COLLEGE STATION, Texas--No. 17 Texas A&M returns home for the first time in nearly two weeks on Wednesday when the Aggies (19-5, 6-4) host the Iowa State Cyclones (14-11, 1-9) at Reed Arena. Tipoff is set for 7:04 p.m. and the game will air regionally on the Big 12 Network.
The game is "Military Appreciation Night", and all veterans or active duty military personnel may receive two free tickets to the game and can purchase additional tickets for only $10. To claim your tickets, visit tickets.12thmanfoundation.com, click on "men's basketball" and then on the "military night" link.
The team will be wearing special camouflage jerseys which will be auctioned off following the game on aggieathletics.com. Proceeds will benefit the USO.
Students who have purchased an all-sports option can attend the game by simply presenting their student ID at the north or south student entrances to Reed Arena. Additional student ticket information for the game is available on the men's basketball page at aggieathletics.com.
A&M, which sits in third place in the Big 12, will be looking to secure the program's seventh consecutive 20-win season on Wednesday night.
GAME 25: (#17/21) Texas A&M AGGIES (19-5, 6-4)
vs Iowa State CYCLONES (14-11, 1-9)
Wednesday, February 16, 2011 • 7:04 PM (CT) • TV: Big 12 Network
Reed Arena (12,989) • College Station, Texas
TELEVISION: Big 12 Network
Mitch Holthus, Play-by-Play
Reid Gettys, Commentary
Melissa Knowles, Reporter
Bryan-College Station: KBTX-DT2 (CW Texas)
ESPN Full Court: DirecTV 723
RADIO: Texas A&M Sports Network
Dave South, Play-by-Play
Al Pulliam, Commentary
Local/Internet: WTAW-AM 1620/radioaggieland.com
Satellite Radio: Sirius 147
Series: A&M leads, 9-7
Current Win Streak: A&M, 7 games
In College Station: A&M leads, 4-3
At Reed Arena: A&M leads, 4-2
In Ames: A&M leads, 4-3
At Hilton Coliseum: A&M leads, 4-3
At Neutral Sites: tied, 1-1
At Big 12 Tournament: tied, 1-1
Longest A&M Win Streak: 7 (current)
Longest ISU Win Streak: 5 (1997-01)
Largest A&M Win: 73-49 (2006-07)
Largest ISU Win: 97-70 (2002-03)
Mark Turgeon vs. ISU: 4-0
Fred Hoiberg vs. A&M: never faced
Last Meeting: A&M, 60-56 (Feb. 20, 2010 in Ames)
THE MATCHUP
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 19-5, 6-4 Big 12
Ranking: 17th (USAT/ESPN), 21st (AP)
NCAA RPI / Sagarin Rating: 28 / 33
Streak: Won 2
Last 5 / Last 10: 2-3 / 6-4
At Home: 12-2
Last Game: def. Texas Tech (A), 70-67 (Saturday)
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon (Kansas ‘87)
Record: 245-155 (13th year)
at Texas A&M: 92-36 (4th year)
vs. Iowa State: 4-0
A&M Probable Starters
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG APG GP / Min
5 Dash Harris G 6-1 175 Jr. 4.1 2.7 3.4 24 / 27.7
10 David Loubeau F 6-8 230 Jr. 10.9 5.3 0.4 24 / 26.0
11 B.J. Holmes G 5-11 175 Sr. 10.1 2.9 3.2 24 / 29.3
22 Khris Middleton F 6-7 215 So. 15.0 4.8 3.0 24 / 29.3
45 Nathan Walkup F 6-7 210 Sr. 9.9 5.9 1.3 24 / 24.5
IOWA STATE CYCLONES
Record: 14-11, 1-9 Big 12
Ranking: NR
NCAA RPI / Sagarin Rating: 141 / 94
Streak: Lost 7
Last 5 / Last 10: 0-5 / 1-9
On the Road: 3-6
Last Game: lost at Kansas (A), 89-66 (Saturday)
Head Coach: Fred Hoiberg (Iowa State '95)
Record: 14-11 (1st year)
at Iowa State: 14-11 (1st year)
vs. Texas A&M: never faced
Iowa State Probable Starters
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG APG GP/Min
0 Jordan Railey C 6-11 245 Fr. 2.2 1.6 0.1 19 / 9.0
3 Melvin Ejim F 6-6 215 Fr. 10.9 7.0 1.2 25 / 28.5
5 Darion "Jake" Anderson G 6-2 205 Sr. 11.9 7.7 2.7 25 / 32.9
10 Diante Garrett G 6-4 190 Sr. 17.7 3.8 5.8 25 / 35.9
11 Scott Christopherson G 6-3 195 Jr. 14.3 3.1 2.2 24 / 35.2
About Iowa State (14-11, 1-9)
• Iowa State is 14-11 on the year and is in last place in the Big 12 at 1-9 ... the Cyclones are in the midst of a stretch that will see them play four straight ranked opponents ... ISU has lost seven in a row entering Wednesday's game, but have been very close to snapping the skid numerous times ... in six of the Cyclones' 11 losses (4 in Big 12 play), ISU had the lead or was tied with under a minute to play in regulation ... Iowa State is 2-6 on the road this season.
