Washington scores 17 as No. 8 Texas A&M uses dominate second half to beat Georgia 69-53

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) Solomon Washington scored 17 points and No. 8 Texas A&M Aggies used a huge second half run to cruise to a 69-53 win over Georgia Bulldogs on Tuesday night.

Georgia led by eight points early in the second half before Texas A&M took over, using a 22-0 run to make it 50-36 with nine minutes left. Washington started the run with a 3-pointer before a steal by Wade Taylor IV gave the Aggies the ball back. Taylor dished to Washington, who finished with a two-handed dunk.

The Bulldogs made four free throws in the first four minutes of the second half. Their next points didn’t come until Asa Newell made two free throws with 8½ minutes to go and he made two more less than a minute later.

But Georgia did not make a field goal in the second half until a dunk by Newell with 7:20 remaining. Georgia missed 12 consecutive shots and had four turnovers during A&M’s big run.

Henry Coleman III added 13 points for the Aggies (19-5, 8-3 Southeastern Conference), who extended their winning streak to four games.

Georgia (16-9, 4-8) was led by Silas Demary Jr., who had 19 points.

Georgia: The Bulldogs need more consistency after playing great in the first half before falling apart after halftime.

Texas A&M: The Aggies need to avoid slow starts with big games down the stretch against No. 1 Auburn, No. 3 Florida and fifth-ranked Tennessee.

The five points by Washington that jumpstarted Texas A&M’s offense and the 22-0 run that put the game away.

Georgia’s Blue Cain had 15 points in first half as the Bulldogs built a 32-23 lead, but managed just two after halftime.

Texas A&M hosts Arkansas Saturday, and No. 21 Missouri visits Georgia that day.

---

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball