Mar 4, 2025; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies guard Zhuric Phelps (1) dribbles the ball during the first half against the Auburn Tigers at Reed Arena. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images Texas A&M ended its four-game losing streak in resounding fashion by beating No. 1 Auburn on Tuesday.
The No. 22 Aggies (21-9, 10-7) will try to build momentum for the Southeastern Conference tournament when they play LSU (14-16, 3-14) in the regular-season finale Saturday afternoon in Baton Rouge, La.
Texas A&M’s 83-72 home victory against Auburn was the program’s first against an opponent ranked No. 1 in the AP poll.
“We know what we’re capable of,” said senior guard Zhuric Phelps, who led five Aggies in double figures with 19 points. “We stick together through the wins and the losses. The past few weeks haven’t gone our way, but staying together as a family has brought us to this moment. This is who we are.”
Texas A&M regained its identity by leaning on its physicality and rebounding. It had a 41-25 advantage in rebounds, including 24-9 offensively. The Aggies lead the country in offensive rebounds per game (16.1) and had a 29-11 advantage in second-chance points against Auburn.
“I think we have to play incredibly physical, and I think we have to do a lot of the things that are not necessarily in the stat sheet for us to win,” coach Buzz Williams said. “Our communication and physicality must be the foundation of all of the other things that we’re trying to accomplish on both sides of the ball.”
The Aggies weren’t as dominant on the boards when they defeated visiting LSU 68-57 on Jan. 18, though they had a 38-33 edge in rebounds and a 14-6 advantage on offensive boards.
A bigger factor was turnovers, which have been a problem for the Tigers. LSU had 18 and the Aggies just nine, leading to a 19-4 edge in points off turnovers for Texas A&M.
The Tigers rank 14th in the SEC in turnover margin. LSU’s 16 turnovers led to 18 points for No. 19 Kentucky in the Wildcats’ 95-64 home victory Tuesday night.
Kentucky made first-half runs of 15-0 and 12-0 and took a 50-23 halftime lead.
“They were ready to go,” Tigers coach Matt McMahon said.
LSU has lost its last four games and is limping to the finish line. Forward Corey Chest, the team’s leading rebounder at 6.6 per game, has missed the last two games because of a foot injury, and guard Vyctorius Miller, the team’s fourth-leading scorer at 8.9 per contest, missed the game against Kentucky because of an ankle injury.
The Tigers’ short-handedness showed up on the defensive end, as LSU allowed its highest point total in regulation this season.
“You can’t simulate the pace they play at,” McMahon said.
The Tigers have struggled offensively of late, scoring less than 70 points in each game during the losing streak.
Cam Carter continues to lead the team in scoring (16.8 ppg), but fellow guard Jordan Sears (11.7) had not scored in double figures for six games before finishing with 13 points against the Wildcats.
–Field Level Media
