Hot shooting propels Texas A&M to blowout win in SEC Tournament semifinal

Texas A&M entered the SEC Tournament as one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the conference. Well, the program should consider making Amalie Arena its permanent men’s basketball home.

For the third consecutive day, the Aggies were stroking it from deep as Buzz Williams’ team poured in eight three-point field goals in an 82-64 win over No. 15 Arkansas to advance to the program’s second SEC title game appearance.

The No. 8 seed has now won seven games in a row, but in Tampa, it has been due to hot three-point shooting teaming up with a solid defense. Through three games at the tournament, the Aggies are shooting 25 of 48 (52.1%) from three and have paired that with three solid defensive performances. A&M shot 29 percent from three in SEC play this year.

For the second year in a row, Eric Musselman’s team drops a game in the SEC semifinals as a favorite. The Hogs won’t claim their second SEC Tournament title in Tampa this year. Things got off to a bad start as star lead guard JD Notae picked up three fouls in the first half and never got in a rhythm. In two games, the All-SEC performer was just 6 of 22 (27.3%) from the field. Arkansas will need him to break this shooting slump before the Razorbacks head to the NCAA Tournament.

For the first time in his coaching career, Buzz Williams will be coaching in a conference tournament championship game. The Aggies will draw the winner of Kentucky/Tennessee on Sunday afternoon.