• Iowa State returns 2 letterwinners and a pair of starters from a 2009-10 team that finished 15-17 and 4-12 in the Big 12 ... Fred Hoiberg (Iowa State '95) is in his first season as the head coach of his hometown team and alma mater with an overall record of 14-11.
Series Notes
• Texas A&M leads the all-time series, 9-7, and has won 7 straight ... all 16 meetings have come in the Big 12 era (14 regular-season, 2 conference tournament).
• The Aggies are 4-2 against the Cyclones at Reed Arena and have won 3 in a row ... ISU's last victory at Reed came in 2001, when the 17th-ranked Cyclones won, 72-53.
• Texas A&M held on late last year to defeat Iowa State, 60-56, at Hilton Coliseum ... the Aggies used a career-high 29 points from Josh Carter to topple ISU, 87-69, in the Cyclones' last visit to College Station on Feb. 28, 2009.
Sidebars
• Both head coaches in Wednesday's game played for legendary coach Larry Brown ... Aggie coach Mark Turgeon did so for four seasons at the University of Kansas, while Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg was drafted by Brown and the NBA's Indiana Pacers in 1995 ... Hoiberg played two seasons for Brown, who left the franchise in 1997 to coach the Philadelphia 76ers ... Turgeon was also part of Brown's first coaching staff in Philly in 1997.
A&M/ISU RECAPS
Last Time They Met: (#24) Texas A&M 60, Iowa State 56
AMES (Feb. 20, 2010)—Donald Sloan scored 14 points and No. 24 Texas A&M held off Iowa State 60-56 for its fifth win in six games. Khris Middleton added 12 points for the Aggies (19-7, 8-4 Big 12), who bounced back from a close loss to top-ranked Kansas on Monday with their seventh straight win over the Cyclones. The Aggies have won their last three road games--by a total of just nine points. It's not exactly the way Aggies would have drawn it up, but Sloan believes it's a good sign with March just around the corner. Texas A&M let a 10-point lead dwindle to 54-53 before David Loubeau's inside basket gave the Aggies a 56-53 lead with 1:10 left. Sloan and Middleton then hit four straight free throws to put Texas A&M ahead 60-53 with 17 seconds left. Diante Garrett and Marquis Gilstrap each had 15 points for Iowa State (13-14, 2-10), which lost for the ninth time in 10 games. Iowa State held Texas A&M scoreless for nearly 5 minutes and rallied to pull within 54-53 on two free throws by Garrett with 2:31 left. But Cyclones star Craig Brackins grazed the rim with a jumper following Loubeau's basket, forcing the Cyclones to put the Aggies on the line. Sloan and Middleton calmly made their free throws, a trait common for teams used to winning ugly. Gilstrap hit a 3 and Iowa State got a turnover off A&M's inbounds try, but the Cyclones couldn't get a decent look before the buzzer sounded. The Aggies held a slim lead for most of the first half. They went into the break ahead 31-28 despite shooting 37.9 percent from the field.
Last Time at Reed: Texas A&M 87, Iowa State 69
COLLEGE STATION (Feb. 28, 2009)—Josh Carter had seven 3-pointers and a career-high 29 points to lead Texas A&M to an 87-69 win over Iowa State . The win is Texas A&M's fourth straight and Iowa State's 15th consecutive Big 12 road loss. The Aggies used a 14-4 run in the opening minutes of the second half to stretch a seven-point lead into a 58-41 advantage. Texas A&M (21-8, 7-7 Big 12) made five 3-pointers in the next six minutes to push the lead to 73-46 with about nine minutes left. Carter was 7-of-10 from 3-point range and finished just one shy of his career-high of eight 3s. Chinemelu Elonu added 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Aggies. Iowa State (14-15, 3-11) was led by Craig Brackins who had 20 points.
GAME NOTES
Aggie Trends
• Under Mark Turgeon, the Aggies have won 13 of their last 16 games following a loss.
• Texas A&M is 13-1 this season when leading (or tied) heading in to the locker room ... the Aggies have overcome halftime deficits 5 times.
• The Aggies are a perfect 15-0 this year when having the lead with 5 minutes to play.
• A&M is 18-2 this year (83-21 all-time under Turgeon) when it holds foes to under 50 percent shooting ... 17-1 when the Aggies hold opponents to under 45 percent from the floor ... and 11-0 (51-4 under Turgeon) when foes shoot less than 40 percent.
• One of A&M's goals every game is to make more free throws than the opponent shoots, which emphasizes the need to get to the charity stripe ... this year, that strategy has proven true, as the Aggies are 17-1 when they shoot more free throws then their opponents.
• Texas A&M has emerged victorious in 19 of 21 games where the Aggies win the rebounding battle.
• Turgeon has called this one of the best passing teams he's ever had ... when Texas A&M totals 10 or more assists, the team is 18-2 this year.
• The Aggies are 17-3 this year (79-14 all-time under Turgeon) when holding foes to under 70 points.
• Three of A&M's 5 losses this year have come by 9 or fewer points ... two (BC and Baylor) have gone down to the final possession, and a third (Nebraska) was a one-possession game with 1:11 to play.
• Texas A&M is averaging 15.7 points off turnovers per game ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 56-11 (11-2 this year) when they have more points off turnovers than their opponent.
