Behind 22 points from Jaylin Williams and 14 points off the bench from K.D. Johnson, No. 16 Auburn held on for a hard-fought 66-55 home win over Texas A&M on Tuesday night.
Auburn led 59-54 with 1:25 to play, but Tyrece Radford cut the deficit to 59-55 after a free throw. On the Tigers’ next possession, Williams nailed a 3-pointer to put Auburn up 62-55 with 52 seconds to play.
Two free throws by Johnson pushed the Tigers’ lead to 64-55 with 41 seconds remaining. A turnover by Hayden Hefner on Texas A&M’s next possession sealed any hopes of a comeback.
Johni Broome was held scoreless in the opening half but finished with 10 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots for the Tigers (13-2, 2-0 SEC).
Henry Coleman III scored a team-high 17 points for Texas A&M, while Radford added 14 points. Wade Taylor IV and Hefner tallied eight points apiece.
Andersson Garcia (six points, 13 rebounds) played well off the bench for the Aggies (9-6, 0-2).
Five straight points from Johnson and a fast-break dunk and free throw by Williams gave Auburn a 16-11 lead nearly midway through the opening half.
A 12-9 run by Auburn, sparked by a soaring dunk from Cardwell, gave Auburn a 28-20 lead with 3:29 to play in the half.
The half ended with the Tigers holding a 30-22 lead behind a team-high 11 points from Williams. It was the lowest-scoring half for both teams all season.
Texas A&M took a 44-42 lead with 12:28 to play in the second half behind a layup and free throw by Coleman and a 3-pointer by Radford.
Broome put Auburn up 50-48 with 8:16 left. The Tigers extended their lead to 54-48 with 5:43 to play after Williams capped a fast break with a reverse layup. But the Aggies responded with a 6-0 run to trim Auburn’s lead to 54-52 with 3:53 left.
–Field Level Media
