#16 Texas A&M Rolls Past Little Rock

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Alexius Dawn had 14 points in the second quarter to keep the game close, but No. 16 Texas A&M eventually pulled away from Little Rock and went on to a 69-39 victory at Reed Arena on Tuesday afternoon.
 
The Aggies (9-3) earned some small measure of revenge after the Trojans (2-7) upset them in the 2015 NCAA Tournament, shooting 52.9 percent from the field on Tuesday and outscoring Little Rock 39-17 in the second half.
 
Courtney Walker had 29 points in the game including 12 in the first quarter, leading the way for the home team.
 
Dawn finished the contest with a team-high 19 points to equal her season high set on Sunday against Missouri State, and Pratt led the way in rebounding with 10.
 
Sharde' Collins was the only other Trojan to reach double figures in scoring, putting up 10 points before fouling out in the fourth quarter.
 
Little Rock went the entire game without taking a free throw, something that had not happened in coach Joe Foley's 13 years with the team.
 
The game got off to a very slow offensive start, as neither team scored on its first four possessions and the Aggies missed their first four field goal attempts. Texas A&M would eventually strike first, but the Aggies only held a 6-4 lead at the first media timeout.
 
The offense for Texas A&M heated up after that, led largely by Walker. The senior put up 12 points in the first quarter and helped the Aggies to a 15-6 edge at the end of the period. Little Rock at one point missed seven straight field goals and went over four minutes without scoring before a Collins jumper ended the drought.
 
Trojans began to knock down shots in the second quarter, but Texas A&M's offense was still making buckets as well. Dawn put up 14 points in the quarter – including two 3-pointers – to surpass Walker's first quarter, but the Aggies kept scoring to keep their lead at or near double digits. After missing those first four shots of the game, A&M made 10 of its next 12 and shot 54.2 percent in the half. Their lead at the break was 30-22 as Dawn sank a buzzer-beating jumper after getting an offensive rebound on her own missed shot.
 
Texas A&M got plenty of chances from the line in the third quarter as Little Rock picked up five fouls in the first four minutes. That gave the Aggies eight attempts from the line before the media timeout, and they extended their halftime lead to 42-26 in the first five minutes of the quarter. The Aggies piled up a 10-0 run at one point during the quarter before a Pratt jumper ended that streak, but Texas A&M was still ahead 57-30 heading into the final quarter after outscoring the Trojans 27-8 in the period.
 
The fourth quarter saw much of the same, with the Aggies outscoring Little Rock 12-9.
 
During the game, Pratt picked up her 300th career rebound, Keanna Keys got her 200th rebound and Collins earned her 100th career made field goal.
 
Little Rock has seven days off before its next game, as the Trojans do not return to action until Dec. 30 at South Alabama. The Trojans and Jaguars will play their game in Mobile, Ala., at 5 p.m.