December 10 – On Sunday in College Station, Texas, Memphis defeated the No. 21 Aggies 81-75 by holding off a late Texas A&M rally behind 29 points from David Jones
and 24 points from Jahvon Quinerly.
With 11 of his 13 points coming in the second half, Caleb Mills helped the Tigers (7-2) defeat a highly regarded team, setting up a potential March matchup. Memphis made 9 of 22 3-pointers for the day and converted 52% of its field goal attempts in the second half.
Hold back Texas A&M (7-3) was led by Manny Obaseki’s 21 points, but he was the only player in double figures. The Aggies made 6-of-33 field goals and only 39.1% of their three-point attempts were made.
The Tigers were ahead by nine points at the half and 14 points with 2:38 left when Texas A&M launched a furious comeback. It went on a 12-2, which was capped by a 3-pointer from Obaseki with 7.7 seconds remaining, to get within 79-75, but Jones sealed the victory with two foul shots.
Wade Taylor IV, the Aggies’ top scorer entering the contest, only made three of his fourteen field goal attempts, finishing with nine points and eight assists.
Jones versus Texas A&M was played for the majority of the first half. The Aggies employed a number of players to manage their attack, but Memphis just relied on Jones to score points in abundance.
18 of his team’s first 22 points came from Jones, who was doubtful to play following an ankle injury sustained during Wednesday night’s 85-80 overtime victory at VCU. He had 21 points and the Tigers were ahead 29–22 when he made a 3-pointer at the 5:40 mark.
With 2:41 remaining, Henry Coleman III’s layup gave Texas A&M a chance to tie the score at 29, but Quinerly led Memphis to a 9-0 run to end the half. He contributed a layup, a 3-pointer, and an assist to the Tigers’ 38-29 halftime lead.
