Jan. 30, 2009
COLLEGE STATION - Texas A&M goes for its second straight win when it plays host to Oklahoma State on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Reed Arena.
GAME #22
Texas A&M Aggies (16-5, 2-4 Big 12)
vs.
Oklahoma State Cowboys (13-6, 2-3 Big 12)
Saturday, January 31, 2009
1:05 p.m. (CST)
College Station, Texas
Reed Arena (12,989 cap.)
Television
ESPN
Play-by-Play: Ron Franklin
Analyst: Fran Fraschilla
Dish Network: Channel 140
Direct TV: Channel 206
ESPN360: http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/espn360/index?id=290310245
Radio
Texas A&M Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Dave South
Analyst: Al Pulliam
Sirius Satellite Radio: 91
Network Affiliates
Atlanta KPYN-AM 900
Athens KLVQ-AM 1410
Austin KJCE-AM 1370
Brenham KWHI-AM 1280
Carthage KGAS-AM 1590
College Station WTAW-AM 1620
College Station KZNE-AM 1150
Comanche KCOM-AM 1550
Dallas KFXR-AM 1190
El Campo KULP-AM 1390
Gonzales KCTI-AM 1450
Houston KBME-AM 790
Marshall KMHT-AM 1450
New Braunfels KGNB-AM 1420
San Antonio KSJL-AM 810
San Saba KBAL-AM 1410
Sulphur Springs KSST-AM 1230
Victoria KVNN-AM 1340
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 16-5 (2-4 Big 12)
Ranking/RPI (CBS): Unranked / 44
Last Game: Beat Texas Tech (79-70) at home Wednesday
Current Streak: Won one
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon (Kansas '87)
Record: 194-135 (11th year)
at Texas A&M: 41-16 (2nd year)
vs. Oklahoma State: 1-4
PROJECTED TEXAS A&M STARTERS
No. Player P Ht. Wt. Cl-Ex PPG RPG APG
15 Donald Sloan G 6-3 205 Jr-2L 11.2 3.6 3.2
3 Derrick Roland G 6-4 185 Jr-2L 5.7 2.4 --
23 Josh Carter F 6-7 200 Sr-3L 12.7 4.0 --
0 Bryan Davis F 6-9 240 Jr-2L 10.3 6.0 --
41 Chinemelu Elonu C 6-10 235 Jr-2L 10.0 7.3 --
OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS
Record: 13-6 (2-3 Big 12)
Ranking/RPI (CBS): unranked / 26
Last Game: Lost Lost to No. 4 Oklahoma (89-81) at home on Monday
Current Streak: Lost one
Head Coach: Travis Ford (Kentucky '94)
Record: 203-170 (12th year)
at Oklahoma State: 13-6 (1st year)
vs. Texas A&M: 1-0
PROJECTED TEXAS TECH STARTERS
No. Player P Ht. Wt. Cl-Ex PPG RPG APG
00 Byron Eaton G 5-11 210 Sr. 13.9 3.4 5.8
1 Terrel Harris G 6-5 205 Sr. 14.1 4.8 2.2
23 James Anderson G 6-6 205 So. 17.7 5.5 --
2 Obi Muonelo G 6-5 215 Jr. 15.5 9.3 2.1
44 Malcoln Kirkland F 6-8 230 So. 2.7 2.4 –
Additional Information:
Big 12 Conference: http://big12sports.com/
NCAA: http://www.ncaa.com/
Series Notes
• Oklahoma State leads the series, 29-12, and has won two straight, but the Aggies have won four of the last seven including two of the last three in College Station.
• The Cowboys have a 12-7 lead in games played in College Station and a 7-3 mark at Reed Arena.
• The Cowboys posted a 72-61 win against the Aggies in the Big 12 opener on Jan. 10 in Stillwater. They upset A&M, 59-54, last season in College Station.
Key Game Notes
• The Aggies play their second game of a two-game homestand on Saturday against Oklahoma State. A&M travels to Oklahoma next Wednesday.
• The Aggies are coming off a 79-70 win against Texas Tech at home on Wednesday. The victory ended a three-game losing skid.
• Oklahoma State has lost three of its last four games after opening Big 12 play with a 72-61 win against the Aggies on Jan. 10 in Stillwater. The Cowboys are coming off an 89-81 loss to No. 4-ranked Oklahoma at home on Monday.
• The Aggies are 12-1 at home this season while Oklahoma State is 2-2 in true road games.
• Mark Turgeon's 41-16 record is the second-best coaching start in Big 12 history through 57 games. Kansas' Bill Self was 44-13 in 2003-05.
Sidebars
• Oklahoma State guard Terrel Harris and A&M guard Josh Carter were teammates for three years at Lake Highlands High School. Harris moved on to South Garland for his senior year. They are 4-4 against each other in their college careers.
• Harris and OSU teammate Byron Eaton grew up in the Dallas area playing with and against Carter, Bryan Davis, Donald Sloan and Derrick Roland.
