November 21, 2005
After opening the season with a 44-point win on Sunday, Texas A&M plays host to the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Reed Arena.
The Aggies are 1-0 after an 88-44 victory against Southern. The Delta Devils have been idle since a 94-40 loss to UC Irvine on Nov. 11 at the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic in Wake Forest, N.C. Irvine went on to upset No. 13 Stanford (79-63) on Saturday. MVSU opened the year with a 78-64 loss at No. 18 Wake Forest on Nov. 10.
Tickets are available for $17 (mezzanine), $15 (balcony) and $6 (gallery) and can be purchased at the Reed Arena Box Office or online at www.12thManFoundation.com.
Junior Acie Law led the Aggies in the opener with 18 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, while junior Eddie Smith also had a strong debut with 15 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. Junior Marlon Pompey tied his career high with 12 points, making 10-of-11 from the free throw line.
A&M tied a school record with 13 three-point field goals, including three each by Law, Smith and sophomores Dominique Kirk and Kenneth White.
Sophomore Joseph Jones had early foul trouble and played just 15 minutes, finishing with 7 points and only 1 rebound, but added a career-high 6 steals.
"Our execution was not great, but our transition defense was fantastic," Coach Billy Gillispie said. "Southern was hard to guard and we did not guard the ball well. It's fun to win and that gave us something to build upon. We are way ahead of where we were a year ago, but we are still not there yet.
"I want us to dominate the ball handler, allow no touches in the post, and help if we do allow them to catch the ball there," Gillispie said. "I want us to contest every shot and I want us to have no fouls. I want a perfect team that plays a perfectly-executed game."
Members of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, the Delta Devils are in their first season under Coach James Green, who was head coach at Southern Mississippi for eight years. Green served as an assistant coach at A&M for two seasons from 1990-92.
Picked to finish third in the SWAC in the preseason coaches poll, Mississippi Valley is led by 7-foot senior center Ronald Alexander, a preseason first-team All-SWAC pick who also was tabbed as the league's defensive player of the year. Alexander did not played in the first two games for unknown reasons.
Junior forward Richard Cannon (6-4) is averaging 14.5 points and scored 19 against Wake Forest, making 9-of-12 shots from the field. Sophomore guard Stanford Speech (6-3) is adding 11.0 points and has scored in double figures in both games.
A&M is 18-3 at home since the arrival of Gillispie prior to last season. The Aggies have won 14 straight regular-season non-conference games, including 13 straight at home.
A&M is 24-1 against SWAC teams, including a 1-0 record against MVSU. The Aggies posted a 65-56 win against the Delta Devils at the 2002 Las Vegas Classic.
The Aggies continue a busy opening week on Saturday, when they play Tulane in the ?Hurricane Katrina Relief? game at 7 p.m. at Reed Arena. Proceeds from the game will benefit the Tulane Athletic Department.