• Recap
• Bleachers

Middleton shines as Texas A&M tops Kansas State

Jan 23, 2011 - 3:15 AM College Station, TX (Sports Network) - Khris Middleton had 18 points and seven rebounds as No. 11 Texas A&M took down Kansas State, 64-56, in a Big 12 battle at Reed Arena.

B.J. Holmes, Kourtney Roberson and Naji Hibbert each had nine points for the Aggies (17-2, 4-1 Big 12), who bounced back from a loss to Texas on Wednesday.

Jacob Pullen had 21 points and Curtis Kelly added 15 points and 11 boards for the Wildcats (13-7, 1-4), who have lost four of their last five.

"[Kelly's] stat line looks good, but I don't think he played well," Kansas State head coach Frank Martin said bluntly. "Maybe he should finish the game, and not stop playing with two minutes to go."

With the score tied entering the second half, Kansas State took a six-point lead on a Pullen three-pointer just over three minutes in, but Texas A&M responded with 13 straight points and held a 44-37 advantage just under eight minutes in.

A Pullen jumper just past the midway mark cut the Wildcats' deficit to one, 46-45, but the teams went nearly three minutes without a point until Kelly's free throw tied the game with 7:04 left.

Again the teams went cold shooting until Dash Harris put in a layup with 5:08 to play to give the Aggies a two-point lead, but Will Spradling countered at the other end with a layup of his own.

A Nathan Walkup free throw and David Loubeau jumper with three minutes to play extended the Aggies' lead to 51-48 and Middleton hit a pair of free throws with 1:32 left for a five-point edge.

Pullen quickly countered with two free throws, but Holmes did the same at the other end to again make it a five-point game with 80 seconds left.

Pullen missed two three-pointers, but the Wildcats came up with the offensive boards and Spradling made it a two-point game when he buried it from long range with 59.5 seconds to play.

However, Holmes made two free throws with 45 seconds to play and, following a Pullen missed jumper, Harris made a free throw. The second attempt saw Harris miss, but Walkup came down with the offensive boards and Middleton's two from the line sealed the win.

"That's a really good win for us," Aggies head coach Mark Turgeon said. "We didn't particularly play well, especially offensively...but we kept guarding. It's an ugly win, but in the end it's a 'W.'"

It was a tight game for the first several minutes, but the Aggies ripped off 10 straight points for a 14-7 lead on a Middleton free throw with 11 minutes to go.

Texas A&M kept its lead for the next several minutes, but a three-pointer from Kelly, two from the line by Pullen and a jumper from Nick Russell gave Kansas State a 29-28 lead inside the final minute.

Holmes hit a free throw in the final moments to tie the game heading into the break.

Game Notes

Kansas State shot 40 percent in the game while Texas A&M made 37.2 percent of its shots...The Aggies play at Nebraska next Saturday...Kansas State hosts Baylor on Monday...Kansas State leads the series with Texas A&M, 16-7.