• Texas A&M is averaging 13.9 assists per game this year, on pace for its highest average since the 2006-07 season.
• Texas A&M has scored at least 40 points in the paint in four games this year ... under Turgeon, A&M is 87-26 when scoring at least 20 points in the paint (17-3 this year).
• The Aggies are averaging 14.2 second-chance points through 24 games (10.9 per game last year).
• Four players are averaging at least 4 rebounds per game—Nathan Walkup (5.9), David Loubeau (5.3), Khris Middleton (4.8) and Kourtney Roberson (4.0) ... by comparison just two did so last season—Bryan Davis (8.1) and Loubeau (4.7).
• Texas A&M has won nearly 75 percent of its games since the start of the 2006-07 season (119-43, .735) ... the Aggies are 162-61 (.726) since the beginning of the '04-05 campaign.
Down to the Wire
• Texas A&M is 6-2 this year in "last possession" games (3 or fewer points, or OT) ... the Aggies have a 1-point win over Washington (63-62), a 2-point win over Missouri (91-89), and 3-point wins over Temple (54-51), Colorado (73-70) and Texas Tech (70-67) ... the Aggies took Arkansas to overtime before emerging victorious, 71-62 ... A&M's 2-point losses this year came to Boston College (65-67) and Baylor (74-76).
• Overall, A&M is 9-3 this year in games decided by fewer than 10 points.
Let's Keep Playing
• Texas A&M has already played a school-record 4 overtime games this year, and is 3-1 in those contests.
• The Aggies have set a school record with 3 OT wins this season.
• Texas A&M's back-to-back OT games with Baylor (Feb. 5) and Colorado (Feb. 9) marked just the third time in school history the Aggies have played consecutive overtime games ... the most recent came in the fall of 2003, when A&M went extra with Grambling (2OT) and Houston (OT) ... the only other time it has occurred in school history was in 1984 (SMU and TCU).
• A&M's 73-70 win at Colorado on Feb. 9 was the Aggies' first overtime win on the road since an 86-78 win at Alabama in the fall of 2008.
• The victory in Boulder marked only the Aggies' second road OT victory in Big 12 history ... the other came at Iowa State in 2006 (86-81) ... A&M is 4-7 all-time in Big 12 overtime games (2-4 home, 2-3 away).
Protecting the Ball
• Texas A&M has done a good job limiting turnovers in conference play ... the Aggies have committed just 114 turnovers (11.4 per game) in Big 12 play, the second fewest in the league (Missouri, 112) ... A&M, which averaged 14 turnovers per game in non-conference play, has committed 310 on the entire season, the fewest of any Big 12 team.
• A&M is averaging 7.4 turnovers in the first half against Big 12 foes ... A&M averages just 4.0 turnovers the rest of the game (including overtime).
• The Aggies have allowed Big 12 opponents 95 first-half points off turnovers, but just 33 the rest of the way.
TURNOVER TOTALS, BIG 12 GAMES
Category 1H Total 1H Avg. 2H Total* 2H Avg.*
Turnovers 74 7.4 40 4.0
Opponent Pts off TOs 95 9.5 33 3.3
* includes overtime periods
Turgeon Rising Up Coaching Charts
• Mark Turgeon (92 wins) passed D.X. Bible (90 in seven seasons) as the third-winningest coach in school history with a Feb. 8 win at Colorado ... Turgeon needs 1 more victories to eclipse Bob Rogers (92 in six seasons) as the second-winningest coach in A&M annals and become the first ever to lead A&M to 4 straight 20-win seasons ... Shelby Metcalf (438 wins in 26 1/2 seasons) is the Aggies' all-time winningest coach.
WINNINGEST COACHES, SCHOOL HISTORY
Coach Wins Seasons Years
1. Shelby Metcalf 438 28 ½ 1964-90
2. Bob Rogers 92 6 1958-63
Mark Turgeon 92 3+ 2007-
4. D.X. Bible 90 7 1921-29
5. Tony Barone 76 7 1991-98
Road Warriors
• Texas A&M is 7-3 away from Reed Arena this season ... in those games, the Aggies are holding opponents to 61.6 points and 42.0 percent shooting per game ... A&M has out-rebounded teams away from home this year by an average of 9 boards (36-27).
• The Aggies have won 13 of their last 19 games away from Reed Arena dating back to early February of last season ... three of those six losses have been by 4 points or less ... A&M's setbacks in that stretch came at No. 24 Baylor (70-66), against No. 1 Kansas in the Big 12 semifinals in Kansas City (79-66), in overtime to No. 10 Purdue in the NCAA Second Round in Spokane (63-61), on Thanksgiving Day vs Boston College (67-65) in Orlando, at No. 10 Texas (81-60) and most recently at Nebraska (57-48).
• Mark Turgeon has won more Big 12 road games (14) than any Aggie coach in the 15-year history of the league.
