COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Zhuric Phelps scored 19 points off the bench and No. 22 Texas A&M never trailed in an 83-72 win over top-ranked Auburn on Tuesday night.
It’s Texas A&M’s first win over a team ranked No. 1 in the AP Top 25 poll and ends a six-game winning streak for the Tigers, who clinched the Southeastern Conference title with a win over Kentucky on Saturday.
Texas A&M (21-9, 10-7 SEC) denied Auburn (27-3, 15-2) an undefeated conference road record after the Tigers entered the game 9-0 in SEC road games this season.
The win was especially sweet for the Aggies because it was Senior Night at Reed Arena.
“The guys that were on the court have been here from Day 1,” said senior guard Wade Taylor IV, who had 16 points. “We built this program from what it was before we got here to what it is now, and Coach [Buzz Williams] wanted to put us out there because he knew that we had a lot to play for, and we came out with the win.
“I’m thankful for those guys. We’ve been through a lot together — the ups, the down, the bad, the ugly, and to get this win on Senior Night with our last time playing on this court meant everything.”
Auburn was hurt by an off night from top scorer Johni Broome, who entered the game averaging 18.4 points but managed just eight. He left the game for a couple of minutes early in the first half with what appeared to be a shoulder injury but played 32 minutes despite the problem.
It was Broome’s second straight game scoring in single digits.
The Aggies, who snapped a season-long four-game skid, opened the game on a 12-2 run and led by double digits for most of the night. They were up 12 with about two minutes to go before Tahaad Pettiford made a 3-pointer to get Auburn within 79-70. But Phelps made two free throws to extend the lead.
Pettiford made three 3-pointers in less than two minutes early in the second half to power a run that got the Tigers within six, but Taylor had a three-point play that started a 5-0 run that pushed A&M’s advantage to 62-51.
The Aggies are the second team this season to defeat an AP No. 1-ranked team in wire-to-wire fashion, joining Creighton, which beat then-No. 1 Kansas on Dec. 4.
Pettiford led Auburn with 19 points, including six 3-pointers.
Information from ESPN Research and The Associated Press was used in this report.