KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Texas A&M Head coach Buzz Williams has put together a solid program and this season’s Aggies demonstrate a Big Three in Wade Taylor and Tyrece Radford on the perimeter with Henry Coleman inside.
Thursday afternoon at the ESPN Events Invitational, Penn State found out the toughness of this matchup as the Aggies quieted the Lions, 89-77, behind 61 combined points from the trio as they tallied a 23-of-36 shooting percentage in pushing Texas A&M to it’s first 5-0 start since 2017-18.
“Stylistically, Penn State is unique in how they play defense,” said Williams. “They’re number two in the country in forcing turnovers, so our staff has done a really good job in getting the lowest common denominator of what is it we need in orfer to have a chance to win.”
The Aggies went on a 10-3 lead midway through the first half as Coleman scored six points in that run. He finished 8-of-11 from the floor and 8-of-10 from the free throw line and led all scorers with 24 points.
“I had embraced being a leader,” said Coleman. “I had stretches last year during the off season where I wasn’t the most vocal person.”
After Nick Kern scored on a driving layup to cut the Aggies’ lead to 63-60 with just over seven minutes remaining, Coleman took over once again as he scored eight of Texas A&M’s next 10 points and pushed the Aggies to a 73-66 advantage.
“I think the maturity and the character, they’re good players on the roster,” explained WIlliams. “We have more depth of good players than we have ever had and that should be a part of it.”
Florida Atlantic 91, Butler 86
The Florida Atlantic Owls staved off several tough Butler runs as FAU used a driving layup and a free throw by Johntell Davis to take a 74-70 lead which allowed them to withstand Butler, 91-86, Thursday afternoon.
After Alijah hit back-to-back three-pointers to give FAU a 61-56 lead with 13:29 to play, the Bulldogs used a pair of triples from Dre Davis to capitalize on a 14-5 sprint to take a 70-66 with 9:20 to play.
FAU was decisive at that point with the inside play of Vladislav Goldin, who finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
“We talked a lot about what we have to do and how we have to play,” said Goldin. “We’re going to have to play more aggressive inside the paint. That’s what gives me confidence to make some shots.
FAU led early and stretched their lead to as many as eight before Butler cut back into the lead and tied the game at 42-42 on a three-pointer by Pierre Brooks. Johnell Davis extend the Owls at the begining of the second half when his tripled at the top of the key gave FAU a 53-44 advantage.
“You’re not going to be the team in March or in April if you have a group with character that works every single day,” explained FAU head coach Dusty May.