed the front end of a one-and-one – he tied the score with a jumper with 19 seconds left.

“The close out area is usually the last media time out," Caruso said. “We were down seven at that point. We told ourselves to battle and find a way. Then we scored four points right away.

“This season has been a learning curve for everybody with so many different situations. I think us going through so many different situations helps us to fight and keep battling no matter what the score is.”

Though the Aggies could not battle back in the last minute of overtime, they came away optimistic for next week because they maintained their focus in an environment more hostile than they will be in next week.

“It’s extremely hard. I wasn’t able to do it the first two years I was here,” Caruso said. “We would lose road games in a loud environment. For us to be this mature is really big going into the (NCAA) Tournament. It shows we can handle any situation.”