Longhorns unleashed relentless defense, suffocating the Aggies in a dominant 80-35 victory that redefined their SEC trajectory.
Texas didn’t just beat Texas A&M on Sunday - the Longhorns pressed the reset button with authority.
Coming off consecutive losses, No. 4 Texas responded the way elite teams do by turning defense into chaos and letting the score take care of itself in an emphatic 80-35 dismantling of the Aggies in Austin.
If there was frustration lingering from the South Carolina loss earlier in the week, it didn’t last long.
The game flipped for good coming out of halftime. Texas detonated a 23-3 third quarter that felt less like basketball and more like a full-court lesson in pressure.
A&M struggled to simply initiate offense, coughing the ball up repeatedly while the Longhorns ran, swarmed, and scored.
The Aggies didn’t make their first field goal of the quarter until the final seconds, and by then, the building was already celebrating.
Kyla Oldacre was everywhere. The senior dominated the glass with a career-high 18 rebounds, protected the rim with five blocks, and added 10 points for good measure.
A welcome sight for Texas fans was the return of Aaliyah Crump.
The freshman spark plug, back after a long injury layoff, led the team in scoring with 12 points in limited minutes and looked like someone who hadn’t missed a beat.
Her energy off the bench gave Texas another gear just when it needed one.
Madison Booker and Rori Harmon handled the engine room. Booker filled the stat sheet with points, assists, and steals, while Harmon continued her quiet march up the record books - already the school’s assist queen and now within striking distance of the steals mark.
Every pass felt contested. Every dribble felt rushed.
Texas didn’t shoot it well from deep - and frankly, it didn’t need to. The Longhorns won in the paint, on the boards, and in the turnover column, outscoring A&M by a staggering margin inside and forcing mistake after mistake.
This wasn’t about style points. It was about reasserting identity.
Texas reminded everyone Sunday what happens when its defense locks in - and why Moody Center remains one of the toughest places to play in the country.