Texas A&M Uses Dominant Second Half to Roll Past Texas Southern

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Another game is officially in the books for the 2025-26 campaign, run by coach Bucky McMillan, which saw Texas A&M start where it left off with another colossal victory after posting 98 points in the home opener against Northwestern State.

This time, the 104-70 win dominantly came against Texas Southern, with five A&M players finishing in double figures once again.

With the victory, the Aggies now hold an 11-1 all-tim advantage against the Tigers and cling to another home win at Reed Arena. Highlighting the evening was the captain of the Aggies, Rashaun Agee, who showed his firepower on the floor, posting 16 points with one rebound.

Going into Sunday’s contest at 2-0, there’s even more excitement surrounding this new era in Aggieland. These all-around performances can generate confidence with a date against Oklahoma State, which will be the first resume-building opportunity of the season where A&M can make its statement.

Assorted Lineup

Howdy, triple digits 👋#GigEm | #BuckyBall pic.twitter.com/pNGeuw8VIt
— Texas A&M Basketball (@aggiembk) November 7, 2025

Going into November, there were several questions about how Bucky would pick and choose who enters and exits the game.

One of the Aggies' biggest transfer additions, Mackenzie Mgbako, is still rehabbing from his injury, so he has been unable to get reps with his teammates. As for the junior guard, Pop Isaacs, his availability was initially uncertain to start the season due to an injury, but he was healthy enough to make his first two appearances as an Aggie.

The Creighton transfer got his first start of the season and drilled his first points from downtown, and finished the first half draining two 3-pointers.

Neither player has had time to adapt to the new system as the other players have during practice, so forming on-court chemistry is still in progress. That hasn’t affected what the rest of the roster has been able to display in the first two games.

Analyzing the minutes, there hasn’t been any concern about playing time, as McMillan’s style has seen nearly every player get a fair amount of minutes. Against Texas Southern, the five players on the court continued to rotate constantly, as 10 players on A&M had at least 10 minutes of recorded time.

Against the Demons, the Aggies had five players in double digits and 12 different players in the scoring column. Tonight, the Tigers allowed similar numbers as five players were in double digits, and 10 teammates registered assists.

Dominance

Thursday Night Dub ✅#GigEm | @TurtleboxAudio pic.twitter.com/YRkigXChKK
— Texas A&M Basketball (@aggiembk) November 7, 2025

Two games in a row have impressed the 12th Man with the Aggies ' diverse shooting performances. It’s not ordinary for a program that had one returning player on its roster to accumulate the achievements that it’s made, but in the blink of an eye, the magic happened.

In the first half, a nervous crowd developed after Texas Southern went on a 16-3 run from the 15:20 mark to the 11:23 mark, during which A&M trailed by five, the largest deficit A&M had faced all season.

Guard Ruben Dominguez went scoreless until under the two-minute mark before knocking down three free throws at the charity stripe, where he ended the half with five points. The forward from Chicago, Illinois, kept the Aggies in business with nine points, shooting 3-for-5 from the field.

His teammates recorded 12 rebounds, nine of which were on the defensive end, but the Tigers outrebounded the Aggies with five more at the intermission. A&M struggled defensively to stop the F, Troy Hupstead, and the G, Cameron Patterson, who combined for 17 of the 36 points.

When Texas Southern played Gonzaga, the offense managed only 43 points, so the adjustments made by coach Johnny Jones were effective. However, the message he conveyed at halftime wasn’t compelling.

In the second half, A&M jumped out to a 20-4 run started by Federiko Federiko and Agee directing themselves through traffic and to the basket that gave McMillan’s squad the 56-42 lead. Getting to the free-throw line was a massive factor in wearing down Texas Southern as the game quickly withered away.

During the extended run, McMillan played a lot of Marcus Hill, Zach Clemence, Josh Holloway, Dominguez, and Federiko as the ball was flying and the defense was aggressive. At the 12-minute media timeout, the Tigers had 18 turnovers and were reckless with the basketball.

Hupstead and Patterson were quiet in what seemed like the entire second half as the Tigers couldn’t generate as many looks from anywhere on the floor. When the Tigers walked out of Reed Arena, the numbers for the Tigers weren't pretty.

As for the A&M offense, there were no surprises with another fast-paced and aggressive style of basketball. Fewer rebounds than against Northwestern, but the points in the paint and made free throws increased.

From the field, the Aggies shot 33-for-61 with 12 threes made on 32 attempts. At the charity stripe, the Aggies also made 26 free throws on 37 shots with 28 total rebounds. Solid in all categories.

The first road trip of the season for A&M will tip off in Stillwater, Oklahoma, against Oklahoma State on Sunday at 1 p.m. on ESPN2.