Friday April 19th, 2024 10:22AM

Starks and Chandler help lift Aggies over Georgia 73-56

By The Associated Press

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) — TJ Starks had 19 points and Jay Jay Chandler added 18 to help the Texas A&M Aggies roll to their second straight win, 73-56, over the struggling Georgia Bulldogs on Tuesday night.

It's the fifth straight loss overall for Georgia (10-14, 1-10 Southeastern Conference) and the team's ninth straight conference defeat.

The Aggies (10-13, 3-8), who won at Missouri on Saturday to snap a three-game skid, got their first home SEC win by downing the Bulldogs and won consecutive games for the first time since December.

The Bulldogs cut the lead to eight after three free throws by Jordan Harris early in the second half. But Texas A&M scored the next six points, with three each from Christian Mekowulu and Wendell Mitchell, to make it 40-26 with about 16 minutes remaining.

Nicolas Claxton ended the run with a 3-point play for Georgia, but the Aggies added seven quick points after that to push the lead to 47-29. John Walker had a dunk in that stretch before a steal and a dunk by Starks and a 3 by Chandler.

Georgia was led by Claxton, who had 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Harris added 10 points.
Mekowulu had 15 points and a career-high 15 rebounds for the Aggies.

The Aggies were still up by 18 with about seven minutes left before Claxton scored the first five points of a 7-2 run that cut the lead to 61-48. But Texas A&M used a 4-1 spurt, with a jump shot by Starks, after that to push the lead to 65-49 with about four minutes left and cruise to the victory.

Georgia shot just 35.3 percent overall but really struggled from long range, making  3 of 23 shots. The Aggies a big boost from its bench, which outscored Georgia's reserves 39-10.

BIG PICTURE
Georgia: The Bulldogs haven't won since a non-conference victory over Texas on Jan. 26 and could see their conference losing streak stretch to double digits with a visit from No. 19 LSU coming up on Saturday.

Texas A&M: The Aggies handled business on Tuesday night against a struggling team, but will need to play better if they hope to keep their winning streak going.

UP NEXT
Georgia: Hosts No. 19 LSU on Saturday.
Texas A&M: Visits South Carolina on Saturday.

 

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