Record crowd sees Aggies stun Tech

Thousands of fired-up fans in maroon watched as Texas A&M crushed Texas Tech on the basketball court Saturday, clearing one of the biggest remaining hurdles for the Aggies in their quest for post-season play.

It was lights-out for Bobby Knight and his No. 25 Red Raiders as Texas A&M dismantled Texas Tech, 85-63 in front of a record Reed Arena crowd of 13,136 in College Station.

Texas A&M scored a season-high 12 three-pointers and completed their first three-game conference game win streak since 1994.

Antoine Wright put on a show, finishing 11-14 and leading all scorers with 29 points, including 6 from behind the three-point line. Big 12 freshman of the year candidate Joseph Jones added 14 points, all coming in the game's final 12 minutes. Acie Law IV and Bobby Leach also came away with double-digit numbers, racking up 12 and 11 points, respectively.

Another highlight resulting from Saturday’s big win focused on Texas A&M head coach Billy Gillispie. With the victory over Tech, Gillispie tied legendary A&M coach Shelby Metcalf’s school record of 18 wins in his first season.

Aggressive play was the name of the game for both teams in the first half. Texas Tech kept things close early and led the game 35-34 going into the lockerroom. But the Red Raiders melted down in the second half and never came close to catching the torrid Aggies. Texas A&M outscored Texas Tech 51-28 in the second half, and at one point, broke away with a 21-2 run over a 7 ½ minute period.

Martin Zeno led the scoring for Tech with 16 points. Jarrius Jackson added 14.

In the final seconds of the game, the capacity Aggie crowd showed it’s support for Wright, encouraging him to stay at A&M for his senior season next year instead of entering the NBA draft, chanting "one more year.”

The Aggies face a huge test on Wednesday in Stillwater against the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

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