Taylor pours in 25 points as No. 13 Texas A&M escapes Columbia, 76-72
Free throws have been a source of angst, panic and even trauma for the Aggies.
Henry Coleman III demonstrated none of the above.
Coleman converted a pair of free throws with 1.3 seconds remaining as No. 13 Texas A&M (17-5, 6-3) secured a 76-72 Southeastern Conference basketball victory at South Carolina (10-12, 0-9) on Saturday night.
Though Coleman was unfazed by the situation, there was plenty of angst prior to his win-clinching freebies.
South Carolina, which trailed by eight points with 31 seconds left, pulled within 74-72 on a layup by forward Collin Murray-Boyles with two seconds remaining.
That kept the possibility of the Gamecocks pulling out their first SEC victory with a last-chance 3-pointer alive.
But Coleman, who was quickly fouled after Murray-Boyles basket, calmly put the margin out of reach.
Although Coleman finished with 12 points and eight rebounds and made the decisive clutch free throws, Wade Taylor IV was the Aggies’ star.
Taylor hit seven of his 10 attempts from 3-point range en route to a game-high 25-point outburst. When the Gamecocks threatened to rally in the final minutes, Taylor frequently made big plays to stave them off.
“I had a pretty good night tonight,” Taylor said. “Our team had a pretty good win, a hard-fought win. South Carolina has an amazing team. I’m just excited to come out here with a W.”
The Aggies also got help from Zhuric Phelps, who had nine points. That included a couple of free throws, which gave A&M the 73-65 lead with 31 seconds to play.
Pharrel Payne had eight points, and Manny Obaseki had seven.
Murray-Boyles led South Carolina with 22 points. Guard Jamarii Thomas contributed 15. Guards Morris Ugusuk and Zachary Davis both had 12.
The Aggies were scalding hot in the first half. They used a 15-0 run to take a 32-19 lead when Andersson Garcia drilled a 3-pointer with 7:24 remaining in the half.
A&M shot 60 percent overall and 53 percent from the 3-point line in the first half. The Aggies hit nine of 17 attempts from behind the arc.
Yet, they could not put the Gamecocks away early.
The Aggies held just a 44-36 lead at the break. That conjured bad memories of A&M’s last road game when they could not protect an 18-point halftime lead in a loss at Texas.
“Stereotypically, we don’t make nine in a game,” A&M coach Buzz Williams said. “I actually thought both teams … their volume of threes in the first 10 minutes … were unlike any other game that either of us have had this season.
“I thought over the last six or seven minutes in the first half, it went back to what they’re best at and were trying to trend in that direction.
“The second half was more probably how we need to play.”
A&M did extend its lead to 49-36 on a Taylor 3-pointer just over a minute into the second half.
However, the Aggies then were scoreless for more than five minutes. That drought allowed South Carolina to pull within 49-47 on a 3-pointer by Ugusuk.
Although A&M never lost the lead, the Gamecocks still trailed by just two points, 61-59, when Murray-Boyles scored on a dunk with 6:59 left.
But Coleman scored on a put-back, and Taylor hit a pair of free throws and drilled a 3-pointer that appeared to put A&M in control, 68-59.
Instead, South Carolina continued to fight back. The Gamecocks cut A&M’s margin to 73-70 with 10 seconds left.
Obaseki then made one of two free throws. Afterward, the Gamecocks rushed downcourt for a layup to get within 74-72.
That’s when Coleman was fouled and converted the free throws to clinch the Aggies’ fourth victory in the last five games.
Even though South Carolina is winless in conference play, the victory wasn’t expected to be easily attained.
In their previous three home games, the Gamecocks lost to No. 1 Auburn by three points, No. 5 Florida by one and No. 14 Mississippi State by five in overtime.
Clearly, they are better than the record indicates.
“It doesn’t matter who you’re playing in this conference,” Taylor said. “This is the best conference in America, so every night is going to be a fight.
“That was one our the things we talked about in pregame … fighting in the middle of the ring. We know how good South Carolina is. They’re physical, just like we are. So, we wanted to come out here and make sure that we had body blow after body blow. I’m excited we came out with the win.”