• A&M assistant coach Alvin “Pooh” Williamson is from Beggs, Okla., located just south of Tulsa. He led Beggs HS to two Class 2A state titles before going on to star at Tulsa from 1992-95. Williamson led Tulsa to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 1994 and 1995. He was an assistant at Tulsa from 2001-05 and served as interim head coach in 2004-05.
• A&M sophomore guard Derrek Lewis is from Tulsa, where he led Union HS to a 26-1 record and the state semifinals in 2007. He led Cascia Hall HS to the state finals as a junior in 2006.
Tough Competition
• A&M is the first team in Big 12 history to play every team in the top half of the preseason coaches poll in its first five games.
• Three of the games were on the road at three of the toughest venues in the country (Oklahoma State, defending NCAA champion Kansas and No. 11 Texas), while the other two were at home against ranked teams (No. 21 Baylor, No. 5 Oklahoma).
• Of the Aggies' first four conference road games, three are against teams that rank among the top five nationally in longest home winning streaks — Kansas (1), Texas (4), Oklahoma (5). The opener was at Oklahoma State, considered by many to be among the toughest places to play in the country.
• In this week's official RPI released by the NCAA, A&M's first five league opponents were ranked among the top 35. Both home foes this week are in the top 100 (Texas Tech is No. 95 and Oklahoma State is No. 22).
• The Aggies don't play a team ranked outside of the top 102 in the RPI until they play host to Iowa State (129) on Feb. 28.
About Oklahoma State
• The Cowboys are in their first season under Head Coach Travis Ford, who came to OSU after three seasons
• at Massachusetts. Ford was a standout point guard at Kentucky in the early 1990s.
• Oklahoma State finished 17-16 last season and placed seventh in the Big 12 with a 7-9 mark.
• The Cowboys' three non-conference losses this season were to No. 9 Gonzaga (83-71), No. 5 Michigan State (94-79) and at Washington (83-65).
• OSU has lost three close games in Big 12 play, falling to Missouri (97-95) and Oklahoma (89-81) at home and to Baylor (98-92) on the road. In addition to beating A&M, the Cowboys won in overtime at Nebraska (76-74).
• Sophomore guard James Anderson (6-6) ranks fourth in the Big 12 in scoring with a 17.7 average. Junior guard Obi Muonelo (6-5) averages 15.5 points and ranks third in the conference in rebounding (9.3). He also ranks second in three-pointers made per game (3.0).
• Senior guard Terrel Harris (6-5) averages 14.1 points and has made 43.1 percent from three-point range. Senior guard Byron Eaton (5-10) adds 13.9 points, leads the Big 12 in steals (2.5) and ranks second in assists (5.8).
• The Cowboys lead the Big 12 in scoring (85.2), three-point percentage (.417) and free throw percentage (.729). They average a league-best 10.4 three-pointers made per game.
Earlier This Month in Stillwater
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP, Jan. 10, 2009) - Marshall Moses set career highs with 15 points and 13 rebounds, and the Cowboys beat Texas A&M 72-61 Saturday night in coach Travis Ford's Big 12 debut. Byron Eaton and Terrel Harris hit 3-pointers to give Oklahoma State (12-3, 1-0) breathing room after the Aggies cut a 16-point deficit to two in the closing minutes of the first half, and it was never really close after that. Obi Muonelo's jumper and 3-pointer started a 10-0 run that stretched the Cowboys' edge to 55-38 with about 13 minutes left. Texas A&M (14-2, 0-1) never came closer than eight after that. Josh Carter, the Aggies' leading scorer, was held scoreless for the first time in nearly two years.
Last Year at Reed Arena
COLLEGE STATION (AP, Feb. 16, 2008) - Byron Eaton had 17 points, including two free throws with nine seconds left, to lead Oklahoma State to a 59-54 victory over No. 16 Texas A&M on Saturday, breaking a 19-game road losing streak. The win broke a 16-game conference road losing streak for the Cowboys and snapped a five-game winning streak for the Aggies. Derrick Roland stole the ball from Eaton with less than a minute to play and Donald Sloan looked like he was on the way to an easy layup before Terrel Harris came from behind for the block. Obi Muonelo made two free throws after the Aggies were forced to foul to make it 57-53 with 16 seconds left. Sloan made the second of two free throws with 11 seconds left to cut Oklahoma State's lead to 57-54, before Eaton ensured the win with his free throws.
Texas Tech Recap
COLLEGE STATION (AP) -- B.J. Holmes had six 3-pointers and finished with 24 points, both career-highs, to lead Texas A&M to a 79-70 win over Texas Tech on Wednesday night. The win broke a three-game losing streak for the Aggies. The sophomore didn't miss from long-range until his seventh attempt. He hit five 3s in the first half, including three in just more than a minute. His sixth one gave Texas A&M a lead after the Red Raiders' had tied it with about 13 minutes left. Holmes tied the Big 12 record for consecutive three-pointers made. The Aggies (16-5, 2-4 Big 12 Conference) didn't trail after that and led by four before Derrick Roland's 3-pointer stretched A&M's lead to 71-64 with just more than three minutes remaining. Texas Tech (11-9, 1-4) was led by Robert Lewandowski and John Roberson, who scored 20 points each.
