March 07, 2008
Texas A&M's three senior basketball players will be honored on Saturday when the Aggies play host to No. 5-ranked Kansas in the regular-season finale at 3 p.m. at Reed Arena. The game will be televised nationally by CBS Sports.
The Aggie seniors are Joseph Jones, Dominique Kirk and Beau Muhlbach.
Game Notes:
GAME #31
Texas A&M Aggies
(22-8, 8-7 Big 12 Conference)
vs.
#5 / 6 Kansas Jayhawks
(27-3, 12-3 Big 12 Conference)
Saturday, March 8 * 3:05 p.m. (CST)
Reed Arena (12,989 cap.) * College Station, Texas
TELEVISION
CBS
Play-by-Play: Jim Nantz
Analyst: Billy Packer
RADIO
Texas A&M Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Dave South
Analyst: Al Pulliam
Sirius Satellite Radio: 161
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 22-8 (8-7 Big 12)
Ranking: RV (AP)
RPI: 43
Last Game: Won at Baylor (71-57) on Wednesday
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon (Kansas '87)
Record: 175-127 (10th year)
at Texas A&M: 22-8 (1st year)
vs. Kansas: 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 3.4 3.5
15 Donald Sloan G 6-3 205 So-1L 9.7 4.0 3.2
23 Josh Carter F 6-7 200 Jr-2L 12.7 4.2 --
30 Joseph Jones F 6-9 255 Sr-3L 10.7 5.2 --
12 DeAndre Jordan C 7-0 255 Fr-Hs 8.9 6.6 --
KANSAS JAYHAWKS
Record: 27-3 (12-3 Big 12)
Ranking: No. 5 (AP), No. 6 (ESPN/USA Today)
RPI: 9
Last Game: Beat Texas Tech (109-51) at home on Monday
Head Coach: Bill Self (Oklahoma State ?'85)
Record: 339-137 (15th year)
at Kansas: 132-32 (5th year)
vs. Texas A&M: 3-3
TENTATIVE KANSAS STARTERS
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Class PPG RPG APG
3 Russell Robinson G 6-1 205 Sr-3L 7.7 2.9 4.2
15 Mario Chalmers G 6-1 190 Jr-2L 12.0 2.9 4.7
25 Brandon Rush G 6-6 210 Jr-2L 12.4 5.1 2.2
00 Darrell Arthur F 6-9 225 So-1L 13.3 6.0 --
32 Darnell Jackson F 6-8 250 Sr-3L 12.2 6.9 --
Key Game Notes
*Saturday?â„¢s game is ?Senior Day? and marks the final appearance at Reed Arena by seniors Joseph Jones, Dominique Kirk and Beau Muhlbach. Kirk and Jones are the winningest players in school history.
*The Aggies?â„¢ 22-8 record is the best start by a first-year head coach in school history.
*A&M has reached at least eight Big 12 wins for the fourth straight year. Prior to that, A&M had never had more than six league victories.
*The Aggies have won two of their last three games and are coming off a 71-57 win at Baylor on Wednesday.
*Kansas has won three straight and is coming off a 109-51 win against Texas Tech at home on Monday.
*A&M is 16-3 at home this season, 4-3 in Big 12 play. The Aggies have won 16 of their last 20 Big 12 home games, but have lost two of their last three.
*Kansas is 7-3 in true road games, 4-3 in Big 12 play. The Jayhawks have lost two of their last three and three of their last five conference road games.
*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 Kansas
*The Jayhawks finished 33-5 last season, winning the Big 12 title with a 14-2 mark.
*Kansas is in its fifth season under Coach Bill Self.
*The Jayhawks lead the Big 12 in scoring offense (82.5), field goal percentage (.506), defensive field goal percentage (.381), assists (18.8), steals (9.1), blocks (6.3) and assist/turnover ratio (1.44).
*Kansas has four players averaging in double figures, led by sophomore forward Darrell Arthur (6-9), who is averaging 13.3 points and 6.0 rebounds. Junior guard Brandon Rush (6-6) adds 12.4 points and 5.1 rebounds.
Sidebars
*A Kansas native, Texas A&M Head Coach Mark Turgeon is a former Jayhawk player and assistant coach.
*After leading Hayden HS in Topeka to consecutive Kansas state titles in 1982 and 1983, Turgeon became the first Jayhawk ever to play in four straight NCAA Tournaments. Kansas advanced to the NCAA Final Four in 1986 with current KU Head Coach Bill Self serving as an assistant coach.
