Ags end slide with historic upset of Auburn on a magical night at Reed

The recent ups and downs continued for Texas A&M on Tuesday night.

Just differently. A lot differently.

Star guard Wade Taylor IV’s No. 4 basketball jersey was put up in the Reed Arena rafters after the No. 22 Aggies took down No. 1 Auburn, 83-72, in a major Southeastern Conference basketball clash on Tuesday night.

On a near-perfect Senior Night at Reed Arena, Taylor was distinguished, the lead was never relinquished, and a four-game losing streak was extinguished.

The Aggies (21-9, 10-7) were as close to perfect as they could get in posting a win over the nation’s top-ranked team for the first time in program history.

“We’ve got a lot of things we can work on,” A&M coach Buzz Williams said. “I do think we did a lot of good things. Obviously, it looks better when you make shots.

“I thought we played incredibly hard. I think the job that we did on the offensive glass was tremendous.”

In a game where they never trailed, the Aggies had all the ingredients in their recipe for success. They took 15 more shots than Auburn (27-3, 15-2). They got 24 offensive rebounds. They made 18 of 25 free throws.

Mostly, though, they made the clutch plays when needed most to end their slump and maybe — just maybe — nail down at least a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Zoe Kelton, TexAgs

Wade Taylor IV’s No. 4 jersey was unveiled in a postgame ceremony on Tuesday night.

“They just physically dominated us,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said. “You look at the boards. They got 24 offensive rebounds. We got 16 defensive rebounds. They physically manhandled us.”

For example, A&M had 39 points in the paint, 29 second-chance points and scored 18 off turnovers.

While routinely denying Auburn any significant runs, Zhuric Phelps had 19 points, Taylor had 16 — he’s nine away from setting A&M’s all-time scoring record — and Pharrel Payne had 12.

Andersson Garcia added a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Manny Obaseki, who was mired in a slump, broke out with 10 points.

Auburn was led by guard Tahaad Pettiford with 19 points, 18 of which were scored from the 3-point line. Forward Chad Baker-Mazara had 15. Guard Miles Kelly had 12.

But center Johni Broome, arguably the best player in the nation, was limited to eight points and seven rebounds.

The Aggies held a 40-34 halftime lead. Early in the second half, they extended the margin to 13 points, 49-36, when Taylor drilled a 3-pointer from the right wing.

Later, Pettiford hit back-to-back 3-pointers to pull Auburn within 54-48 with 14:42 remaining.

Williams promptly called time out. When play resumed, Phelps drew a foul while working inside for a layup. He converted the 3-point play for a 57-48 lead.

A&M protected the lead by never allowing Auburn more than six consecutive points.

Meanwhile, the Aggies hit 10 of 13 free throws in the final 12 minutes to help keep the high-scoring Tigers at bay.

Perhaps the most pivotal moment occurred with 4:28 to play.

Trying to cut into a 73-65 lead, Auburn worked the ball inside to Broome. But as Broome attempted to pass across the lane, Phelps swooped in for the steal.

This ignited a fast break for a layup. Phelps’ attempt was blocked, but Henry Coleman III grabbed the rebound and slammed down a dunk, which brought the crowd of 12,257 to its feet.

From there, each Auburn score was answered by two Garcia free throws, a Payne dunk and free throws from Phelps and Taylor.

“This is what we do on a day-to-day basis,” Phelps said. “We know what we’re capable of. This is a family. We stick together through the wins and losses. These last few weeks haven’t gone our way, but staying together and being a family got us this win.”

Skeptics might try to diminish the victory by pointing out the fact that Auburn clinched the SEC Championship on Saturday and maybe wasn’t as focused. They may point out the Tigers were without starting guard Denver Jones. They may note that Broome sustained a shoulder injury when colliding with Payne in the paint. Maybe that’s why he wasn’t as effective as usual.

But Pearl would offer a rebuttal.

“We have no excuses to allow those guys to get 24 offensive rebounds,” Pearl said. “I give Texas A&M all the credit. All the credit. But our guys were physically dominated. So I give them the credit. I don’t excuse our guys at all.

“We’re better than that. But not tonight.”

Definitely not on this magical night when A&M's trajectory is again looking up.

And so, the Aggies were looking up at the rafters when Taylor’s jersey was displayed in a surprise postgame ceremony after his final home game.

“That was a special moment,” Taylor said. “I will never forget it. It really hasn’t hit me yet, so I kind of don’t know how I’m feeling yet. But I am extremely grateful.”

Perhaps not as grateful as the thousands of fans who showered their praise and thanks at the end of a magical night.