Aggies fall in OT after furious comeback vs No. 1 seed Houston

Andersson Garcia is our hero, even in a losing effort

Texas A&M battled back from a seemingly insurmountable deficit and got a miracle three from Andersson Garcia to force overtime. But ultimately No. 1 seed Houston escaped, beating the Aggies 100-95 in over time in the 2nd Round of the NCAA Tournament at FedEx Forum in Memphis.

The Aggies were neck and neck with the Coogs throughout the first half, emphasizing getting to the rim and drawing a slew of fouls on Houston. They trailed by only five at the break despite missing 11 free throws, making only one three pointer and only one point from leading scorer Wade Taylor. But in the second half, Houston seemed to assert it’s will, consistently working for open looks and playing the stingy defense they’re known for on the other side. As a result of that defense, the Aggies seemed to sputter offensively as the game wore on. When you’re playing perhaps the best defensive team in the country, that can happen. But the Ags did not quit, and I’m still not quite sure how they did it but A&M mounted a comeback in the closing minutes after being down by as many as 13 AND DOWN 11 with less than two minutes to go, and glue guy Andersson Garcia hit the shot of his lifetime, draining a game-tying three-pointer at the buzzer to send the game to OT.

Unfortunately overtime did not go the Aggies way, as the Coogs took a lead from the jump and never relinquished it. But what fight from this team in a game where I admittedly thought it was over.

The Aggies were led by Boots Radford in this one, scoring 27 points and securing 15 rebounds. Wade Taylor and Manny Obaseki (who fouled out late in regulation) also contributed 21 and 15 points, respectively, but they were also a combined 10-for-39 from the field. As a team, the Ags missed 16 free throws in this game. Despite making 17 of 20 to close out the game, those 16 misses will likely haunt these guys for a long time.

While it can be frustrating as it can be as fan to see your team come up short in such a big moment, the Coogs are a No. 1 seed for a reason, and you saw them flex that in the second half. A&M played far from a perfect game, but much of that was also forced by the play of Houston. And man, that comeback. Even though it ended in a loss, that’s something I’ll remember for a long time.

Overall, you still have to look at this season overall and consider it a success. It had it’s ups and downs, going from a preseason top 10 ranking to 15-13 at one point in the year. But ultimately the Aggies made their second straight NCAA Tournament and won their first tournament game in the Buzz Williams era.

A&M finishes the season 21-15, while Houston (32-4) moves on to face Duke on Friday at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.