Locking it Down
• The Aggies have used quite a few key defensive showings en route to a 19-5 record ... a look at some of the defensive efforts that have led to victories so far this season:
A&M'S LATE-GAME DEFENSIVE STANDS
Opponent Clock Situation Opponent rest of game Result Notable
Texas Tech 3:33 left down 2 (65-63) 1 FG, 0 FT W, 70-67 layup came with :10 left & 3-pt lead
Colorado 3:29 left down 6 (58-52) 0/3 FG, 2/2 FT (reg/OT) W, 73-70 (OT) CU 3-16 (19%) from field over span
Kansas State 4:55 left tied (48-48) 2 FG, 2 FT W, 64-56 late 3-ptr came with :12 left & 9-pt lead
Missouri 1:35 left-OT down 2 (87-85) 1 FG, 0 FT W, 91-89 (OT) MU's bucket came on tip-in at end of game
Oklahoma St. 15:08 left up 3 (43-40) 1 FG, 6 FT W, 71-48 OSU scoreless over final 5:41
Nicholls St. 4:09 left up 9 (62-53) 0 FG, 2 FT W, 66-55
McNeese St. 3:43 left up 3 (56-53) 2 FG, 0 FT W, 66-57 last MSU FG came w/:00.1 left in game
Arkansas 6:42 left down 6 (58-52) 0 FG, 2 FT W, 71-62 (OT) UA also scoreless in OT until layup w/:16 left
Washington 5:02 left up 5 (61-56) 2 FG, 2 FT W, 63-62
Pacific 5:19 left up 9 (63-54) 1 FG, 2 FT W, 79-59 FG was 3-pointer with :06 left in game
SFA 3:00 left up 7 (57-50) 1 FG, 0 FT W, 62-53
Temple 6:42 left down 1 (47-46) 1 FG, 2 FT W, 54-51
Manhattan 12:49 left up 5 (43-38) 2 FG, 3 FT W, 74-45
• In the last 3 minutes of games this season, the Aggie defense has held foes to 27 percent shooting (35-of-129) from the field and 24 percent (13-of-54) from 3-point range.
Big 12 Bits
• Texas A&M has given up the fewest rebounds of any team in Big 12 play (30.4/game) ... A&M ranks second in Big 12 games in scoring defense (66.4 ppg), trailing only Texas ... the Aggies are third in league play in turnover margin (+0.7).
• For the entire season, the Aggies lead the league in rebound margin (+8.8) and rebounding defense (29.0/game) ... are second in offensive rebounds (13.7) ... are third in scoring defense (60.7 ppg) and 3-point field goal defense (31.2% by foes) ... and are fourth in overall rebounding (37.8).
• Senior BJ Holmes leads the league in Big 12 play in 3-point field goal percentage (16-31, .516) ... for the entire year, Holmes ranks third in the Big 12 in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.1).
Battling Back
• Texas A&M has erased four double-digit deficits en route to victories this season ... the Aggies have also washed out two more 10-plus deficits in games which they lost by two points.
BIG COMEBACKS (10+ POINT DEFICITS)
Opponent Largest Deficit Score / Time Final
Texas Tech (2/12) 10 8-18 / 12:30, 1st W, 70-67
Missouri (1/15) 12 7-19 / 13:00, 1st W, 91-89 (OT)
McNeese State (12/31) 10 18-28 / 7:51, 1st W, 66-57
Arkansas (12/18) 10 35-45 / 17:26, 2nd W, 71-62 (OT)
Baylor (2/5) 14 25-39 / 6:12, 1st L, 74-76 (OT)
Boston College (11/25) 11 38-49 / 13:50, 2nd L, 65-67
• A&M trailed Colorado 58-52 last Wednesday with 3:29 to play in Boulder ... the Aggies held Colorado to just 2 free throws for the remainder of regulation, rallying to tie the game at 60 and force OT ... A&M went on to win the game, 73-70 ... the Buffs shot 19 percent (3-of-16) over the final 8:29 (including OT), managing the 3 field goals and 4 free throws.
• With 10:30 to play on Feb. 5, the Aggies found themselves down 11 points (63-52) to a hot-shooting Baylor squad ... up to that point in the game, the Bears were hitting 61 percent from the field (25-41) ... over the remainder of the game (including overtime, 15:30), A&M held Baylor to just 27 percent shooting and 13 points ... over the last 10:30 of regulation, Aggie defenders locked the Bears down to just 1-of-8 from the floor and 6 points (4 of those coming from the free throw line) ... the 11-point second-half deficit wasn't the largest of the game for the Aggies, as they found themselves down 14 with 6:12 to play before halftime ... A&M's defense locked down again, holding the Bears to two late field goals and pulling all the way to within one before entering the locker room trailing 43-40.
Reed Arena Struggles for Foes
• A&M is 12-2 at home this year, a feat due in no small part to the Aggies' defensive effort all season long ... opponents are shooting 40.5 percent inside Reed and averaging 60 points per game.
• Only 5 teams have shot better than 40 percent on A&M's home floor—Missouri (52.2), Baylor (51.8), Texas (50.0), McNeese State (41.8) and Pacific (41.4).
• Only 5 teams have scored more than 60 points on A&M's home floor—Missouri (89 in OT), Texas (69), Baylor (76 in OT), Prairie View A&M (63) and Washington (62).
Home, Sweet Home
• A&M has won 30 of its last 33 home games, including 13 of its last 16 in Big 12 play ... the Aggies are 43-5 at home since the start of the 2008-09 season with a 16-5 mark in conference games ... those 4 losses have come to Kansas (#1), Texas (#3), Oklahoma (#5), Baylor and Kansas State.
