December 27, 2006
The 11th-ranked Texas A&M men's basketball team goes for its 15th straight home victory on Thursday when it plays host to the Grambling Tigers at 4 p.m. at Reed Arena.
GAME#13
#11 TEXAS A&M AGGIES
(10-2, 0-0 Big 12 Conference)
vs.
GRAMBLING TIGERS
(2-4, 0-0 Southwestern Athletic Conference)
Thursday, Dec. 28, 2006
4 p.m. (Central)
College Station, Texas
Reed Arena (12,500 cap.)
TELEVISION
Aggie All-Access (www.AggieAthletics.com)
Postgame Satellite Highlights Feed:
9:45-10 p.m.
Galaxy 3, Transponder 9 (C-Band)
RADIO
Texas A&M Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Tom Turbiville
Analyst: Al Pulliam
Sirius Satellite Radio: n/a
SERIES
A&M leads, 3-0
In College Station: A&M leads, 3-0
at Reed Arena: A&M leads, 3-0
Last Meeting: A&M 101, Auburn 71 (2005-06 in College Station)
MEDIA RELATIONS CONTACTS
Grambling: Ryan McGinty
318-274-6562 (office)
Texas A&M: Colin Killian
979-229-4706 (cell)
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 10-2 (0-0 Big 12)
Ranking: 11th (AP), 12th (USA Today/ESPN)
Last Game: Won at Auburn, 87-58, last Friday
Head Coach: Billy Gillispie (Texas State ?'83)
Record: 83-53 (5th year)
at Texas A&M: 53-21 (3rd year)
vs. Grambling: 2-0
PROJECTED AGGIES STARTERS
No. Player Ht. Wt. Cl-Ex PPG RPG APG
1 Acie Law IV 6?â„¢3? 195 Sr-1L 14.8 2.8 4.9
22 Dominique Kirk 6?â„¢3? 180 Jr-2L 7.0 3.9 3.5
23 Josh Carter 6?â„¢7? 195 So-1L 11.9 2.9 2.8
30 Joseph Jones 6?â„¢9? 250 Jr-2L 13.5 5.6 .596 FG
44 Antanas Kavaliauskas 6?â„¢?10? 250 Sr-1L 12.7 5.6 .629 FG
GRAMBLING TIGERS
Record: 2-4 (0-0 Southwestern Athletic Conference)
Ranking: UR
Last Game: Beat Jarvis Christian, 68-64, at home on Dec. 18
Head Coach: Larry Wright (Grambling ?'82)
Record: 71-131 (8th year)
at Grambling: 71-131 (8th year)
vs. Texas A&M: 0-1
PROJECTED TIGERS STARTERS
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl-Ex PPG RPG APG
1 Andre Ratliff G 5?â„¢10? 175 Junior 14.0 2.3 3.8
32 Kendric Baker G 6?â„¢2? 175 Frosh 10.2 3.3 1.2
23 Andrew Prestley F 6?â„¢5? 190 Frosh 8.8 3.3 0.5
20 Anthony Williams F 6?â„¢7? 207 Senior 9.5 7.5 1.5
42 Jamal Breaux C 6?â„¢7? 250 Soph. 7.8 5.7 0.8
Tale of the Tape
(2006-07 stat comparison)
A&M GSU
Record 10-2 2-4
Conference 0-0 0-0
Sagarin Rating 17 294
AP / USA Today-ESPN 11 / 12 UR / UR
Current Streak W3 W1
Field Goal Pct. .524 .363
Opponent FG Pct. .342 .430
3-Pt. Field Goal Pct. .402 .283
Opponent 3-Pt. Pct. .257 .360
3-Pt. Field Goal Avg. 6.3 4.3
3-Pt. FG Attempts Avg. 15.8 15.3
Free Throw Pct. .737 .661
Opponent FT Pct. .676 .557
Rebound Avg. 35.3 40.0
Offensive Reb. Avg. 10.3 15.5
Rebounding Margin +4.3 -1.7
Turnovers Avg. 14.1 20.2
Opp. Turnovers Avg. 17.3 18.3
Assists Avg. 20.8 9.2
Blocks Avg. 3.4 3.2
Steals Avg. 7.9 6.2
Scoring Avg. 77.0 60.3
Opponent Scoring 54.0 74.0
Scoring Margin +23.0 -13.7
Key Game Notes
*A&M has won three straight and is coming off an 87-58 win at Auburn last Friday.
*Grambling has been idle since a 68-64 win against Jarvis Christian at home on Dec. 18.
*A&M is 9-0 at home this season, while Grambling is 0-4 on the road.
*A&M has won 14 straight home games, the 12th longest streak in the country and the second longest in the Big 12 (Texas has won 17 straight at home).
*A&M has won 31 straight regular-season non-conference home games.
*A&M beat GSU, 101-71, last year in College Station.
About Grambling
*The Tigers went 14-13 last year and placed second in the Southwestern Athletic Conference at 11-7.
*Auburn has no seniors on its roster and its projected starting lineup includes four sophomores.
*The Tigers are in their eighth year under Coach Larry Wright.
*Grambling is led by junior guard Andre Ratliff (5?â„¢10?), a second-team All-SWAC pick who is averaging 14.0 points and 3.8 assists per game. Ratliff is makinh 44.8 percent (13-29) from three-point range.
*Freshman guard Kendric Baker (6?â„¢2?) also averaging in double figures at 10.2 per game, while senior forward Anthony Williams (6?â„¢7?) adds 9.5 points and a team-best 7.5 rebounds.
Sidebars
*Grambling has one Texas native on its roster: Freshman guard Charles Harper (San Antonio/Madison HS).
Series Notes
*A&M leads the series, 3-0, and is playing host to Grambling for the fourth straight year.
*The Aggies have averaged 100.3 points in the first three meetings against the Tigers.
*The teams had never played prior to Grambling?â„¢s first visit to Reed Arena in 2003-04.
*A&M is 28-1 all-time against teams from the SWAC and has won 14 straight.
Auburn Recap
AUBURN, Ala. (AP, Dec. 22, 2006) -- With 21 points and four assists, Acie Law IV helped No. 13 Texas A&M to a crushing 87-58 win over Auburn Friday night. The lead changed hands five times in the first few minutes, but the Aggies took the lead with 18:20 left in the first half and never gave it up again, shooting 57.1 percent from the floor. Aside from Law, the game?â„¢s top scorer, Texas A&M had four other double digit scorers. Josh Carter had 12 points, Marlon Pompey had 11 and Dominique Kirk and Donald Sloan chipped in with 10 points each. The Tigers shot only 33.3 percent from the floor. Quan Prowell led the Tigers with 20 points. Josh Dollard was the only other Auburn player to hit double digits, with 12 points and seven rebounds.
Official Basketball Box Score
Texas A&M vs Auburn
12-22-06 7:00 pm at Auburn, AL
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VISITORS: Texas A&M
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
23 CARTER, Josh........ f 4-8 4-6 0-0 0 2 2 1 12 3 2 0 1 34
30 JONES, Joseph....... f 2-4 0-0 2-2 1 2 3 4 6 1 1 0 0 12
44 KAVALIAUSKAS,Antanas f 3-7 0-0 2-4 3 2 5 2 8 2 3 0 0 25
01 LAW, Acie........... g 8-13 0-1 5-7 0 4 4 3 21 4 3 0 2 31
22 KIRK, Dominique..... g 4-8 2-4 0-0 1 6 7 1 10 3 2 0 4 29
03 ROLAND, Derrick..... 0-0 0-0 2-2 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 4
05 GRAHAM, Bryson...... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
15 SLOAN, Donald....... 5-7 0-1 0-0 2 3 5 2 10 1 1 0 1 16
20 LEE, Logan.......... 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
31 CHAPMAN, Chris...... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
32 MUHLBACH, Beau...... 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
34 DAVIS, Bryan........ 0-0 0-0 1-4 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 2
40 WEISHUHN, Slade..... 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
41 ELONU, Chinemelu.... 3-3 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 2 6 0 0 1 0 15
42 POMPEY, Marlon...... 3-3 0-0 5-8 4 2 6 4 11 2 2 0 0 25
TEAM................ 2 2 4
Totals.............. 32-56 6-13 17-27 16 24 40 21 87 16 15 1 9 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 17-31 54.8% 2nd Half: 15-25 60.0% Game: 57.1% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 3-8 37.5% 2nd Half: 3-5 60.0% Game: 46.2% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 6-8 75.0% 2nd Half: 11-19 57.9% Game: 63.0% 3
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HOME TEAM: Auburn
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
03 Dollard, Josh....... f 5-13 0-6 2-2 3 4 7 2 12 0 2 1 0 23
32 Barber, Korvotney... f 1-2 0-0 6-12 4 0 4 5 8 1 3 0 1 26
01 Tolbert, Frank...... g 2-6 0-3 1-2 4 3 7 3 5 1 3 0 3 23
21 Barrett, Rasheem.... g 2-7 0-4 1-2 2 0 2 2 5 2 1 0 0 30
23 Robertson, Quantez.. g 0-3 0-3 0-0 1 2 3 5 0 6 2 0 0 25
02 Miaway, Archie...... 2-4 2-4 0-2 0 0 0 0 6 0 1 0 3 14
04 Hargrove, Lucas..... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2
05 Lewis, Kelvin....... 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 12
12 Reed, DeWayne....... 0-6 0-3 2-2 0 0 0 1 2 1 1 0 0 14
13 Heramb, Matt........ 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
24 Prowell, Quan....... 7-14 4-8 2-2 3 3 6 4 20 1 1 0 2 30
TEAM................ 1 2 3
Totals.............. 19-57 6-32 14-24 18 15 33 22 58 13 16 1 9 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 9-30 30.0% 2nd Half: 10-27 37.0% Game: 33.3% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 2-17 11.8% 2nd Half: 4-15 26.7% Game: 18.8% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 3-4 75.0% 2nd Half: 11-20 55.0% Game: 58.3% 6
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Officials: Doug Shows, Mike Thibodeaux, J.B. Caldwell
Technical fouls: Texas A&M-None. Auburn-None.
Attendance: 6781
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
Texas A&M..................... 43 44 - 87
Auburn........................ 23 35 - 58
Last Year vs. Grambling
COLLEGE STATION (AP, Dec. 20, 2005) -- Josh Carter scored 20 points and Martellus Bennett added another 18 to help lead Texas A&M to a 101-71 victory over Grambling State. A&M earned the win without the help of its two top scorers, Joseph Jones and Acie Law. Jones left early in the first half with an ankle injury, while Law left the game early in the second half with a concussion. Grambling State used a strong full-court press early in the first half to jump out to a quick 9-7 lead. It didn?â„¢t take A&M long to adjust however, going on a 16-4 run, while the Grambling State offense went on a seven-minute drought without a field goal. Grambling State?â„¢s offense sparked before the half, led by Brion Rush, to pull the team within 10 points. Rush finished with 28 points and four rebounds. Grambling State kept pace with A&M in the second half, but was never able to come any closer than nine points, which came midway through the second half on four consecutive three-pointers by Grambling State?â„¢s Andre Ratliff. Ratliff finished with 19 points and went 5-for-8 from three-point range.
Official Basketball Box Score
Grambling State vs Texas A&M
12/10/05 2 p.m. at College Station, Texas (Reed Arena)
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VISITORS: Grambling State 2-3
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
01 RATLIFF,Andre?â„¢...... * 6-12 5-8 2-2 4 2 6 1 19 3 3 0 0 28
20 WILLIAMS,Anthony.... * 7-14 0-1 2-2 4 4 8 3 16 2 1 0 1 28
23 RUSH,Brion.......... * 10-19 4-9 4-4 0 4 4 1 28 4 7 0 2 32
40 STEVENS,Martez...... * 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 5 0 0 0 0 0 10
42 BREAUX,Jamal........ * 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 5 0 0 2 0 1 18
03 THOMAS,Richard...... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 2
04 LOCKE,Jordan........ 0-2 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 2 0 0 2 0 1 10
21 GORDON,Donte?â„¢....... 0-1 0-0 3-5 0 0 0 3 3 1 2 0 1 14
22 LEWIS, Jamar........ 1-3 0-0 1-2 2 0 2 2 3 2 1 0 1 26
24 JEFFERSON,Johnnie... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 13
30 McFADDEN,Donnell.... 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3
44 DORSEY,John......... 0-0 0-0 2-2 0 2 2 4 2 0 0 0 0 16
TEAM................
Totals.............. 24-55 9-19 14-17 10 16 26 27 71 12 20 0 7 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-28 35.7% 2nd Half: 14-27 51.9% Game: 43.6% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 1-6 16.7% 2nd Half: 8-13 61.5% Game: 47.4% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 12-12 100 % 2nd Half: 2-5 40.0% Game: 82.4% 1
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HOME TEAM: Texas A&M 6-0
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
01 LAW, Acie........... * 2-3 0-1 4-4 0 1 1 2 8 2 3 0 1 8
10 WALKER, Chris....... * 0-2 0-1 4-4 0 2 2 1 4 0 1 0 1 20
12 SMITH, Eddie........ * 5-9 0-0 4-4 1 2 3 2 14 7 3 0 3 35
22 KIRK, Dominique..... * 3-5 3-4 0-0 0 4 4 4 9 2 0 0 2 22
30 JONES, Joseph....... * 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
02 BENNETT, Martellus.. 4-7 0-1 10-14 2 1 3 0 18 2 0 1 0 15
04 GREEN, Edjuan....... 2-3 0-0 1-4 2 3 5 1 5 2 1 1 2 19
05 WHITE, Kenneth...... 2-4 2-4 1-2 0 1 1 0 7 0 1 0 2 12
13 BLACKBURN, Brian.... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 4
23 CARTER, Josh........ 7-7 5-5 1-1 1 2 3 1 20 2 3 0 0 29
42 POMPEY, Marlon...... 2-5 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 1 4 4 1 1 1 16
44 KAVALIAUSKAS,Antanas 4-5 1-1 3-8 2 1 3 5 12 0 2 0 1 19
TEAM................ 3 3
Totals.............. 31-50 11-17 28-41 9 22 31 17 101 23 15 3 13 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 13-25 52.0% 2nd Half: 18-25 72.0% Game: 62.0% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 4-9 44.4% 2nd Half: 7-8 87.5% Game: 64.7% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 13-20 65.0% 2nd Half: 15-21 71.4% Game: 68.3% 7,1
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Officials: Steve Olson, Verne Harris, Brad Ferrie
Technical fouls: Grambling State-None. Texas A&M-None.
Attendance: 4759
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
Grambling State............... 33 38 - 71
Texas A&M..................... 43 58 - 101
Looking Ahead
*The Aggies close their non-conference schedule with home games against Grambling on Thursday and Winthrop on Tuesday (8:30 p.m.).
*The Aggies open Big 12 play against Bob Huggins?â„¢ Kansas State squad on Jan. 6 in College Station. A&M then embarks on a two-game road swing to play Baylor (Jan. 9) and Colorado (Jan. 13).
Who?â„¢s Hot?
*Junior Joseph Jones and senior Acie Law IV are on the preseason Wooden and Naismith award watch lists, which each consist of the top 50 players in the country. Law also has been nominated for the Bob Cousy Award as the nation?â„¢s top point guard. Law and Jones were co-MVPs of the Shelby Metcalf Classic.
*Jones has scored in double figures in six of the last seven games. He tied his career-high with 13 rebounds against top-ranked UCLA and added 11 points for his first double-double of the year. He ranks third in the Big 12 in free throw percentage (.852).
*Senior Antanas Kavaliauskas is averaging 14.9 points and 5.9 rebounds in the last seven games, making 64.3 percent from the field. He ranks second in the Big 12 (and 19th nationally) in field goal percentage (.629).
*Senior Marlon Pompey has averaged 11.0 points and 5.0 rebounds in the last two games while making 83.3 percent (5-6) from the field and 80.0 percent (12-15) from the free throw line.
*Junior Dominique Kirk has started in all 74 games in his A&M career and has made 101 career three-pointers.
*Sophomore Josh Carter is averaging 17.3 points and making 68.8 percent (11-of-16) of his three-pointers in the last three games. Carter is the most accurate three-point shooter in A&M history with a .430 career mark.
*Senior Acie Law IV scored 21 points in the win at Auburn, his fifth 20+ game of the season.
*Freshman Donald Sloan scored a career-high 10 points with a career-best 5 rebounds ar Auburn. In the last two games, Sloan has averaged 9.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists while making 72.7 percent from the field.
Angles & Storylines
*The Aggies 29-point win at Auburn last Friday (87-58) was the Tigers?â„¢ worst home loss since 1952. It tied for A&M?â„¢s second largest margin of victory in a non-conference road game, topped only by a 60-21 win at Duncan Field in 1942-43.
*The win against Auburn was A&M?â„¢s first road victory against a Southeastern Conference school since Shelby Metcalf?â„¢s Aggies posted a 73-69 win against Kentucky at Rupp Arena in 1978-79.
*The Aggies rank third nationally in defensive field goal percentage (.342) and are seventh in scoring defense (54.0). No opponent this season has scored more than 65 points. A&M leads the Big 12 in field goal percentage defense, scoring defense and three-point percentage defense (.257).
*A&M ranks second nationally in assists (20.8), third in field goal percentage (.524), sixth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.5) and fourth in scoring margin (+23.0). The Aggies lead the Big 12 in scoring margin, field goal percentage, assists, and assist/turnover ratio.
*A&M is the only team to rank among the top 15 nationally in both defensive and offensive field goal accuracy.
*Joseph Jones has become the 28th Aggie to reach 1,000 career points (1,015). He needs 13 rebounds to become the 19th Aggie to reach 500 in a career. Only 13 players have scored 1,000 points with 500 boards.
*A&M is ranked 11th this week by The AP and is 12th in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches?â„¢ poll. The Aggies have been ranked eight straight weeks, tying the school record set in 1959-60 and matched in 1978-79. Before this year, A&M?â„¢s last previous top-10 ranking was on Jan. 3, 1979, when it was ranked 10th by The AP. A&M was ranked No. 6 in early December, the highest in school history.
*Prior to this season, A&M?â„¢s last ranking by the AP came on Dec. 30, 1980, when the Aggies were 11th.
*A&M has won 14 straight home games since an 83-73 loss to Kansas last season.
*A&M has won 31 straight regular-season non-conference home games. The last loss was against A&M-Corpus Christi (82-80) early in the 2003-04 season
*A&M is 42-5 at Reed Arena under Billy Gillispie, with a 28-1 mark against non-conference foes (including a 1-1 record in the 2005 postseason NIT). Gillipsie is 58-6 in home games in his last four seasons as a head coach.