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Kavaliauskas, Law IV lead Texas A&M

Mar 4, 2007 - 3:11 AM COLLEGE STATION, Texas (Ticker) -- Antanas Kavaliauskas and Acie Law IV went out with a bang.

Kavaliauskas scored a career-high 26 points and Law contributed 20 as No. 6 Texas A&M pulled away for a 94-78 victory over Missouri in a Big 12 Conference matchup.

It marked the final home game in the careers of Kavaliauskas and Law, a pair of players who have lifted a once downtrodden program to one that could contend for a national championship this season.

Kavaliauskas scored 15 points and Law 13 in the second half, when the Aggies (25-5, 13-3 Big 12) were able to take control of the game. The contest was tied, 42-42, at the half.

"It was tough for me. Just knowing that this is the last time that I'll be able to put this uniform on and play in front of, basically, my family. These are people that have supported us and been behind us 100 percent," Law said.

Aggies coach Billy Gillispie praised his seniors.

"Whatever happens, it's all gravy," he said. "There's a level of being able to believe. These guys have shown me how to believe at much greater level than I've ever been able to believe. Every time they won a game for the first few years, it was the first time they'd done it. They taught me a lot. I believe they can do anything.

"One of the greateset things about all of them is that they either have their degree right now, or by August, you're looking at six graduates. Not too many people can say that. That's really impressive at a fine university like this place. They make you believe at a different level. The new season starts Monday and we'll try to get better."

Josh Carter also scored 20 points for Texas A&M, which had its hopes for a share of the conference title dashed earlier Saturday when Kansas beat Texas. The Aggies will be the second seed in next week's conference tournament.

Stefhon Hannah scored 17 points to lead Missouri (18-11, 7-9), which was looking for a signature win to put on its NCAA Tournament resume.

Wanting to make his last home game count, Kavaliauskas scored nine of the Aggies' first 12 points in the second half. His three-point play with 13:54 remaining capped the burst and gave the Aggies a 54-46 lead.

Kavaliauskas, whose mother watched from the stands, made 11-of-12 shots. He also converted all four his free throws and grabbed six rebounds.

"It was a great game and my mom being here made it even more special," Kavaliauskas said. "It's been emotional. She's never seen a game like that, or at least that's what she told me. I think what she meant to say was that she'd never seen an atmosphere like that. We dont' have that in Lithuania."

Consecutive jumpers by Kavaliauskas and Law pushed the advantage to 67-50 with under 10 minutes remaining. The Aggies cruised thereafter.

The Aggies shot 67 percent (20-of-30) in the second half to finish at 55 percent (36-of-59) overall.

Keon Lawrence and Marshall Brown added 13 points apiece for Missouri, which trailed by as many as nine points in the first half before coming back to pull even at the break.