February 22, 2008
No. 22-ranked Texas A&M tries to get back on the winning track on Saturday when the Aggies play host to Nebraska at 3 p.m. at Reed Arena.
GAME #27
#22/22 Texas A&M Aggies
(20-6, 6-5 Big 12 Conference)
vs.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
(15-9, 4-7 Big 12 Conference)
Saturday, Feb. 23 * 3:01 p.m. (CST)
Reed Arena (12,292 cap.) * College Station, Texas
TELEVISION
ESPN Regional (ESPN Full Court)
Play-by-Play: Dave Armstrong
Analyst: Stacey King
Stations
Dallas, Texas KTXA
Houston, Texas KNWS
Denver, Colo. Altitude
St. Louis, Mo. WRBU
Baltimore, Md. MASN (TD)
Kansas City, Mo. KMCI
San Antonio/Austin KCWX
Oklahoma City, Okla. KOCB
Austin, Texas KNVA
Little Rock, Ark. KWBF
Wichita, Kan. KMTW
Des Moines/Ames, Iowa WOI
Omaha, Neb. KXVO
Springfield, Mo. KWBM
Cedar Rapids, Iowa KFXA
Waco/Temple, Bryan KWTX; KBTX; KBTX-DT
Davenport, Iowa WBQD
Lincoln, Neb. KLKN
Tyler, Texas KFXK
Peoria, Ill. WAOE
La Crosse, Wis. KQEG
Amarillo, Texas KCPN
Topeka, Kan. KSNT
Sioux City, Iowa Spencer Utilities; Cable One
Lubbock, Texas KMYL
Odessa, Texas KOSA-DT
Abilene, Texas KIDZ
San Angelo, Texas KIDY
North Platte, Neb. KIIT
RADIO
Texas A&M Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Dave South
Analyst: Al Pulliam
Sirius Satellite Radio: 126
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 20-6 (6-5 Big 12)
Ranking: 22nd (USA Today/ESPN), 22nd (AP)
RPI: 38
Last Game: Lost at #7 Texas (77-50) on Monday
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon (Kansas ?'87)
Record: 173-125 (10th year)
at Texas A&M: 20-6 (1st year)
vs. Nebraska: 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 7.8 3.7 3.7
15 Donald Sloan G 6-3 205 So-1L 9.6 4.1 3.1
23 Josh Carter F 6-7 200 Jr-2L 13.0 4.3 --
30 Joseph Jones F 6-9 255 Sr-3L 11.0 5.4 --
0 Bryan Davis F/C 6-9 250 So-1L 9.0 5.0 --
NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS
Record: 15-9 (4-7 Big 12)
Ranking: Unranked
RPI: 117
Last Game: Beat K-State (71-64) at home on Wednesday
Head Coach: Doc Sadler (Arkansas ?'82)
Record: 79-42 (4th year)
at Nebraska: 31-24 (2nd year)
vs. Texas A&M: 0-1
TENTATIVE NEBRASKA STARTERS
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Class PPG RPG APG
24 Cookie Miller G 5-7 165 Fr-Hs 6.8 2.0 4.2
4 Steve Harley G 5-11 170 Jr-Tr 8.3 2.6 --
11 Ade Dagunduro G 6-5 190 Jr-Tr 8.5 3.8 --
44 Ryan Anderson G 6-4 200 So-1L 9.3 5.9 --
21 Aleks Maric C 6-11 275 Sr-3L 16.2 10.0 --
Key Game Notes
*The Aggies?â„¢ 20-6 record is the best start by a first-year head coach in school history. Prior to last year's 22-4 start (the best in school history), the last time A&M started 20-6 was in 1978-79.
*A&M?â„¢s 6-5 start in Big 12 play is the second best in school history behind last year?â„¢s 8-1 start.
*The Aggies have lost two straight and are coming off a 77-50 loss at No. 7-ranked Texas on Monday.
*Nebraska has lost two of its last three games but is coming off a 71-64 win against No. 25-ranked Kansas State at home on Wednesday.
*A&M is 15-2 at home this season, 3-2 in Big 12 play. The Aggies have won 40 of their last 43 home games, including 15 of its last 18 in Big 12 play.
*Nebraska is 1-6 in road games, 1-4 in Big 12 play.
*A&M, Texas and Kansas are the only Big 12 teams to reach the 20-win plateau in each of the last 4 seasons.
About Nebraska
*The Cornhuskers finished 17-14 last season, placing seventh in the Big 12 with a 6-10 mark in their first season under Coach Doc Sadler.
*Nebraska?â„¢s lone Big 12 road win was at Missouri (66-62) on Jan. 30. The Cornhuskers other Big 12 wins have been against Iowa State (64-56), Texas Tech (73-62) and Kansas State (71-64).
