• Recap
• Bleachers

Texas A&M downs Red Raiders to snap skid

Mar 6, 2011 - 1:42 AM College Station, TX (Sports Network) - David Loubeau poured in 21 points as the 24th-ranked Texas A&M Aggies clinched the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Big 12 Tournament with a 66-54 victory over the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

Khris Middleton added 13 points and five rebounds for the Aggies (23-7, 10-6 Big 12), who will receive a first-round bye in the conference tournament.

Nathan Walkup and Dash Harris each donated eight points for Texas A&M, which snapped a two-game skid.

David Tairu finished with 14 points for the Red Raiders (13-18, 5-11), who have lost three of four to end the regular season. D'walyn Roberts chipped in with 11 points and 11 boards.

The Aggies led by as many as seven in the first half and took a 30-26 edge into the locker room.

"This was another good win for us, I thought Tech really played well the first half, when we would make a run, they would hit a big shot," Aggies coach Mark Turgeon said. "I thought they were a lot tougher than us in the first half."

Texas A&M pulled away early in the second half, starting the frame on a 13-4 run. Loubeau tallied nine points during the burst, which Middleton capped with a free throw for a 43-30 margin with over 14 minutes to play.

Holding a 50-40 lead with over 6 1/2 minutes remaining, Texas A&M scored seven consecutive points to put the game away. Walkup capped the burst with a layup and a three-pointer to make it a 17-point contest.

"We didn't shoot well, but I don't want to take anything away from Texas A&M," Texas Tech coach Pat Knight said. "If we don't miss a dunk, we're only down by eight and it's a totally different ball game. We had our chances, we just didn't capitalize."

Game Notes

The Aggies hold a 65-59 lead in the all-time series with Texas Tech...The Aggies shot 45.8 percent from the field, while the Red Raiders made 37.7 percent of their shots...Texas A&M's No. 3 seed in the tournament is the second highest in school history (2007)...B.J. Holmes had five points and five rebounds for the Aggies.