Aggies secure spot in NIT championship, stumps Washington State, 72-56

NEW YORK CITY — The Madison Square Garden crowd must have been curious.

Despite erratic shooting from 3-point range at the free-throw line, Texas A&M held a six-point halftime lead over Washington State on Tuesday night.

The 8,506 in attendance must have wondered what A&M could do if they actually made their shots?

They soon found out in the second half.

The Aggies (27-12) converted 17 of their first 22 shots post-intermission en route to a 72-56 basketball blowout of Washington State (22-15) on Tuesday night in the National Invitation Tournament semifinals.

“The ball was just falling,” A&M senior Quenton Jackson said of the second-half accuracy. “We were playing the right way. We were playing for each other. We were able to run a bit in transition and get out.

“In the first half, they weren’t falling. I don’t know why. That’s just the way the game goes sometimes.”

That’s how things have been going for A&M for quite a while now. The Aggies have won 11 of their last 12 games and all four in the NIT by double figures.

Next, they face Xavier (22-13) on Thursday night at 6 p.m. CT for the NIT championship.

The latest lopsided victory was produced by a defense that frustrated Washington State at the 3-point line and an offensive attack that produced 58 points in the paint.

Jackson also led A&M with 18 points and dished out six of the Aggies’ 15 assists.

Forward Henry Coleman III had 16 points. Of those, 14 were scored in the second half.

Manny Obaseki also had a big second half with 10 of his 14 points coming after intermission.

Guard Tyrell Roberts had 14 points to lead Washington State. Guard Michael Flowers, who was averaging 14.4 points, managed only five.

The Cougars entered the game with 324 goals from 3-point range — the 15th most in the country. They managed to hit only 7-of-29 attempts.

Jamie Maury, TexAgs

Manny Obaseki finished with 14 points, 10 of which came in the second half.

Flowers was 20th in the nation with 100 treys. He was 0-for-5 from behind the arc.

Washington State also was harassed into 17 turnovers, which A&M turned into 25 points. Further, the Aggies limited Washington State to just nine second-chance points

“Our concern was, can we only give them one shot,” A&M coach Buzz Williams said. “Their success in the NIT, specifically, they have been dominant on the glass, on the offensive rebounds.

“We did a really good job putting pressure on the rim. We got to the paint 82 percent of the time. And statistically speaking, when teams are in rotation, our guys do a really good job of playing for one another. Fifteen assists on 32 baskets … that’s a decent percentage.”

Still, it was another spirited defensive effort that propelled A&M to a 32-26 halftime lead. The Aggies limited Washington State to eight field goals and forced 10 turnovers in the first half.

The lead could have been much more substantial. A&M converted just 1-of-9 attempts from 3-point range and hit only 37.5 percent (3-of-8) at the free-throw line.

Despite the inconsistent shooting, A&M held a 32-21 lead after Hassan Diarra snatched a defensive board and raced coast-to-coast for a layup with 1:59 showing in the half.

However, the Cougars closed the half with a 5-0 run that had Washington State coach Kyle Smith feeling optimistic.

“We thought we had a little success at the end of the first half, and we knew we were kind of fortunate to be down six,” Smith said. “I told them they (Aggies) were probably mad at themselves for not being up 20.

“So we thought we had a little something, but they could penetrate our zone, too, and got some runs at the rim and some drop-off dunks. No one has done that to us.”

The Aggies steadily added to their lead in the second half. The margin reached 48-33 when Diarra was fouled while connecting from behind the line and converted the four-point play.

Washington State never recovered, getting no closer than 14 points.

The Aggies removed any hint of drama with a 12-0 run — highlighted by three incredible levitating layups by Obaseki — that pushed the margin to 66-39 with 9:27 to play.

“They didn't let up the gas at all,” Smith said. “They step on your neck. They just go for it, and they keep doing what they do.”

That’s what the Aggies have been doing frequently in their late-season surge. It’s what the Aggies aim to do one more time on Thursday night.

“We’re locked in,” Jackson said. “We’re in a great groove right now as a team. The coaching staff has done a great job with the scouting reports and all of that.

“We are overly prepared for whatever is to come next as players. We just have to go out there and play with confidence and stick to the script, and we’ll be all right.”