Resilient Aggies claim 90-88 win in chaotic finish at Auburn

Game #15: Texas A&M 90, Auburn 88
Records: Texas A&M (12-3, 2-0), Auburn (9-6, 0-2)
Box Score

Chaos.

Confusion.

“Controversial” were the final seconds of Texas A&M’s Tuesday night SEC basketball clash with Auburn (9-6, 0-2).

“Correct” was the outcome as the Aggies (12-3, 2-0) left Neville Arena with a 90-88 victory that included a botched call on an intentionally missed free throw and a reversal on KeyShawn Murphy’s buzzer-beater-that-wasn't.

Up two points with two seconds left and Pop Isaacs at the line, the Tigers called a timeout after the Aggie guard missed the first of two foul shots.

What followed was an intentional miss that barely grazed the rim, but the referees erroneously stopped play.

The ensuing inbound play with 0.6 seconds saw Murphy drill a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer to send “The Jungle” into a premature celebration.

But the chaos was just beginning, as video review showed the ball was barely still in Murphy’s hand when the clock hit zero.

That’s when the festivities turned to ferocity, and hullabaloo was replaced by hollering.

“They can boo all they want here,” A&M head coach Bucky McMillan said. “That game should’ve been over if there wasn’t a clock malfunction. That game is over with, and that’s inexcusable for that to happen here. That’s the only way that can happen is if there's a clock malfunction.

“The referees, you got to applaud them because it was close. They got to give that to us because the game was over at the line right there.”

With the decision finally finalized, A&M earned the first signature win of the young McMillan era.

Isaacs led the way with a team-high 21. Jacari Lane — a native of Huntsville, Ala. — added 17. Both Rashaun Agee and Rubén Dominguez added 14, each.

“Once we got momentum, man, momentum never left,” McMillan said. “Lots of great efforts from everybody.”

To get there, the Aggies erased a 16-point deficit and nearly squandered a 12-point advantage.

Early on, it appeared Keyshawn Hall was going to single-handedly dominate A&M. The 6-foot-7 forward finished with 32, half of which came in the first period as Auburn took a 47-37 lead at halftime.

John Reed-Imagn Images

Texas A&M shot 52.9 percent from 3-point range in the second half to outscore Auburn 53-41.

But Bucky Ball bounced back after the break.

“That was a resilient second half there by our guys,” McMillan said. “We are what we are, and we’re looking like we’re supposed to look. Attacking basketball. Being relentless the whole game and living with what it is.

“We had to overcome some adversity there with foul trouble. Had some turnovers there late.”

Utilizing its frantic defense and lethal 3-point shooting at the perfect moment, a lightning-quick 11-0 run in just 28 seconds got A&M within striking distance.

Then it went from spurt to sustained.

“We have to be what we are and who we are,” McMillan said. “If it’s not good enough, we’ll shake your hand and say good job, but there can’t be any doubt about our identity.

“When you watch Texas A&M play right now, we have an identity to who we are. We may be undersized, but we’ve got some dogs out there that are going to scrap and fight and keep attacking. That's what you want.”

An Agee second-chance layup was followed by back-to-back steals for consecutive triples from Rylan Griffen and Lane.

Isaacs’ conventional 3-point play whittled the deficit to 61-56 with 12:32 remaining.

Jake Crandall / USA TODAY NETWORK

Pacing the Aggies in scoring, Pop Isaacs shot 58.3 percent from the field and 4-of-8 from 3-point range.

Moments later, Isaacs completely erased the 16-point hole with back-to-back treys to take a 69-67 lead.

The Creighton transfer then nailed a heat-check triple as Auburn used another timeout in search of an end to what became a 31-6 run.

“It’s a hostile environment. Wait until we get back home and the students are inside Reed Arena when we make those kinds of runs,” McMillan said. “It’s going to be electric, but we had to do that in their home, deal with our juice and being the aggressor.”

In the second half alone, the Aggies scored 15 points off five Tiger turnovers.

Nine of their 13 3-pointers came in the final 20 minutes.

It was Bucky Ball at its finest as the system’s “Xs and Os” counter-punched and beat Auburn’s “Jimmys and Joes” to stand tall.

A&M’s surge swelled into a 12-point lead with 3:51 to play, but Auburn refused to go quietly.

Even after Dominguez nailed a 30-footer with 64 seconds left to forge an 88-80 advantage, the Tigers embarked on a 7-0 last-ditch effort.

In the dying seconds, Isaacs hit two of four free throws — including the miss that preceded madness — to leave The Plains with the chaotic victory.