July 29, 1998
The Texas A&M men's basketball team will play a five-game exhibition schedule August 14-25 in Germany and Holland. The Aggies begin practice for the tour on Monday at Reed Arena.
The Aggies' tour roster will include only the nine returning players from last season as newcomers will not be eligible until school starts in early September.
"The tour will allow me to see the players and get to know them better," First-year A&M coach Melvin Watkins said. "Maybe more important, it will give them a chance to get to know me and allow us to get our philosophy somewhat in place. If we can accomplish that, I won't worry too much about the wins and losses. Just the fact that we can spend some time together and get to know each other will make the trip worthwhile."
The Aggies are led by senior forward Shanne Jones, who earned second team All-Big 12 honors last season after averaging 18.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. Junior guard Steve Houston led the Big 12 in steals last season with 2.5 per game and also averaged 9.5 points and 4.4 assists. Houston was named to the Big 12 All-Defense Team.
Sophomore guard Michael Schmidt also returns after averaging 8.9 points and leading the Big 12 in three-point shooting percentage in conference play at 42.6 percent. Junior guard/forward Jerald Brown, the 1997 Big 12 Freshman of the Year, averaged 7.4 points and 4.2 rebounds last season, while sophomore Aaron Jack, who became eligible at mid-term, averaged 8.3 points and 6.5 rebounds.
Senior forward Calvin Davis and senior center Dario Quesada are scheduled to return to the team after missing most or all of last season with back injuries. An honorable mention All-Big 12 player as a sophomore, Davis missed the final 14 games last season after suffering two herniated disks in his back in the conference opener against Oklahoma State. Prior to the injury, Davis averaged 16.6 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.8 blocks and 1.6 steals per game. After starting in 45 career games the previous two years, Quesada missed the entire season with a bulging disk in his back. Quesada will accompany the team but is ineligible to play on the tour after coming off the medical redshirt year.
Other returning players are senior guard Chris Clayton, sophomore guard T.J. Brown and senior center Chris Richards. Clayton and Brown also missed much of last season with injuries. Clayton averaged 6.8 points and 1.6 three-pointers per game but suffered a broken foot and missed the final eight games. Brown averaged just 1.1 points but was earning increased playing time when he suffered a season-ending knee injury in late January. Richards averaged 4.0 points and 1.9 rebounds.
The Aggies leave for the tour on August 14 and play their first game against the Weert Basketball Club on August 16 in Eindhoven, Holland. After one game in Amsterdam, Holland, the Aggies will play three games in Cologne, Germany, before returning to the United States on August 25.