• The Aggies are 77-8 (.906) at home since the start of the 2006-07 season and are 109-14 (.886) since the start of the 2004-05 campaign.
• A&M has won 25 of its last 26 home games against unranked opponents (9 of last 10 in Big 12 play) ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 48-4 against unranked opponents at Reed Arena, including a 13-4 mark against unranked Big 12 teams.
• The Aggies are the only Big 12 team to win at least 15 home games for the last six consecutive seasons.
• A&M is 151-56 (.729) in its 13th season at Reed Arena ... the Aggies were 41-41 the first six years at Reed and are 110-15 since.
• The Aggies have won 60 straight non-conference games at Reed Arena ... the streak dates back to the start of the 2005-06 season and includes wins over Arizona, Alabama, LSU and Washington, among others ... the last home non-conference loss for the Aggies was to St. Joseph's (58-51) in the 2005 NIT quarterfinals ... A&M is 92-9 all-time in non-conference games at Reed (.911).
• Texas A&M has won 73 consecutive regular-season non-conference home games ... the last non-conference team to beat the Aggies at Reed Arena was Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (82-80) in 2003.
• Texas A&M broke its home attendance record three times in 2010, including the current mark of 13,717 vs. Texas (Feb. 27) ... A&M sold out four games, topping the 13,000 mark in each game ... the Aggies' season average of 9,889 ranked second on the school chart behind the record of 10,343 set in Turgeon's first season in 2007-08 ... A&M has posted its top five single game marks, and two of the top three season averages, under Turgeon.
• The top 20 single-game attendance marks in A&M history have been set since the start of the 2005-06 season ... the top 15 non-conference attendance marks also have been set in that time span.
Aggies in the NCAA Rankings
• In the latest NCAA rankings (as of Feb. 14), A&M ranked 5th nationally in rebounding margin (+8.8) ... the Aggies have out-rebounded 21 of 24 opponents this season ... A&M is 83-13 under Turgeon (19-2 this year) when matching or out-rebounding their foes.
• A&M also ranked 20th in the country in scoring defense (60.7 ppg) ... Stephen F. Austin, whom the Aggies beat at Reed Arena on Dec. 2, leads the nation (54.5).
• At the statistical release, the Aggies were holding opponents to 31.2 percent shooting from 3-point range, which ranks 36th nationally.
Success Against Ranked Teams
• The Aggies are 4-2 this season against ranked opponents, picking up a 54-51 win over Temple (No. 20 USAT/ESPN, No. 21 AP) on Nov. 28 at the Old Spice Classic in Orlando, a 63-62 win over Washington (No. 21 AP, No. 22 USAT/ESPN) on Dec. 11 at Reed Arena, a 91-89 home victory over Missouri (No. 12 USAT/ESPN, No. 15 AP) on Jan. 15, and a 64-56 defeat of Kansas State (No. 24 USAT/ESPN) on Jan. 22 ... the Aggies' only losses have come to Texas.
• Texas A&M has the second most ranked wins (4) in the Big 12, behind Texas (6) ... only Texas (8) and Kansas State (7) have played more ranked teams than the Aggies (6).
• The four wins against ranked opponents ties for the second-most in school history and is one shy of the all-time record, held by the 1978-79 team (5) ... both last year's squad and the 2006-07 Sweet 16 team had 4 wins vs ranked foes.
MOST TOP-25 WINS, SCHOOL HISTORY
Season Wins Teams (ranking)
1. 1978-79 5 Indiana (10), UNLV (15), USF (19), Kentucky (11), Arkansas (11)
2. 2010-11 4 Temple (20), Washington (21), Missouri (12), K-State (24)
2009-10 4 Clemson (19), Minnesota (16), Baylor (20), Texas (21)
2006-07 4 Oklahoma St (12), Kansas (6), Texas (25), Louisville (16)
5. 2005-06 3 Colorado (25), Texas (6), Syracuse (21)
Senior Watch
• A&M's senior class needs 9 more wins to become the winningest class in school history ... it is just the fourth class in school history to total at least 90 victories ... the Class of 2011 is 92-36 (.719) entering Wednesday's game against Iowa State, trailing only the 2010 (100-38, .725), 2009 (98-37, .726) and 2008 (95-37, .720) classes in the record books.
• An NCAA bid would make the 2011 seniors just the third class in school history to advance to four NCAA Tournaments, joining those from the Classes of 2009 and 2010.
Balancing Act
• The loss of A&M's top three scorers from last year (Donald Sloan, Derrick Roland, Bryan Davis) appeared to be a challenge that would have to be met by a "team" effort, and so far that's been the case ... the Aggies have four players averaging about 10 points per game or more in Khris Middleton (14.9), David Loubeau (11.0), B.J. Holmes (9.9) and Nathan Walkup (9.9).
• A total of 9 players have combined for 70 double-figure outings (Middleton 19, Holmes 13, Walkup 12, Loubeau 11, Hibbert 6, Roberson 6, Turner 1, Harris 1, Lewis 1) through 23 games.
Emerging Big 12 Power
• The Aggies won 4 of their first 5 Big 12 games, matching the 2006-07 team for the best Big 12 start in school history.
