Aggies advance to NIT Championship

The Aggies got off to a slow start in the NIT Season Tip-Off semi-final against Washington, but Donald Sloan took over in the second half and the Aggies cruised to a 77-63 win to advance to Friday's championship game against Ohio State.

NEW YORK (AP)- Donald Sloan scored 18 points and No. 16 Texas A&M held Washington without a field goal for a key 5-minute stretch in the second half to beat the Huskies 77-63 on Wednesday night in the NIT Season Tip-Off semifinals.

Joseph Jones added 17 points for the A&M (5-0), which will play Ohio State in Friday's NIT championship at Madison Square Garden. The Buckeyes defeated Syracuse, 79-65, on Wednesday night.

The title game will be televised nationally on ESPN2 with tipoff set for 6:02 p.m. (CDT)/7:02 p.m. (EDT).

Jon Brockman had 21 points and 15 rebounds to lead Washington (3-1).

The Aggies held a 55-54 lead with 7:14 left when they went on a 12-2 run to put the game away. Jones started the spurt, hitting two free throws and Dominique Kirk's 3-pointer with 5:17 left gave Texas A&M a 60-54 lead. After two free throws by Joe Wolfinger cut the deficit to four, the Aggies worked down the shot clock and finished off the possession with a one-handed dunk down the lane by Bryan Davis.

Texas A&M extended the lead to 67-56 on Jones' free throws before Justin Dentman ended the drought for the Huskies with a lay-up with 1:41 left.

Aggies freshman DeAndre Jordan continued his stellar play. He came into the game having made 16 straight field goals to set a school and Big 12 record. Jordan made his first attempt, but missed a follow to end his streak at 18 straight. He fell seven short of the NCAA record set by Ray Voekel for American during the 1978-79 season.

Jordan finished with eight points and 10 rebounds.

Trailing 36-32 at the half, Texas A&M went on an 8-2 run to start the second half. Jones' follow gave the Aggies a 40-38 advantage, their first lead since early in the game. They built the lead to 49-44 on Jones' 3-pointer with 12:04 left.

Washington closed to 52-51 on Brockman's jump hook. Sloan hit a 3-pointer to extend the lead back to four before Wolfinger answered with a 3 with 7:14 left. That was the last field goal for the Huskies until Dentman's lay-up.

The Aggies beat Oral Roberts and UTEP to advance to the semifinals in New York. The Huskies topped New Jersey Tech and Utah to earn their trip to Madison Square Garden.

The Huskies jumped on the Aggies early. Brockman scored the first seven points for Washington, which took an early 19-9 lead midway through the first half. Brockman finished the half with 13 and 11 rebounds. The Aggies rallied behind Sloan to only trail 36-32 at the break.

Texas A&M could have been leading at the half, but the Aggies were just 4-for-11 from the foul line.