November 28, 2000
Game #4
Texas A&M Aggies
(1-2)
vs.
Morris Brown Wolverines
(2-3 going into Tuesday night's game at Arkansas-Little Rock)
Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2000
7 p.m. (CST)
Reed Arena (12,500)
College Station, Texas
Radio: Texas A&M Radio Network
Dave South, Play-by-play
Al Pulliam, Commentary
Airtime: 6:40 p.m. (CST)
www.Aggieathletics.com
Television: None
Postgame Satellite Highlights Feed
9:30-9:45 p.m. (CST)
Galaxy 4R/Transponder 22
2000-01 Schedule/Results
Record: 1-2 Overall, 0-0 Big 12
Current Streak L 1
Longest Win Streak 1
Longest Loss Streak 1
All-Time Record 1,067-1,018
11/18 at Geo. Washington L, 94-74
11/20 NORTH TEXAS W, 77-74
11/26 BIRMINGHAM-SO. [CSSE]. L, 74-54
11/29 MORRIS BROWN 7 p.m.
12/2 at Va. Commonwealth 6:30 p.m.
12/5 LAMAR [KFDM] 7 p.m.
12/9 *vs. North Carolina [Fox]. 8 p.m.
12/22 at Long Beach St. [Fox] 9:15 p.m.
12/27 %vs. St. Louis 9 p.m.
12/28 %Hawaii/Manhattan TBA
12/29 %Tenn./Detroit/Iowa/G.W. TBA
12/30 %TBA. TBA
1/4 CENTENARY 7 p.m.
1/6 KANSAS ST. 3 p.m.
1/9 at Oklahoma 7 p.m.
1/13 at Colorado 6 p.m.
1/17 TEXAS [ESPN+] 8 p.m.
1/20 at Kansas [ESPN+] 3 p.m.
1/24 at Okla. St. 7 p.m.
1/28 IOWA ST. [ESPN+] 3 p.m.
1/30 at Texas [ESPN+] 8 p.m.
2/3 OKLAHOMA [ESPN+] 12:45 p.m.
2/6 BAYLOR [Fox] 7:30 p.m.
2/10 at Texas Tech [ESPN+] 12:45 p.m.
2/14 TEXAS-PAN AMERICAN 7 p.m.
2/17 MISSOURI [ESPN+] 12:45 p.m.
2/21 OKLA. ST. [Fox] 8:30 p.m.
2/24 TEXAS TECH [Fox] 5 p.m.
2/28 at Nebraska 7:05 p.m.
3/3 at Baylor 7 p.m.
3/8-11 #Big 12 Tournament TBA
*Compaq Center (Houston, Texas)
%Rainbow Classic (Honolulu, Hawaii)
#Kemper Arena (Kansas City, Mo.)
Listed game times are Central
For complete team and individual statistics, go to
www.aggieathletics.com For mug shots and other graphics, go to
www.AggieAthletics.com/media
After dropping their home opener on Sunday, the Texas A&M Aggies (1-2)
try to rebound against the Morris Brown Wolverines (2-3) on Wednesday
at 7 p.m. (CST) at Reed Arena (12,500 cap.) in College Station. The
Aggies fell to 1-2 after losing to Birmingham Southern, 74-54, on
Sunday at Reed Arena, while Morris Brown plays Arkansas-Little Rock on
Tuesday night in Little Rock.
About the Wolverines
Morris Brown College, competing as an independent, is in its first
season of NCAA Division I basketball after participating many years in
Division II. The Wolverines return three starters and six lettermen
from last year's team, which finished 15-12 overall. MBC is led by
junior guard Anthony Adams (6-2), who is averaging 17.2 points per
game. Junior forward Kareem Allison (6-6) adds 13.0 points while
senior forward Kevon Westberry is contributing 11.2 points and 5.6
rebounds per contest. Sophomore forward Amien Hicks (6-6) leads the
team in rebounding with an impressive 9.4 average. The Wolverines have
beaten Missouri-Kansas City at home (70-62) and Alabama State on the
road (56-54), while falling in road games at West Virginia (84-72),
Pittsburgh (74-53), Weber State (87-59) and Arkansas-Little Rock
(??-??). Morris Brown is in its fourth year under coach Russell
Ellington, who is 36-54 at MBC and is 184-144 in his 13th year as a
college head coach. As a team, the Wolverines are making just 35.9
percent from the field, including 22.1 percent from three-point range,
and are averaged 62.0 points per game.
