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Wade Taylor IV drills game-winner in Texas A&M’s road victory vs. Mizzou
Wade Taylor IV had the last laugh on Saturday afternoon, drilling a right-wing, step-back 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds left to lift No. 10 Texas A&M to a thrilling 67-64 victory over No. 15 Missouri in Columbia.
The showdown was the latest in a long line of SEC showdowns between ranked teams this season, as all of the mighty conference’s ranked teams are beating each other up during league play. On Saturday though, it was the senior guard from Dallas being the difference-maker after the Tigers had fought back from a 9-point halftime deficit.
Taylor originally got the inbounds pass in the backcourt with 10.1 seconds left, then dished the ball off before getting a pass on that right wing, right where he liked it. Taylor shot the ball with conviction and was rewarded with a pulsating game-winner. He scored 15 points on the day, only making 5 of his 14 field-goal attempts and 3 of his 9 3-point shots.
But when it mattered most, at the end of the game in a 64-64 tie, Taylor made it count, helping the Aggies improve to 18-5 overall and 7-3 in the SEC.
Missouri fell to 17-6 overall and 6-4 in the league, after a demoralizing home loss. The Tigers have now dropped 2 in a row after falling at No. 4 Tennessee earlier this week. Meanwhile, Texas A&M has now won 3 in a row and 5 out of 6, and on Saturday it had Taylor to thank.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.