No. 7 Aggies gear up for No. 10 Penn State and its dynamic backcourt

DES MOINES, Iowa (KBTX) - Texas A&M men’s basketball is in Des Moines for the Midwest region of the NCAA Tournament. On Wednesday, they held open practice and interview sessions at Wells Fargo Arena.

The Aggies and Nittany Lions have met four times before with A&M winning all of those matchups. The last time came in 2017, a 98-87 win for the Maroon and White. The Aggies know this 7-10 matchup with Penn State won’t be easy. The Nittany Lions are also hungry for postseason success, making their first NCAA tournament appearance since 2011.

While the Aggies finished the season as one of the hottest teams in the SEC, Penn State comes in having won eight of its last ten games. They’re led by one of the highest-scoring guard duos in the nation, Jalen Pickett and Seth Lundy. But A&M is up for the challenge.

”They’ve got to guard us,” A&M guard Andre Gordon smiled. “We’ve got a pretty good backcourt that’s what they should be worrying about and just playing aggressively and playing our game. Do your role. Don’t try to play outside of your role. Don’t do too much. Shoot predictable shots, rebound the ball, and a lot of effort. That’s all it is,” Gordon added.

“Being disciplined,” A&M guard Manny Obaseki said on what they need to do to win. “Ultra-disciplined. Both on offense and defense. Taking care of the ball. Not leaving shooters open not taking ourselves out of the play for anything. Not gambling. We just have to be mature in every possession. I think that’s the rep we’ve been taking since the beginning of the season to get to this point. I think it’s going to show tomorrow,” Obaseki added.

Tip-off between the Aggies and Nittany Lions is set for 8:55 p.m. Thursday on TBS.

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