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20th-ranked Aggies extinguish Flames

Nov 10, 2011 - 6:39 AM College Station, TX (Sports Network) - Ray Turner scored a career-high 20 points and grabbed six rebounds, while Elston Turner added 16 points and six boards, as No. 20 Texas A&M opened the season with an 81-59 victory over Liberty.

David Loubeau donated 14 points for the Aggies (1-0), who shot 65 percent from the floor en route to the easy victory.

Texas A&M played without head coach Billy Kennedy, who missed his Aggies debut while on leave to treat an early stage of Parkinson's disease.

David Minaya led Liberty (0-1) with 14 points in defeat.

"I thought their length bothered some of our shots, but we missed shots we don't normally miss," Liberty head coach Dale Layer said.

Texas A&M wasted no time to take control, rattling off a 24-4 stretch, pushing the lead to 37-12 on Elston Turner's two free throws. The Aggies led 37-14 at the half then poured it on in the second half, shooting 72 percent and cruising to victory.

"We were just active. We made them work for every single shot, forcing turnovers and running out in the open," Elston Turner said.

The Aggies dominated in the paint, outscoring the Flames, 48-18, while scoring 16 points off the break. The lead changed just one time, in the early going, before Texas A&M's first-half scoring stretch.

Game Notes

The Aggies put 10 players on the scorebook in the victory...Antwan Burrus added 10 points for Liberty, while Jesse Sanders chipped in with eight points and nine rebounds...Texas A&M star Khris Middleton scored six points in only 10 minutes as he left the game early with a strained hamstring. He is day to day...This was the first-ever meeting between the two schools.