Pryor, Ware & Janneh all post double-doubles in 72-63 win vs. Georgia Tech
Game #7: Texas A&M 72, Georgia Tech 63
Records: Texas A&M (6-1, 0-0), Georgia Tech (4-5, 0-0)
Box Score
On Wednesday night, Texas A&M (6-1) flew like butterflies and stung like bees against the Yellowjackets (3-6) on Wicked Night in Reed Arena, taking down Georgia Tech in a hard-fought 72–63 win.
Ny’Ceara Pryor delivered another superb performance, tallying 11 points in the second half and 17 total. She added to that with 10 assists to claim her second double-double of the season, while adding two blocks and three steals.
The Aggies needed every minute of the North Shore Showcase MVP’s 37 minutes on the floor, which marked her season high.
“Pryor is someone who we ask a lot of,” Texas A&M head coach Joni Taylor said, “She runs our team… She’s getting better every practice, every game.”
Scoring in double figures was in popular demand tonight for the Aggies, as all five starters reached double figures, as was recording double-doubles.
Lauren Ware had 14 points and 13 rebounds. Fatmata Janneh scored 11 and grabbed 10 boards.
A&M also recorded a season-high 22 made free throws, including the last seven points for the team, which put the Yellowjackets away for good.
“Free throws are something we have spent a lot of time talking about,” Taylor said, “We have been able to get to the line a lot this year.”
Georgia Tech brought a level of physicality that challenged the Aggies early.
The Aggies also had to overcome early foul trouble. Janneh picked up two fouls in the first six minutes, limiting her to just seven minutes in the first half. That forced guard Lemyah Hylton to step in at the forward spot.
“It is not [Hylton’s] position,” Pryor said. “She stepped up, was more aggressive, and held it down at the four.”
Despite the challenges, Georgia Tech held just a one-point lead at halftime, and the Aggies made the adjustments and took control in the third quarter.
“Offensively and defensively, the things we talked about at halftime, we executed them in the third quarter,” Taylor said.
The Aggies went from allowing 44 percent shooting from the field, 36 percent from 3-point range and 10 points off turnovers in the first half to 36 percent shooting, 18 percent from deep and five points off turnovers over the final 20 minutes.
“Guarding the ball, pressuring the ball, not giving them the looks they wanted,” Ware said. “That was just us changing our defensive pressures to allow them to not get the looks they were getting in the first half.”
Late in the fourth, the Aggies had four offensive rebounds on a single possession, draining 72 seconds of clock with under three minutes left in the game, which popped the Yellowjackets’ chances for a comeback.
“The timing of when it happened, it looked like everyone on the floor for us understood the importance of getting another possession,” said Taylor.
The 12th Man showed up for the team, getting to see the team in person for the first time since Nov. 13.
“I love the 12th Man,” Pryor said. “They always show up for us. It, overall, was a great game to come out to.”
Now, A&M enters an 11-day break before returning to Reed Arena when the Aggies face West Virginia on Sunday, Dec. 14, at 2 p.m. CT.
“We have to be good practice players, because we are going to have a good time before we play again,” Taylor said.
