A&M Defeats Ole Miss 57-47 in SEC Home Opener

If there were any lingering concerns about the start of the Buzz Williams era, they should be long gone. Sure, we hit rock bottom in Orlando... but since then, we have a string of really nice results that continue to show solid improvement.

• Lost to Texas on a neutral floor, but fixed many of our defensive/rebounding issues.
• Cut down on our turnovers (the biggest reason for the loss to Texas) in a home win against TAMU-CC
• The delightful 15-point home win against Oregon State
• Another home paycheck win against Texas Southern (this one was a little dicey, I’ll admit)
• Showed well in a road loss to Arkansas in an incredibly hostile environment
• Defeated Ole Miss in our SEC home hopener

This was a fun one, y’all.

First Half

Remember when I said “this was a fun one” thirty seconds ago? That statement didn’t kick in until halftime. Because y’all... we can’t shoot. We just can’t shoot. We went 0-10 in the first half from beyond the arc, and Breein Tyree dropped 21 first half points to pace Ole Miss. I’m not saying he could have beat us in a game of 1-on-5 in the first half, but I’m also not not saying that.

Please buy my new book, entitled Will Texas A&M Score Twenty Points By Halftime: A Season In Review

Halftime Score: Ole Miss 29, Texas A&M 19

Second Half

Y’all, we looked really good after the break.

Our defensive intensity was outstanding, as we held Ole Miss to the lowest shooting percentage (21.2% on 7-33 shooting) in a half by an A&M opponent this season, but that’s only half the battle.

We also started hitting some shots, as Chuck Mitchell scored all nine of his points in a critical 18-2 second half run that flipped this game on its’ ear and gave us a lead we would never relinquish. It wasn’t always fluid, and it wasn’t always pretty, but the energy levels were off the charts and we improved to 1-1 in SEC play.

Final Score: Texas A&M 57, Ole Miss 47

Quotes

Overall Thoughts

We continue to improve on most fronts (except you, three point shooting), and it’s becoming more and more clear that something special is brewing in year one of the Buzz Williams era. Long term success always felt imminent, but it’s nice to supplement with some short term results.

Next up is an enticing trip to lowly Vanderbilt, which is our most winnable road game on paper. Let the good times roll.

BTHO Vanderbilt