Hillsman, Williams lift Texas A&M Women's Hoops over Kentucky, 74-70
In the Aggies' conference opener last Sunday against South Carolina, the story centered around true freshman Chennedy Carter and her 36-point performance in her first ever SEC game. Though she started Thursday's contest with the Kentucky Wildcats on the bench, that made no difference as the Aggies leaned on veterans Khaalia Hillsman and Danni Williams in a four-point victory.
Carter has led the Aggies offensively since day one of the season, but head coach Gary Blair attempted to get a different look early by starting the game with the superstar freshman on the bench.
"I wanted to get the other four players into the flow of the game," Blair said when asked about Carter. "I wanted us to go to Khaalia Hillsman early. and we did. "
The Aggies leaned on Hillsman early and often in the contest. The senior scored 20 points in the effort and finished the game one rebound shy of a double-double. In Sunday's two-point loss at South Carolina, the Aggies only had two players score in double figures.
On Thursday the scoring was much more spread out, thanks in large part to the sharp shooting of Danni Williams.
It had been over a month since the A&M two guard had hit a three-pointer at Reed Arena. Her slump spanned four games without a made three, but Thursday night she was able to bust the slump by hitting six three-pointers on her way to 19 total points.
"I’ve just been putting in a lot more time in the gym trying to find my rhythm and find my shot," Williams said. "I hit an early open look, and that gave me confidence."
Kentucky was able to keep it close thanks to lights out shooting from Maci Morris. The junior scored 22 points on the night and consistently hit big shots for the Wildcats in the fourth quarter to keep it close.
The biggest points of the night for A&M came from Anriel Howard despite her going 1-11 from the field. In the game's final minutes, Howard went to the charity stripe and hit two clutch free throws to ice the game. Howard would finish with another double-double – her 11th in a row – with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
A&M heads out on the road for another SEC contest this Sunday afternoon to face the Auburn Tigers. The game is scheduled to tip at 2:00 p.m. and will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
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