PJ Haggerty scored 22 points and freshman Josh Irving recorded his first career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds as Texas A&M rolled to an 88-69 victory over previously unbeaten Oklahoma State on Thursday in College Station, Texas.
The Aggies (4-0) were at their best late in the first half, building a 13-point lead at halftime and pushing it to 56-39 just over a minute into the second half.
Kanye Clary scored eight consecutive points in 58 seconds to pull Oklahoma State within 68-60 with 9:53 remaining. The Cowboys got no closer, and the Aggies pulled away down the stretch for their biggest win of the young season.
Zach Clemence and Jordan Pope scored 14 points each for the Aggies, who outshot Oklahoma State 51% to 30.3% and made 12 of their 25 attempts from beyond the arc.
Clary and Anthony Felesi led Oklahoma State (2-1) with 14 points apiece, while Kashie Natt added 12 and Julius Halaifonua finished with 10.
The lead changed hands four times in the first seven and a half minutes, with the last change coming on two free throws by Clemence at 12:26 that gave Texas A&M a 16-15 lead. The Aggies extended their lead to seven before Oklahoma State rallied, pulling within 22-20 on two Felesi free throws midway through the first half.
Texas A&M slowly pulled away again, going up 32-24 on a putback dunk by Irving with 6:37 left in the first half. Pope pushed the lead to double digits for the first time with a jumper in the lane to make it 44-33 with 2:19 remaining. Neiko Mundey’s free throw with seven seconds left gave the Aggies a 50-37 halftime lead.
Irving led all scorers with 12 points before halftime while Haggerty added 11 for Texas A&M, which outshot the visitors 58.6% to 32.4% in the first half. Felesi and Natt each scored 10 points to lead the Cowboys in the first half.