A&M vs. Morris Brown Series
Wednesday's game marks the first meeting between the schools.
Watkins' Quoteboard
"I have had losses that have bothered me, but not to the degree of the
Birmingham Southern game because of the way we lost that game. We
didn't appear to want to play at all. I know that at times you can
start off real sluggish. And it may take you five minutes, maybe seven
minutes to recover. But for 40 minutes, I have never seen that. The
Morris Brown game is a must-effort game for us. Otherwise, we haven't
accomplished anything. It should be a different basketball team on the
floor come Wednesday night than we saw in our last outing. We had
been having some bad practices and we came out and played like we've
been practicing. That's kind of the by-product of what's been going on
for a while now."
Game Promotions
Wednesday's night's game against Morris Brown is "Jersey Night."
Children ages 13 and younger wearing any team jersey will be admitted
for $2. In addition, free schedule posters will be given to the first
1,000 fans at Reed Arena.
Tentative Starters
TEXAS A&M AGGIES (1-2)
No. Player Pos. Ht. Cl. PPG RPG
4 Jamaal Gilchrist G 6-0 So. 10.0 3.0a
32 Bernard King G 6-5 So. 12.0 4.3a
24 Carlton Brown F 6-6 Sr. 14.0 5.3
5 Nick Anderson F 6-6 Fr. 5.7 6.0
2 Keith Bean F 6-8 So. 6.0 4.0
MORRIS BROWN WOLVERINES (2-3)
No. Player Pos. Ht. Cl. PPG RPG
10 Kavon Westberry G 6-2 Sr. 11.2 5.6
20 Anthony Adams G 6-2 Jr. 17.2 3.4
23 Herbert Holmes F 6-4 Sr. 5.8 3.0
42 Amien Hicks F 6-6 So. 7.6 9.4
00 Kareem Allison F 6-6 Jr. 13.0 4.8
Head Coaches
TEXAS A&M:
Melvin Watkins (UNC Charlotte ee77)
*21-37 in third year at A&M
*63-57 in fifth year as a head coach
BIRMINGHAM SOUTHERN:
Russell Ellington (Morris Brown ee60)
*36-52 in fourth year at Morris Brown
*184-143 in 132th year as a head coach
Birmingham Southern Recap
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) u Joe Ransom scored 17 points and had nine
rebounds, leading Birmingham-Southern to a 74-54 win over Texas A&M on
Sunday. Ransom shot 7-of-12 from the field, including three
3-pointers. Neal Broome had 16 points, and Rashard Willie added 12 for
Birmingham-Southern (1-3). Andy Leatherman led Texas A&M (1-2) with 16
points. Carlton Brown was the only other Aggie in double figures with
13. After leading by three at halftime, Texas A&M was outscored 49-26
in the second half, when the Aggies shot 22.2 percent from the field.
Texas A&M shot 28.9 percent for the game, while the Panthers shot 51.9
percent, including 68 percent in the second half.
Problem Areas
Through three games, A&M is averaging 22.0 turnovers and 24.0 fouls
per game. Meanwhile, the Aggies are forcing just 14.0 turnovers. The
Aggies were making 50.5 percent from the field after two games, but
against Birmingham Southern on Sunday, A&M made a dismal 28.9 percent,
the seventh worst game in school history and the worst since 1993. In
the second half, A&M made just 22.2 percent to 68.0 percent by BSC.
Early Practice
As a result of the team's poor performance on Sunday, coach Melvin
Watkins called a 5:30 a.m. practice on Monday. The entire team showed
up, but rather than practice, spent two hours watching and dissecting
the game film. MELVIN WATKINS: "Everybody showed up and listened to
what I had to say. It was kind of what you might call gut-check time.
