NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Scotty Pippen Jr. scored 24 points and Vanderbilt finished strong to defeat Texas A&M 72-67 on Saturday.
Jordan Wright added 15 points and Liam Robbins scored 14 for the Commodores (14-12, 6-8 Southeastern Conference).
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Texas A&M’s Tyrece Radford scored the last five points in a 9-0 run that turned a 50-45 deficit into a four-point lead midway through the second half. There were a couple of lead changes before Robbins made a pair of free throws then a jumper that gave the Commodores a 64-61 lead, setting up a final three minutes in which Vanderbilt scored six of the game’s last eight points.
Wright made a layup for a 70-67 lead with 26 seconds remaining and after a missed 3-pointer by Texas A&M (16-11, 5-9), Vanderbilt closed it out at the free-throw line.
SEC Sixth Man of the Year candidate Quenton Jackson, who leads the Aggies in scoring at 13.4 ppg, scored 23 points. Hassan Diarra scored 13, and Radford was the only starter in double figures with 12. The A&M bench outscored the starters 50-17.
Vanderbilt led for most of the first half, but Diarra scored the last five points for Texas A&M to keep the Aggies close. Vanderbilt led 28-27 at halftime. Texas A&M’s starters scored only eight points in the first half.
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