Inside Dish
• A&M is one of just three Big 12 teams (Baylor and Oklahoma State) with five players averaging at least 9.0 points.
• A&M had just 4 turnovers (16 assists) against Arizona, a school record for fewest in a game. A&M is averaging 16.3 turnovers in its four Big 12 losses, but only 10.0 in their two Big 12 wins. A&M is 13-1 when it has 15 or fewer turnovers this season, but is 3-4 when it has more than 15 miscues.
• The Aggies are 53-of-61 (.869) from the free throw line in the last two minutes of “close games,” which are defined as games within 10 points.
• A&M's 79 home wins in the last four years are the second most in the nation in that period behind Memphis (84).
• A&M is 68-23 (.747) in the last three seasons, ranking it among the winningest teams in the country in that span.
• A&M is 11-0 this year when its opponent scores fewer than 67 points.
• Under Mark Turgeon, the Aggies are 19-0 when they make better than 50 percent from the field and are 31-4 when they make at least 45 percent.
• The Aggies rallied from 14-point deficits to beat Arizona and Alabama. A&M was five points down with 15 seconds left in regulation against Alabama, but came back to win in overtime.
• Sophomore B.J. Holmes scored a career-high 24 points in the win against Tech and made 6-of-7 three-pointers (.857), tying for the fourth-best percentage in school history. He made six straight treys against Tech, tying the Big 12 record. Holmes has averaged 10.9 points in the last 18 games while making 44 percent (38-87) from three-point range. He hit a rainbow three-pointer with two seconds left to send the Alabama game into overtime. A&M is 11-3 in his career when he scores at least 8 points and is 22-6 when he makes at least one three-pointer. He's made a three-pointer in 19 straight games, the third-longest streak in school history (record is 27 by Bernard King in 1999-00).
• Senior Josh Carter owns the school record for career three-point field goals with 262, which ranks seventh in Big 12 history. The old A&M mark was 232 by Bernard King (1999-03). Carter is the most accurate three-point shooter in school history, making 41.6 percent. He led the nation in 2006-07 by making 50.0 percent.
• Carter leads the Big 12 in free throw percentage (.873, 69-79), 23rd-best nationally. The school record for a season is .865 by Mike Floyd in 1974-75. A&M is 60-12 when Carter scores in double figures but just 30-20 when he doesn't hit at least 10. A two-time honorable mention All-Big 12 pick, Carter was a second-team preseason selection.
• Carter has started in 91 straight games -- every game since the start of his sophomore season. He has played in 122 career games and is on track to break the school record of 132 by Dominique Kirk (2004-08).
• Junior Bryan Davis has averaged 15.0 points in A&M's two Big 12 wins but has averaged just 6.3 points in the four league losses. He ranks second on the team in rebounds (6.0) and blocks (27) and was named to the all-tournament team at the South Padre Island Invitational. A&M is 22-3 when Davis scores in double figures in his career.
• Junior Donald Sloan has started in 57 straight games since the start of his sophomore year (2007-08). He scored 17 points and made 3-of-4 three-pointers against Texas last Saturday and has scored at least 8 points in all but two games this year. Sloan leads the team in assists (3.2). A&M is 35-5 when Sloan hands out at least 3 assists.
• Junior Chinemelu Elonu leads the Big 12 in offensive rebounds (4.2) and blocked hots (2.2) in league play. He has had a team-high six double-doubles this season and has averaged 11.5 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks over the last 13 games. Elonu's season field goal percentage of .654 ranks 12th nationally (min. 100 FGA). A&M is 21-3 when Elonu scores at least 6 points and is 23-2 when he has at least 5 rebounds.
• Junior Derrick Roland has averaged 8.0 points and made 53.9 percent (7-of-13) from three-point range in the last four games. He scored 10 points in the win against Baylor, making both his three-point tries, and added a season-high 4 assists. Roland is regarded as one of the country's top defenders and held Arizona's Chase Budinger to just 3 points on 1-of-6 shooting in the second half of A&M's come-from-behind victory. He helped limit Texas' A.J. Abrams to just 9 points on 3-of-10 shooting (0-2 on three-pointers).
• Sophomore Nate Walkup has become the Aggies' new “Mr. Clutch” for making big shots in tight games. His trey against Arizona with 20 seconds left proved to be the game-winner. He hit a three-pointer with 14 seconds left at Alabama, which set up B.J. Holmes trey at the end of regulation that sent the game into overtime. Walkup also hit key baskets late in close games against Stephen F. Austin, SMU and Rice.
• Freshman Dash Harris has had 25 assists with just 10 turnovers in the last nine games.
• Freshman David Loubeau scored 11 points with 8 rebounds against Texas Tech. He has averaged 7.0 points and 6.0 rebounds in the last three games. Loubeau leads Big 12 freshman in offensive rebounds (2.2) in Big 12 play.