• Texas A&M matched its best-ever finish in Big 12 play last season, tying for second place with an 11-5 record ... it was the Aggies' second-best record in league history, trailing only the 2006-07 squad (13-3) ... A&M was 7-1 at home and 4-4 on the road in conference tilts in 2010.
• The Aggies have won 45 Big 12 games since the start of the 2007 league season ... prior to that, A&M had totaled only 43 victories in the first 10 years of Big 12 play.
• With a win at Oklahoma on Jan. 8, Texas A&M has now won 4 of its last 5 Big 12 openers after going winless in its first 10 tries.
Hot Start
• Texas A&M matched the best 20-game start in school history with a 17-3 record to open the year.
BEST 20-GAME STARTS, SCHOOL HISTORY
Season 20-Gm Record Final Record Postseason
1. 2010-11 17-3 ?? ??
2006-07 17-3 27-7 NCAA Sweet 16
1959-60 17-3 19-5 —
4. 2007-08 16-4 25-11 NCAA 2nd Round
1978-79 16-4 24-9 NIT Final 6
1975-76 16-4 21-6 —
7. 2008-09 15-5 24-10 NCAA 2nd Round
2004-05 15-5 21-10 NIT Quarterfinals
1979-80 15-5 26-8 NCAA Sweet 16
• Mark Turgeon's other A&M teams were 16-4 (2007-08), 16-4 (2008-09) and 14-6 (2009-10) through 20 games.
• Of note, the 1919-20 team had the best start (and finish) in school history, completing the year a perfect 19-0.
Thirteen in a Row
• Texas A&M rattled off 13 straight wins over just under a two-month span from Nov. 26-Jan. 15 ... the 13-game streak was the longest in 91 years and the third-longest in school history, and included wins over then No. 12 Missouri, then No. 20 Temple, then No. 21 Washington and against Arkansas on a neutral court in Dallas.
LONGEST WIN STREAKS, TEXAS A&M HISTORY
Year(s) Wins
1. 1919-21* 25
2. 1914-16* 20
3. 2010-11 13
4. 2004-05 11
1921-22 11
* spanned two seasons
• The 13-game win streak was A&M's longest since the school-record 25-game streak which spanned the 1919-20 and 1920-21 seasons ... it also was the longest in Mark Turgeon's coaching career, as his 2006-07 Wichita State team won its first 11 games of the season ... it was the third time a Turgeon-coached A&M team has won at least eight straight games (13 games, 2010-11; 10 games, 2008-09; 8 games, 2007-08).
• Over the 13-game win streak, Aggie foes averaged just under 55 points per game and were out-rebounded by a margin of 10.4 boards ... a closer look at the numbers:
WIN STREAK STATS
Category
A&M Points/Game 72.2
Opponent Points/Game 57.4
Margin of Victory +14.8
Opponent FG Pct. .386
Opponent 3-Pt FG Pct. .286
Rebound Margin +10.4
Opp. Combined Record (as of 1/17) 127-88 (.591)
• Every Aggie opponent on the 13-game streak was held under its season average (not counting overtime periods) ... in addition, only two teams on the streak shot better than their season average (Missouri and Pacific).
• In the last 3 minutes of games on the win streak, the Aggie defense held foes to 24.2 percent (16-of-66) from the field.
Cracking the Top 10
• Texas A&M earned its first top-10 ranking in over three years this month, checking in at No. 10 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll (Jan. 17) ... the last time the Aggies sat in the national top 10 was on Nov. 26, 2007, when they were ranked ninth in both major polls.
• It also marked just the fifth time in school history that a Texas A&M team has broken the top 10 in a season, joining the 1959-60, 2006-07 and 2007-08 squads ... A&M's school-record ranking in the polls is No. 6, set in the 2006-07 season.
Up Next
• Texas A&M will then play 3 of their final 5 regular-season games on the road, beginning on Saturday at Oklahoma State (8 p.m., ESPNU) ... the Aggies have two home games remaining, Feb. 23 vs Oklahoma and March 5 vs Texas Tech.
LAST TIME OUT: (#22) Texas A&M 70, Texas Tech 67
LUBBOCK (Feb. 12)—Mark Turgeon knew his team was tired after playing three games in 10 days, so he was grateful for the fortitude shown by No. 22 Texas A&M as it gutted out a 70-67 win over Texas Tech on Saturday. Khris Middleton scored 16 points to lead the Aggies, who overcame a 10-point deficit in the first half to hand the Red Raiders their third straight loss. D'wayln Roberts made a layup to pull Texas Tech within 68-67 with less than 15 seconds left. B.J. Holmes hit two free throws to give the Aggies a 70-67 lead and 3-point tries by Brad Reese and John Roberson missed their mark. The Aggies outrebounded Texas Tech 34-27 and got nearly half their points inside. Holmes added 14 points for A&M (19-5, 6-4). Reese scored 18 points to lead Texas Tech (11-14, 3-7). Texas A&M had lost four of its last five games before pulling out a win in overtime at Colorado on Wednesday. The Aggies scored seven straight points to start the second half, going up 46-37. Texas Tech came back with 9-2 run, including four points by Reese, a basket by Jaye Crockett and a 3-pointer by David Tairu to pull within 48-46. The Red Raiders regained the lead, which they relinquished late in the first half, on a layup and a free throw by Roberts to go up 50-48. Middleton tied it at 54 on a layup and put them ahead on a jumper on their next possession to give the Aggies a 56-54 lead with just under 10 minutes remaining. Texas Tech pulled ahead 65-63 with 3:33 remaining when Roberson hit a 3, but a few minutes later he had the ball stolen by Dash Harris who got the basket to make it 67-65 and put the Aggies up for good. Mike Singletary, the Red Raiders' leading scorer, played just 4 minutes because of a calf problem that Knight said he didn't know about before the game. The Aggies led 39-37 at halftime.