*Nebraska is 4-3 in Big 12 play (including an 86-78 overtime loss at home to Missouri) since starting Big 12 play with an 0-4 mark.
*The Cornhuskers are led by senior center Aleks Maric (6-11), who is averaging 16.2 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Ryan Anderson (6-4) adds 9.3 points and 5.9 rebounds while making .382 (39-102) from three-point range.
Sidebars
*Aleks Maric was recruited to Nebraska by A&M Associate Head Coach Scott Spinelli when Spinelli was an assistant for the Cornhuskers from 2003-06. Spinelli served as associate head coach at Nebraska under Barry Collier two years ago (2005-06).
*A&M Director of Athletics Bill Byrne served as Nebraska?â„¢s AD from 1992-02, leaving Lincoln for College Station in January of 2003.
Series Notes
*Nebraska leads the series, 10-5, but A&M has won two straight. The series is tied, 3-3 in games played in College Station (2-2 at Reed Arena).
*The last two games in the series were decided by identical scores, with A&M posting a 66-55 win in College Station in 2006 and a 66-55 victory in Lincoln last year.
*Nebraska won six of the first seven games in the series, but since 2000 the series is tied, 4-4.
*Three of the last four meetings in College Station were decided by six points or less or in overtime.
Who?â„¢s Hot?
*Junior Josh Carter ranks second in career 3-point accuracy in Big 12 history at .432 and has scored in double figures in 18 of the last 20 games. Carter needs 3 points to reach 1,000 in his career.
*Senior guard Dominique Kirk owns the Big 12 record for consecutive starts with 122. He is the winningest player in A&M history with a 90-32 (.738) record. A defensive All-American last year, Kirk?â„¢s primary defensive assignment in Big 12 play has made just 32 percent from the field. Kirk ranks second in the Big 12 (23rd nationally) in assist/turnover ratio (2.46).
*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 was a consensus preseason first-team All-Big 12 pick. He 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 in December (agricultural leadership), has scored in double figures in 20 games this year and in 93 in his career, second most in school history (96 by Vernon Smith in 1977-81).
*Sophomore Bryan Davis scored 14 points with 11 rebounds against Missouri for his second double-double of the year. In nine games as a starter, Davis ranks second on the team in scoring (11.9) and leads in rebounding (6.2). He averaged 7.4 points and 4.5 rebounds as a reserve. For the season, he leads the team in blocks (31) and steals (26) and is third in rebounding (5.0).
*Freshman DeAndre Jordan, a preseason freshman All-America pick, ranks among the top 15 nationally in field goal percentage (.635, 150 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. He scored a team-high 15 points vs. OSU last Saturday.
*Sophomore Donald Sloan scored a career-high 21 points with 5 assists and 5 rebounds against Missouri and has made 17 of his last 18 free throws. Sloan has averaged 11.4 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.8 assists in the last 8 games.
Aggie Angles
*The Aggies rank fifth nationally in rebounding margin at +8.5. A&M has out-rebounded its opponent in all 20 wins.
*A&M has posted a win against a top 10 team four straight years. Prior to that, A&M had only four top-10 victories in its entire history. The Aggies have beaten 10 ranked teams in the last four seasons.
*A&M leads the Big 12 and ranks 11th nationally in field goal percentage defense at .384, and has held 14 opponents under 40 percent. The Aggies are allowing just 61.8 points per game, just behind last year?â„¢s school record of 59.4. A&M is 19-2 when its opponent scores under 70 points.
*A&M ranks 28th nationally in field goal accuracy at 47.9 percent. However, in the last two games, A&M has averaged just 52.0 points while making .364 from the field.
*A&M is the only team in the country to rank among the top 30 nationally in offensive and defensive field goal percentage, scoring margin (+12.0) and rebounding margin (+8.5).
*A&M?â„¢s 66 home wins in the last four years are the second most in the nation in that period behind Memphis (68).
*A&M is 47-13 since the start of last season, ranking it among the winningest teams in the country in that span.
*A&M has had more free throw attempts than its opponent in all 20 wins.
*With six players listed at 6-9 or taller, the 2007-08 Aggies are the tallest in school history and among the biggest in college basketball. At 7-0, 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).
*The Aggies are among the most balanced scoring teams in college basketball. Eight different players have scored in double figures this season and A&M, Kansas and Oklahoma are the only Big 12 teams with seven players averaging more than 5.0 points.
*A&M fell six spots to No. 22 in the USA Today/ESPN coaches?â„¢ poll and the AP poll this week. The Aggies have been ranked in both polls a school record 36 straight weeks. Prior to this streak, A&M had been ranked a total of 27 weeks in its history.