That's the good part of it. Actually, it was just one of those
in-house meetings where we watched tape and just aired out a lot of
things. We've got some things going on with the team. And I'm not
going to get into all that, but we've got some problems we're trying
to rectify right now. I got a very good sense that they [the players]
were receptive, but as I have always said, talk is cheap. Now, we need
to see some things played out into the practice environment and then,
of course, out onto the playing floor. Some good things were said from
some of the right types of people. I will say that. But, there again,
it's talk. We have to show it on the court."
Slocum Out
Sophomore center Andy Slocum, who started in 14 games as a freshman,
will likely miss the entire season after undergoing arthroscopic
surgery for tendonitis in his left shoulder last week. Slocum injured
the shoulder while lifting weights last summer and was limited in fall
practice as a result. Team trainer Mike Ricke says the prognosis is
good for Slocum's eventual return. Coach Melvin Watkins said Slocum
likely will redshirt this season. As a freshman, Slocum averaged 4.9
points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
Ress May Return
Sophomore forward Tomas Ress, who was hospitalized for more than a
week in late October with a staph infection, may return to practice
this week and could see limited action, depending on his physical
conditioning. As a freshman, Ress started in 12 games and averaged 4.6
points, including a career-high 22 points against Missouri.
Leatherman Gets Hot
Junior guard Andy Leatherman, a former walk-on who was put on
scholarship this season, scored a career-high 16 points against
Birmingham Southern, including a career high four three-point field
goals. For the season. Leatherman is averaging 5.7 points and 2.3
assists per game.
Anderson Off to Strong Start
Freshman Nick Anderson, one of the most heralded Texas A&M basketball
recruits in many years, leads the team in rebounding with a 6.0
average and also leads in blocked shots with a 1.7 average. A 2000
Parade High School All-American, Anderson is averaging 5.7 points per
game and has started in all three games. Against North Texas, Anderson
scored 11 points with eight rebounds and three blocked shots in a
team-high 31 minutes of action. Anderson was the preseason choice for
Big 12 Freshman of the Year by the league's coaches and media.
King Rises Again
Sophomore guard Bernard King, the 2000 Big 12 Freshman of the Year and
a preseason All-Big 12 selection, ranks second on the team after two
games with a 12.0 scoring average. Against North Texas, King scored 17
points with six rebounds. King did not start against North Texas, the
first time in 30 career games at A&M that he has missed a start. The
decision by coach Melvin Watkins not to start King was a disciplinary
action after King received a technical foul in the opener against
George Washington. King scored just five points, equaling the lowest
of his career, and went 0-of-10 from three-point range against
Birmingham Southern.
Brown Off to Blazing Start
Forward Carlton Brown is off to a solid senior season, leading the
team in scoring (14.0) and ranking third in rebounding (5.3). He also
leads the team in field goal percentage (.682) and free throw
percentage (.857). As a junior college transfer last season, Brown
averaged just 6.9 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. He scored a
team-high 15 points in the opener against George Washington and
followed with 14 against North Texas and 13 against Birmingham
Southern.
Jack Comes Back
After receiving an additional year of eligibility from the NCAA last
spring, senior forward Aaron Jack, an honorable mention All-Big 12
pick last season, saw his extra year jeopardized when he sustained a
concussion in practice on Oct. 18. Jack suffered three concussions as
a freshman at Penn State in 1995-96, then transferred to A&M. Jack
returned to practice on a limited basis in early November, then
returned full time the day before the opener at George Washington. He
has played in all three games, averaging 6.3 points and 5.7 rebounds
while making 61.5 percent from the field. He scored eight points with
six boards in the win against North Texas.
Gilchrist Runs the Show
Sophomore point guard Jamaal Gilchrist, who started all 28 games last
season as a true freshman, is averaging 10.0 points and 3.3 assists
while making 70.0 percent from the field (7-10). Gilchrist scored 12
points in each of the first two games, but scored just six in the loss
to BSC.
Bean Has Tough Start
Sophomore Keith Bean, a transfer from North Carolina State who sat out
last season, has started the first three games, but has averaged just
6.0 points and 4.0 rebounds. Bean averaged a team-high 18.5 points in
the two exhibition games.