Texas A&M pulls off upset against No. 6 Kentucky

Texas A&M handed Kentucky its first SEC loss on Saturday as the Aggies escaped in an overtime thriller at home. It marked the first conference victory for A&M as Wade Taylor IV and Tyrece Radford led the way in the 97-92 victory.

With the game tied at 87, the Wildcats had an opportunity to take the lead with under 30 seconds left in regulation. However, Kentucky turned the ball over as Radford ended up being fouled on a fast break. He made both free throws with seven seconds remaining as the Wildcats had one more chance.

It appeared that the Aggies would escape with a victory after the potential game-winning 3-pointer missed. However, a foul was called on Radford with just 0.6 seconds remaining to send Reed Sheppard to the line. He made both shots to send the game into overtime.

A&M got off to a hot start in overtime and led the entire way. Kentucky managed to cut the deficit to 94-91 with under a minute to go, but that was as close as it would get.

Taylor and Radford combined for 59 points as they were the only Aggies players to finish in double figures. Radford also finished with a team-high nine rebounds while Taylor led the way with five assists.

The victory was a big one for the Aggies, who snapped a two-game losing streak to avoid starting out league play 0-3. Taylor spoke with ESPN postgame and revealed just what the win meant to the team.

“I can’t describe how I’m feeling right now,” he said. “We couldn’t do it without (coach Buzz Williams). We’ve been through a lot. We just wanted to show that we still had a chance. We’re still the Aggies and I think we showed the world that today.”

A&M had a strong showing on the offensive glass to finish with 25 offensive rebounds compared to just 17 for Kentucky. That ultimately led to 21 second chance points for the Aggies, who refused to back down despite several frustrating calls late in regulation.

Williams was proud of the fight he saw from his team in the win, saying postgame their character was on full display.

“We’ve been through a lot in the last week, but the character of who these guys are and how their parents raised them, you saw it for 45 minutes,” he said.

Fresh off the big win, Texas A&M will aim to keep rolling when it hits the road to face Arkansas on Tuesday.