The No. 13 Texas A&M men’s basketball team collapsed on the road against UCF with a 64-61 loss to open the season in Orlando, Florida. The Aggies went on a 12-1 run in the final 3:42 and scored on just one of their last 13 field goal attempts as they imploded on both ends of the court when it mattered most.

Here are three takeaways from A&M’s disappointing start to the new campaign:

A&M’s scoring and defensive efforts failed at the crucial time

After a tie at halftime, the Aggies came out swinging in the second half and appeared to be on their way to a victory over a strong Knights program on the road. However, UCF saved its best basketball performance for the final period, where it went on an 8-0 run to end the game and send A&M back to College Station to ponder what might have happened.

Senior guard Jace Carter’s layup put the Aggies up by 11 with 6:24 left before a deep logo three from graduate guard Wade Taylor IV with 4:52 left made it a nine-point game at 59: 50 remained. From there, the Knights began their comeback by attacking the basket and limiting A&M with stifling defense.

With 45 seconds left, UCF finally secured the lead with a dunk from senior forward Benny Williams and extended it with a few attempts to the free throw line. The Knights held on for dear life as the Aggies fired three shots at a game-winning three-pointer in the final 10 seconds but couldn’t score.

The Aggies found most of their scoring opportunities in the paint

A&M found early success through young Minnesota transfer forward Pharrel Payne as the big man established his territory near the basket. Offensively, he led the way with 15 points and added six rebounds before being fouled out on a night when the Aggies scored most of their scoring.

Taylor is expected to be the engine behind A&M’s offense this season, scoring 13 points on 4-of-11 shooting from three-point range. Nebraska graduate transfer CJ Wilcher added six points from long range, with the Aggies scoring on 7 of 23 shots from long range.

A&M was a force on the glass, outscoring UCF 43-35 with 16 boards on offense. The Maroon and White converted them into 19 second-chance points, compared to just nine from the Knights. Junior forward Solomon Washington led the defense with nine rebounds, while graduate forward Henry Coleman III grabbed five offensive rebounds.

A&M’s foul trouble made the UCF comeback possible

While the Knights weren’t always able to hit their shots with a 17-for-50 performance on field goals, they were able to fall back on their performance on the charity stripe. UCF sank 22 of 31 free throw attempts as it capitalized on 24 fouls from A&M, including 17 in the second half. In contrast, the Aggies only had 14 free throw attempts, of which they made eight.

Payne and senior forward Andersson Garcia were each fouled after playing key roles in building A&M’s lead. Taylor and Carter each added three fouls to pave the way for free throw opportunities for the Knights. UCF committed 17 fouls, with junior George Mason transfer guard Keyshawn Hall and freshman center Moustapha Thiam committing fouls.

Combined with 12 turnovers, the Aggies’ lack of discipline allowed the Knights to storm back and snatch the win from A&M’s grasp.

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