Tigers pull off dominate 88-73 win over Texas A&M

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Led by Jayln Patterson’s 20 points, the Texas Southern University men’s basketball team cruised to a 88-73 victory over Texas A&M Saturday evening at Reed Arena.

The Tigers had five players in double figures on their way to their third win over a Power 5 conference opponent this season. Devocio Butler scored 17 points along with five assists and three steals. Jeremy Combs chipped in 15 points, four rebounds and four assists.

The Tigers big win over Texas A&M marked the 300th career win for TSU Head Coach Johnny Jones.

Trayvon Reed notched a double-double with 13 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks. Shawn Olden added 13 points, seven assists and a pair of steals off the bench.

The Tigers controlled matters from the start, leading the majority of the first half thanks to a 60.6 percent shooting mark (20-of-33) from the field.

After Texas A&M’s T.J. Starks buried a three to pull the Aggies within two (28-26) with 7:02 left before the break, Texas Southern reeled off a 16-2 run to lead by as many as 16, ultimately taking a 46-33 advantage into intermission.

The Aggies managed to cut into the Tigers’ lead, but Texas Southern didn’t allow Texas A&M to get any closer than four after a jumper from Texas A&M’s Wendell Mitchell made the game 62-58 with 9:31 left.

From there, Texas Southern slammed the door on a comeback attempt as the three-ball keyed a 20-8 TSU run that allowed the Tigers to lead by double-digits over the final 5:56 of the game.

TSU shot 57.1 percent (36-of-63) from the field, including a 12-of-26 (46.2 percent) mark from deep. Texas A&M connected on 47 percent (30-of-64) of its shots from the floor.

Mitchell led the Aggies with 21 points and four assists. Savion Flagg added 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists.