January 22, 2008
No. 16-ranked Texas A&M returns home to face No. 25 Baylor on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Reed Arena. The game will not be televised.
GAME #19
#16/18 Texas A&M Aggies
(15-3, 1-2 Big 12 Conference)
vs.
#25 Baylor Bears
(15-2, 3-0 Big 12 Conference)
Wednesday, Jan. 23
7:05 p.m. (CST)
Reed Arena (12,989 cap.)
College Station, Texas
TICKETS
2,000 still available.
TELEVISION
Live Streaming
AggieAthletics.com
Free in Texas
PPV outside of Texas ($5.95)
RADIO
Texas A&M Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Dave South
Analyst: Al Pulliam
Sirius Satellite Radio: 161
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 15-3 (1-2 Big 12)
Ranking: 16th (USA Today/ESPN), 18th (AP)
RPI: 43
Last Game: Lost at Kansas State (75-54) on Saturday
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon (Kansas ?'87)
Record: 168-122 (10th year)
at Texas A&M: 15-3 (1st year)
vs. Baylor: 0-0
TENTATIVE TEXAS A&M STARTERS
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Class PPG RPG APG
22 Dominique Kirk G 6-4 185 Sr-3L 7.7 3.4 3.9
15 Donald Sloan G 6-3 205 So-1L 8.8 3.7 2.8
23 Josh Carter F 6-7 200 Jr-2L 13.4 3.7 --
30 Joseph Jones F 6-9 255 Sr-3L 11.3 5.2 --
12 DeAndre Jordan C 7-0 255 Fr-Hs 9.8 6.9 --
BAYLOR BEARS
Record: 15-2 (3-0 Big 12)
Ranking: 25th (AP)
RPI: 28
Last Game: Won at Nebraska (72-70) on Saturday
Head Coach: Scott Drew (Butler ?'93)
Record: 71-82 (6th year)
at Baylor: 51-71 (5th year)
vs. Texas A&M: 2-6
TENTATIVE BAYLOR STARTERS
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Class PPG RPG APG
50 Josh Lomers C 7-0 260 So-1L 4.4 2.5 --
5 Henry Dugat G 6-0 170 Jr-2L 12.1 3.9 --
0 Curtis Jerrells G 6-1 200 Jr-2L 13.0 3.8 3.4
14 Aaron Bruce G 6-3 185 Sr-3L 10.8 2.1 2.1
23 Kevin Rogers F 6-9 240 Jr-2L 11.9 6.8 --
Key Game Notes
*After losing two straight road games, the Aggies are back at Reed Arena, where they are 13-0 this season.
*A&M has won 15 straight home games, the 10th longest streak in the country and the sixth longest in school history.
*A&M (18th) and Baylor (25th) are both ranked in this week?â„¢s AP poll. The schools have never played when both have been ranked. Baylor is A&M?â„¢s second most common opponent with 195 previous meetings.
*Baylor is 3-0 in true road games this season and is 6-1 in all games away from home. The lone loss was against Arkansas (85-78) at a neutral site in Dallas.
*The Aggies are coming off a 75-54 loss at Kansas State on Saturday. Baylor has won four straight and is coming off a 72-70 win at Nebraska on Saturday.
About Baylor
*The Bears finished 15-16 last season, placing 11th in the Big 12 with a 4-12 mark.
*Baylor is in its fifth season under Coach Scott Drew.
*The Bears No. 25 ranking this week by the AP marks their first appearance in a national poll since 1969.
*A&M and Baylor have had one common opponent in Florida A&M, playing the Rattlers two days apart. The Aggies posted an 83-54 win and the Bears won, 84-61.
*Baylor has five players averaging in double figures, led by junior guard Curtis Jerrells (6-1), who is averaging 13.0 points and 3.4 assists per game. Freshman guard LaceDarius Dunn (6-4) adds 12.3 points.
Series Notes
*A&M leads the series, 124-71, with an 72-27 advantage in games played in College Station and a 7-2 lead at Reed Arena.
*A&M has won six straight against the Bears, including three straight in College Station. Baylor?â„¢s last win in the series was a 67-61 overtime victory at Reed Arena in 2004.
*The last five meetings have each been within 10 points. A&M won last year in College Station (97-87) and in Waco (61-51).
*The teams are meeting for the 196th time since the first game in 1914-15. The only opponent A&M has played more is Texas (211 games).
Who?â„¢s Hot?
*A preseason All-America candidate, senior forward Joseph Jones was named MVP of the Dick?â„¢s Sporting Goods NIT Season-Tip-Off in November. Jones is listed among the top 50 candidates for the Wooden Award and is a consensus preseason first-team All-Big 12 pick. Jones ranks among the school?â„¢s career top 10 in scoring, rebounding, blocked shots, field goal percentage, steals, free throws and free throw attempts. Jones, who graduated on Dec. 14 (agricultural leadership), scored has scored in double figures in 15 games, including seven straight.
*Senior guard Dominique Kirk owns the Big 12 record for consecutive starts with 114. Kirk is the winningest player in school history with an 85-29 (.746) record. A defensive All-American last year, Kirk has been named the Big 12?â„¢s top defender for the second straight preseason by The Sporting News. He ranks fifth in the Big 12 in assists (3.9) and leads the league assist/turnover ratio (2.73), ranking 19th nationally. Kirk scored a team-high 15 points with 5 assists (0 turnovers) against Colorado.
*Junior Josh Carter ranks second in career three-point accuracy in Big 12 history at 44.3 percent. He leads the team with a 13.4 scoring average and has scored in double figures in 12 straight games.
*Sophomore Bryan Davis leads the team in blocks (25) and steals (17) and is third in rebounding (4.3). Davis ranks fifth in the Big 12 in blocks (1.39).
*Freshman DeAndre Jordan, a preseason freshman All-America pick, leads the nation in field goal percentage (.721, 100 FGA min.). A member of the preseason NIT all-tournament team, Jordan made an A&M and Big 12 record 17 straight field goal attempts in November. Jordan scored 14 points with 9 rebounds against Colorado, including five dunks. One of the dunks was named one of the top four plays in college basketball that week by ESPN.
*Sophomore Donald Sloan has led the team in scoring in five of the last 14 games, averaging 9.9 points in that span. Sloan has averaged 11.3 points in the last four games.
Aggie Angles
*The Aggies rank second nationally in rebounding margin at +10.7 and have out-rebounded all but one opponent this season.
*A&M?â„¢s 15-3 record under Mark Turgeon is the best coaching debut in school history.
*A&M ranks 11th nationally in field goal percentage defense at .378 and has held 11 opponents under 40 percent. The Aggies are allowing just 59.1 points per game (19th nationally), just ahead of last year?â„¢s school record of 59.4.
*A&M ranks sixth nationally in field goal accuracy at 50.3 percent, despite making a combined .357 in the last two games against Texas Tech and Kansas State.
*The Aggies have won 15 straight home games, the sixth longest streak in school history and the 10th longest active streak in the country. The Aggies?â„¢ 64 home wins in the last four seasons are the most in the nation in that period.
*A&M is 42-10 since the start of last season, ranking among the winningest teams in the country in that span.
*A&M is averaging 24.6 bench points per game, 33 percent of its total offensive output.
*With six players listed at 6?â„¢9? or taller, the 2007-08 Aggies are the tallest in school history and among the biggest in college basketball. At 7?â„¢0?, freshman DeAndre Jordan is the fourth 7-footer to play at A&M, joining Andy Slocum (1999-04), Steve Niles (1968-71) and Lewis Qualls (1960-63).
*Like Mark Turgeon?â„¢s teams at Wichita State, the Aggies are among the most balanced in college basketball. Eight different players have scored in double figures this season and seven are averaging between 6-14 points. Turgeon?â„¢s teams at WSU always had at least six players averaging in a similar range.
*A&M fell to No. 16 in the USA Today/ESPN coaches?â„¢ poll and to No. 18 in the AP poll this week. The Aggies have been ranked in both polls a school record 32 straight weeks. Prior to this streak, A&M has been ranked a total of 27 weeks in its entire history.