Texas A&M Head Coach Mark Turgeon: "I was really proud of our guys today. I thought we had a really tough week, we lost three straight and then come and play on Saturday and I was concerned about our energy level. We were going to need a great bench today and we did. Tech played great made a lot of tough shots, played with great toughness, and neither team could make a free-throw down the stretch. I thought D'walyn Roberts was great rebounding, and Crockett really helped them. We just went to David (Loubeau) and he tied the game for us. If we could've made some free throws, it would've really helped us out, and it wouldn't have been so close. However, we didn't. We've been in the same position the last two weeks with nine seconds to go and up by three. But it showed great toughness by our guys because we got off to a weak start and willed ourselves back in it. Texas Tech has been playing hard. You have to throw the Texas games out the window because Texas is so good right now, and Kansas came in and got them, but they are 3-3 on the rest of us, and every film I've watch they've played better and played harder. You can see the effort in the seniors. I knew this was going to be a tough game. I knew we were going to have to play well to beat them and we did. There is a lot of fight in that Tech team and when you play Texas twice and Kansas early that's hard. It hurts your confidence when you play good teams like that."
Postgame Notes: Texas Tech
• Mark Turgeon won his 92nd game as head coach at Texas A&M, tying him with Bob Rogers (92 wins in 6 seasons) as the second-winningest coach in school history ... Turgeon is 92-36 in his fourth year in Aggieland.
• Texas A&M improved to 7-3 away from Reed Arena this year.
• With 14 points vs Texas Tech, BJ Holmes recorded his 14th double-figure scoring game of the season and fourth in a row ... it is the first time in Holmes' career he's hit 10-plus points four straight times.
• Khris Middleton (16 points) recorded his team-high 20th double-figure scoring game of the year ... Middleton has scored in double figures in 24 of the last 29 games.
• Nathan Walkup recorded his third double-double of the season (11 pts, 13 reb) and third of his career ... Walkup's 13 boards were a career high and the most by an Aggie player this year.
• Texas A&M has now won 3 straight against Texas Tech and 3 straight at United Spirit Arena ... the Aggies have won 9 of the last 13 against the Red Raiders.
• Texas A&M was up 1 with 5 minutes to play ... A&M is 15-0 this year when holding the lead with 5 to play.
• Tech shot 46.5 percent on the day, making A&M 18-2 this year (83-21 under Turgeon) when holding teams to under 50 percent shooting.
TEAM NOTES
Looking for Six
• A&M has made five straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Prior to this streak, A&M had never played in consecutive NCAA Tournaments and had not been to the NCAAs since 1987. Five of A&M's 11 NCAA appearances, and 6 of its 9 NCAA wins, have come since 2006.
• A&M is one of just 12 schools that have made the NCAA Tournament in each of the last five seasons.
• A&M and Pittsburgh are the only schools in the country to win an NCAA tournament game in each of the last five years.
• A&M is one of just three schools to have won a postseason game in each of the last six years (5 NCAAs/1 NIT, joining North Carolina (5 NCAAs/1 NIT) and Memphis (4 NCAAs/2 NITs).
• A&M has posted six straight 20-win seasons. Before the 2004-05 season, A&M had only six 20-win seasons in its history.
• Texas A&M went 24-10 last season, tying for second in the Big 12 with an 11-5 mark. A&M earned the No. 5 seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament, falling in overtime to No. 4-seed Purdue, 63-61, in the second round in Spokane, Washington.
• A&M, Kansas and Texas are the only Big 12 schools that have won at least 20 games in each of the last six seasons.
TURGEON QUOTEBOARD (2/14 press conference)
Can you talk about last week and the two road wins?
• "Well we talked about it last week, that it was a chance to show who we really are as individuals and as a team. It's not how many times you get knocked down, it's how many times you get back up. And we talked a lot about that. With that said, there was a little bit of luck to win at Colorado too. We played well at Colorado though. That 7-point play about did us in there, but we overcame it. I think it gave us confidence going in to Texas Tech. That was a hard week, with two road games, and to get home late and go to class the next day and then travel Friday to play an early game Saturday. That was a tough stretch for us. I was really proud of our toughness, our will, just to get it done. I thought Tech played really well, they showed a lot of fight. It was a good week for us."
Compare BJ's shot at Colorado to Josh Carter's 3 pointer at Nebraska two years ago...
• "Well, we were fighting for our NCAA life I guess more so when Josh made his shot. But I think BJ's hopefully will have the same impact on this team that Josh's jump shot did at Nebraska. It was just really good execution by our guys. I don't think there's any question it's given us a lot of confidence and given us a chance to hopefully have a pretty good season."
