Texas A&M tops Kentucky basketball with OT buzzer-beater

Inevitably, Kentucky’s lack of a post presence had to show itself. Saturday was that day.

Texas A&M dominated the boards and the low-post scoring.

Kentucky countered with its Three Tenors, who again provided the kind of play that proves how guards can be the biggest players on the court, in a figurative sense.

That set up a riveting overtime drama featuring these two teams for a second straight season.

If Kentucky was to lose, it seemed fitting that an offensive rebound would kill the Cats. Freshman Tyler Davis’ put-back in the final second gave Texas A&M a 79-77 victory.

“The biggest thing was to win the toughness war,” said Davis, who posted a double-double (15 points, 12 rebounds). “To win the intangible game. … I think we played harder than we have in a couple of games.”

That surely came as no surprise to Kentucky, which regularly faces an inspired opponent. It was a “white out” in Reed Arena.

Adding to UK’s woes was the absence of Alex Poythress. Then Derek Willis sprained an ankle in the second half.

A&M also had two more days to prepare, having last played on Tuesday, while Kentucky beat Tennessee Thursday night.

The Aggies’ multiple edges showed in the rebounding, especially early. A&M had 19 offensive rebounds barely six minutes into the second half. A season-high for a UK opponent (21 by Louisville) seemed assured, but A&M only got one more: the Davis put-back that won it.

“Right from the start of the game, they were way more aggressive, way more physical,” UK Coach John Calipari said. “(The Aggies) wedged us, got into our bodies, and we weren’t ready to battle back.”

The overtime saw six lead changes. The sixth will be remembered for a long time.

Leading 76-75 inside the final 30 seconds, Jamal Murray missed a contested shot in the lane.

A&M point guard Anthony Collins penetrated, then dished off. Freshman Isaac Humphries intercepted the pass, but was fouled.

Humphries slammed the ball to the floor. Tyler Ulis said Humphries got overly excited. “He started to throw it and it came out of his hand,” the UK point guard said.

That resulted in a technical foul, which was Humphries’ fifth.

A&M Coach Billy Kennedy wanted Collins, an 86.5-percent shooter from the foul line, to shoot the technical free throws. But Danuel House made both to put A&M ahead 77-76 with 9.4 seconds left.

“House said, ‘Coach, I got these,’” Kennedy said. “I saw that confidence.”

Kennedy was two-for-two in picking free throw shooters. Because Humphries had fouled out, the A&M coach got to choose the UK shooter. He picked Skal Labissiere, who made one to tie it.

House, the first option, missed a heavily contested shot. But Davis cleaned it up.

“They kept telling us: Get to the glass,” Davis said of the A&M coaches’ instructions. “My mentality was … I just tried to go after every rebound.”

UK’s three star guards were its double-figure scorers. Ulis led the Cats with 22 points and 11 assists. Murray added 21 points. Isaiah Briscoe scored 11.

A&M had the last shot of regulation. House missed a contested jumper off the front of the rim.

Kentucky’s continuing hot shooting from three-point range created a 36-35 halftime lead. The Cats made seven of 11 shots from the arc, the last a swish by Willis from the left corner with 12 seconds left to set the halftime score. It was his only basket of the half.

While Kentucky rode its perimeter shooting in the opening 20 minutes, A&M used its superior presence around the basket.

The Aggies grabbed a whopping 15 offensive rebounds in the first half. Only four previous UK opponents had that many offensive rebounds in a game. All that board work helped A&M enjoy a 25-14 rebound advantage. Kentucky had only one offensive rebound.

A&M might have led had it made more than seven of 24 shots from two-point range.

Jones made three three-pointers inside the first six minutes to get Texas A&M off to good start. He had made that many threes in only two games.

Surprise threes by Dominique Hawkins and Isaiah Briscoe kept Kentucky close. Hawkins made only his second three-pointers since the Louisville game (Dec. 26).

Briscoe, who came into the game having made only four of 31 three-point shots, hit a trey. That marked his first three-pointer since the Arizona State game on Dec. 12. He had missed 15 straight since then.

Texas A&M built an eight-point lead before the Under-12 timeout of the second half. The 59-51 deficit was UK’s largest.

A technical foul on Texas A&M helped Kentucky rally. Ulis made two technical free throws, then two free throws off a personal foul to give UK four points with no time run off the clock.

That reduced UK’s deficit to 59-55 with 11:30 left and signaled that there would be no breakout.

This story was originally published February 20, 2016 at 9:07 PM with the headline "Texas A&M tops Kentucky basketball with OT buzzer-beater."