*After graduating in 1987, Turgeon was an assistant coach at KU under Larry Brown, helping the Jayhawks win the 1988 NCAA title. He went on to serve four more years as an assistant under Roy Williams.
*Turgeon still ranks ninth in KU history in career assists with 437. He and KU assistant coach Danny Manning were teammates for three years.
Series Notes
*Kansas leads the series, 11-1, with a 5-0 advantage in games played in College Station and a 4-0 lead at Reed Arena.
*Ranked No. 10, A&M posted a 69-66 victory over the No. 6 Jayhawks last year in Lawrence, becoming the only Big 12 South Division team to win at Allen Fieldhouse.
*The last three games played at Reed Arena have been decided by 12 points or fewer.
Players to Watch
*Senior guard Dominique Kirk owns the Big 12 record for consecutive starts with 126, which also is the A&M record for career games played. He is the winningest player in A&M history with a 92-34 (.730) record. A defensive All-American last year, Kirk?â„¢s primary defensive assignment in Big 12 play this year has made less than 33 percent from the field. Kirk ranks second in the Big 12 (23rd nationally) in assist/turnover ratio (2.48).
*A preseason All-America candidate, senior forward Joseph Jones scored 13 points on 5-of-5 shooting in the win against Texas Tech and scored 11 in the win at Baylor. Jones was named MVP of the Dick?â„¢s Sporting Goods NIT Season-Tip-Off in November and is a second-team all-district pick (NABC). 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 95 career games, one shy of tying the school record of 96 set by the late Vernon Smith in 1977-81.
*Senior Beau Muhlbach has averaged 8.6 points and 4.0 rebounds in the last three games, averaging 15.7 minutes per game. He scored a career-high 12 points with a career-best 5 rebounds in the win at Baylor.
*Junior Josh Carter ranks fourth in career 3-point accuracy in Big 12 history at .431. Carter scored 17 points and made 4-of-5 three-pointers in the win at Baylor.
*Sophomore Bryan Davis leads the team steals (32), ranks second in blocks (33) and is third in rebounding (4.9).
*Freshman DeAndre Jordan, a preseason freshman All-America pick, has made .626 from the field and is chasing the school record for season field goal percentage (.622 by Rudy Woods in 1978-79). 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 leads the team in blocks with 43 and has had at least two in six straight games. Jordan had a game-high 10 rebounds in the win at Baylor and added a career-best 6 blocked shots, an A&M record for a Big 12 game.
*Sophomore Donald Sloan scored 17 points with a career-best 8 rebounds in the win at Baylor. He has made 28 of his last 30 (.933) free throws.
*Sophomore Derrick Roland averaged 9.3 points in the three games prior to Baylor, but was limited by a shoulder injury against the Bears.
Aggie Angles
*The Aggies rank sixth nationally in rebounding margin at +7.8. A&M has out-rebounded its opponent in all 22 wins, but is 0-4 when its opponent wins the battle of the boards.
*A&M has posted a win against a top 10 team four straight years, but has never beaten two top 10 teams in a season. 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. The highest-ranked team A&M has ever beaten was No. 5 Texas in 1982 (71-69 in Austin).
*A&M ranks second in the Big 12 and 14th nationally in field goal percentage defense at .388, and has held 16 opponents under 40 percent. The Aggies are allowing just 61.6 points per game and is 21-4 when its opponent scores under 70 points. In the win at Baylor, A&M held the Bears to season lows in points (57) and field goal accuracy (.333).
*In the eight Big 12 wins, A&M has made .500 from the field, .409 from three-point range and .714 from the free throw line with a 1.3 assist/turnover ratio. In the seven league losses, the Aggies have made just .357 from the field, .235 from three-point range and .612 from the line with a 0.6 assist/turnover ratio. A&M has allowed just 58.9 points in the wins but 74.9 in the losses.
*A&M?â„¢s 67 home wins in the last four years are the second most in the nation in that period behind Memphis (69).
*A&M is 49-15 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 22 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).
*Eight different Aggies have scored in double figures this season. A&M and Kansas are the only Big 12 teams with seven players averaging more than 6.0 points.
*A&M fell out of the national polls this week although it is receiving votes. The last time A&M was unranked was in the final polls in 2005-06. The Aggies had ranked in both polls a school record 36 straight weeks. Prior to that streak, A&M had been ranked a total of 27 weeks in its history.