No. 16 Georgia upsets No. 2 Texas A&M at SEC tourney

GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Mikayla Coombs scored a season-high 14 points, including the go-ahead basket in the fourth quarter, and No. 16 Georgia reached its first SEC Tournament final in 17 years with a 74-68 victory over No. 2 Texas A&M on Saturday.

Maya Caldwell had 17 points, and Jenna Staiti had 13 points, 12 rebounds and six blocks to deny the SEC regular-season champion Aggies (23-2) a sweep of league titles.

Coombs, the UConn transfer who sat out last season, scored six points in the final quarter to ignite the Bulldogs (20-5). Her jumper to start the fourth quarter gave Georgia the lead for good and she added another driving layup moments later.

By the time Coombs flashed by the defense for another inside shot, Georgia was up 59-53 and would not be caught.

Georgia, which beat No. 17 Kentucky in Friday's quarterfinals, will have to face another ranked opponent in Sunday's final in either No. 7 South Carolina or No. 14 Tennessee.

Texas A&M shook off a jubilant Sunday celebration of the SEC regular-season title to start strongly at the league tournament with a 77-58 win over LSU.

But the Aggies were inconsistent against Georgia, falling behind 25-13 in the opening quarter before rallying to lead 35-32 at the half.

Texas A&M looked like it had taken control in the third quarter with an 8-0 that put them ahead 46-41. That's when Coombs, a lightning-quick, 5-foot-9, junior got to work.

Her layup put Georgia up 47-46 in a sequence when the lead changed hands five times, the last on another blow-bye by Coombs.

Texas A&M closed to 59-55 in the final five minutes, but consecutive 3-pointers by Que Morrison and Caldwell put things out of reach.

N'dea Jones led the Aggies with 16 points.

Aaliyah Wilson, the Aggies leading scorer this season, struggled to find her shot at the tournament. She was a combined 5 of 18 from the field for 13 points in the two games here.

THE BIG PICTURE

Georgia: The Bulldogs are seeking their first SEC Tournament title since 2001 when now SEC Network analyst Andy Landers was their coach. The won both meetings with Tennessee this season and kept things close much of the way in a 62-50 loss to the Gamecocks.

Texas A&M: The Aggies struggled to find a consistent scorer while Wilson struggled. Alexis Morris, the Rutgers transfer, provided that Friday off the bench with 13 points in eight minutes. This time, Morris was just 2 of 8 despite with her 11 points mostly coming from the foul line.

UP NEXT

Georgia will play No. 7 South Carolina or No. 14 Tennessee for the SEC Tournament championship.

Texas A&M is expected to be a No. 1 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.

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