Talk about Nate's play over the last few weeks…
• "You look at our seniors that played Saturday, Darko and Nate and BJ, they all had really good games. (They see the) Light at the end of the tunnel, (they) know it's about over. They all three are playing with great confidence. Nate does a tremendous job on the boards and a tremendous job defensively. He's making some 3s for us. He's really helping us. I just think his rebounding effort for those two buckets in the second half was just huge. It just comes down to wanting it more sometimes, and I think Nate just wanted it more than the other team a couple of times. I'm happy for him. The kid's worked hard. I think there are even better days ahead for Nate. I think he can play better. I don't think he can play with any more effort, but I think he can play better. And hopefully he will down the stretch."
On going to David Loubeau late in the Texas Tech game and his play of late…
• "I think he had five points in the Texas Tech game when I went to him (late). We went to him and he made plays. We all have confidence in David down there on the block. We were down two, and he was in foul trouble Saturday, and he made back-to-back plays. He made three or four plays against Colorado down the stretch. The big thing was he scored over the double team in one of the baskets against Texas Tech, which is a step in the right direction. We've been working on that with him. We have a lot of confidence in him, and a lot of confidence in Khris, in BJ, in Nate. We have confidence in Naji, if he's in the game late, that he's going to make a play. So there are a lot of guys that we have confidence in. But David made some really big ones."
• "I'm more proud of David with his defense and his rebounding. I thought his defense in the last two games was as good as it's been in a while, and he played with as much intelligence as he has in a while. That's what's encouraging. He knew he was struggling to help us offensively so he stepped up to help us in those areas. I never lose confidence in my guys and in what they can do and how they're going to help us. I'm not going to quit going to David. He's done it for three years now and he's made some big shots. We're executing at a better level now and that's helping David. We're screening better, we're shooting the ball better from the outside here lately. Hopefully we can keep doing that and that opens things up for David."
You were down 18-8 early at Texas Tech, and down early at Colorado, and then came back of course. What do you feel like y'all need to do to start faster?
• "Well, we didn't have any energy. I thought were playing well at Colorado, Colorado just made some tough shots and we missed some wide open ones. The Tech game, we just had no energy. That's why I subbed early. We were out of it. I was just begging them over there to play harder, to try harder. Then the switch came on and we got right back in it pretty quickly. Guys, we are who we are. We're 73 practices in, and I don't know how many games we've played-a lot-and we are who we are. I'd love to say we're going to start games 10 to 0 and we're going to be the best team in the country, but we are who we are and we're making the most of it."
Was last week's two wins just you guys playing better basketball or something else?
• "No, we played better. I thought we played really well at Colorado. Colorado played well. We were more committed…we all felt like we had our backs against the wall and we played that way. Hopefully we'll continue to play that way. But we played better last week, we really did. We didn't play well at home in those last two games. I just think we played with a little more toughness, a little more fight, last week."
When you got on the plane to Colorado, did you feel things were about to turn around?
• "Well, since we lost to Texas the second time we've really practiced well. It's not like it's a light switch for us. For some teams it is, and some teams it's not. It's not for us. But we've practiced well. We didn't start the game well against Baylor but we really played well after that. 4-4 is not the end of the world in today's BCS basketball. It's hard. To this point I think this team's doing really well. It's amazing where we are, guys. Are you kidding? In the first couple of weeks of practice, I wasn't sure if we could win a game. We're getting really good leadership now, because we've been humbled. And they're a lot easier to coach today than they were two weeks ago, which helps me. I think the guys are doing great. We'll see what happens in the next six games in the league, but hopefully they'll continue to do great. We weren't picked to win it but we're fighting, we're up there. We'll just keep plugging. It's not easy for us, but you know what? I think we're playing well. So it should be interesting. But us playing well doesn't mean we're going to roll over somebody. It means we're going to have a chance to win the game."
You said the older guys are understanding the position the team is in. Is that something that's running through the team to the younger guys?
• "Yeah. Oh yeah. It's spreading. It's spreading quick. Like I said, we made two mistakes late in the Tech game and I didn't have to say a word to the guys. The players were all over it. They know. Sometimes the young guys think, 'Well, I'll have next year or the year after that.' No, no. It's 'Let's take care of business now.' These younger guys will grow up pretty quick because of it. I think Keith gave us great minutes the other day and I think Kourtney gave us great minutes in both games. They're growing up. Naji's getting better. I know he's not shooting the ball well right now but he's getting better. I think there's an understanding among our young guys that we have to be deeper than we've been. And we were deeper Saturday, which helped us win the game."
Talk about the leadership shown by your upperclassmen…
• "The way Nate and BJ are playing commands respect from their teammates. Those guys are just giving it everything they have. I think Dash Harris had a great week, and he gets no credit. I know (Colorado's Alec) Burks had 24, but my gosh. Dash was all over him, especially late in the game. Dash did a tremendous job on (Texas Tech's John) Roberson. He hit two 3s and neither one of them were on Dash. I think he's playing well, he's running our team great. I think you see our four upperclassmen that start show toughness, and they're showing, 'Hey, we've been here and we know what it takes. We've got to get it done.'"
