LSU hands No. 7 Texas A&M 1st loss this season
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Khayla Pointer scored seven points in overtime and LSU spoiled No. 7 Texas A&M’s bid for the best start in program history, beating the Aggies 65-61 on Thursday night.
Pointer banked in a long off-balance 3-pointer to give LSU a 59-54 lead with 2:28 left. Texas A&M (12-1, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) trailed 62-58 with 19 seconds left, and Kayla Wells charging foul ended the Aggies hopes.
Tiara Young led LSU (5-6, 3-2) with 20 points. Faustine Aifuwa had 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Pointer finished with 17 points.
Texas A&M’s N’dea Jones had 16 points and 11 rebounds.
LSU outrebounded Texas A&M 40-31.
“One of the areas of concern going into this game was, ‘How do we outrebound Texas A&M?' And we did so,” LSU coach Nikki Fargas said. “I thought our board play really gave us a chance to win.”
Destiny Pitts’ 3-pointer with 49 seconds left gave Texas A&M a 53-52 lead, its first since leading 10-9 in the first quarter. After Jones took a charge, Aaliyah Wilson added a free throw for a two-point lead.
Aifuwa scored in the lane to tie the score 54-54 with 5.8 seconds left. The LSU defense then forced a turnover as Texas A&M didn’t get off a shot before the final buzzer.
“A of people tend to look over LSU,” Aifuwa said. “We’re not having the best season to start out, but you can’t look over LSU. When we play together as a team we are unstoppable.”
HE SAID
"We fought to get back in it,” Texas A&M coach Gary Blair said. “We were totally prepared for this game. Sometimes, all of a sudden, the stars at Arkansas (a 74-73 win on Sunday) were not your stars tonight.”
BIG PICTURE
Texas A&M: The Aggies missed a shot at the program’s best start, but they are still in good shape in the SEC standings as they chase their first regular-season SEC championship.
LSU: The Tigers have been inconsistent at times this season, but the strong finish can only help their confidence as they try to move up in the conference standings.
UP NEXT
Texas A&M: Hosts No. 14 Mississippi State on Sunday
LSU: At Missouri on Monday night.