March 20, 2009
Friday Press Conference Transcript 
Texas A&M faces Connecticut on Saturday in the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship in Philadelphia. CBS Sports will televise the game starting atapproximately 2:35 p.m. (CST)/3:35 p.m. (EST).
2009 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship
SECOND ROUND (GAME #34)
#9 Seed Texas A&M Aggies (24-9)
vs.
#1 Connecticut Huskies (28-4)
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Approx. 3:35 p.m. (EST)/2:35 a.m. (CST)
Philadelphia, Pa.
Wachovia Center (21,600 cap.)
Television
CBS Sports
Play-by-Play: Dick Enberg/Carter Blackburn
Analyst: Jay Bilas
Radio
Texas A&M Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Dave South
Analyst: Al Pulliam
Sirius Satellite Radio: Channel 127
Texas A&M Sports Network Stations
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-AM1340
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 24-9 (9-7 Big 12, Tied for 4th)
Seeding:No. 9
Last Game: Beat BYU(79-66) in Thursday's first round
Current Streak: Won seven of the last eight games
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon (Kansas `87)
Record: 202-139 (11th year)
at Texas A&M: 49-20 (2nd year)
vs. Connecticut: 0-0
PROJECTED TEXAS A&M STARTERS
No. Player P Ht. Wt. Cl-Ex PPG RPG APG
15 Donald Sloan G 6-3 205 Jr-2L 11.8 3.6 3.1
3 Derrick Roland G 6-4 185 Jr-2L 6.4 2.5 --
23 Josh Carter F 6-7 200 Sr-3L 13.94.4--
0 Bryan Davis F 6-9 240Jr-2L 10.76.5 --
41 Chinemelu Elonu C 6-10 235 Jr-2L 10.0 7.5 --
CONNECTICUT HUSKIES
Record: 28-4 (15-3 Big East, 2nd)
Seeding: No. 1
Ranking: No. 5 (AP), No. 6 (coaches)
Last Game: BeatChattanooga (103-47) onThursdayCurrent Streak: Lost two of the last three games
Head Coach:Jim Calhoun(American Int'l`68)
Record:802-341 (37th year)
at Connecticut:554-204 (23rd year)
vs. Texas A&M: 0-1
PROJECTED CONNECTICUT STARTERS
No. Player P Ht. Wt. Cl-Ex PPG RPG APG
12A.J. Price G 6-2 181 Sr. 14.23.4 4.7
24 Craig Austrie G 6-3 176 Sr.7.1 1.7 2.3
21 Stanley Robinson G/F 6-9 210 Jr. 7.85.5 --
4 Jeff Adrien G 6-7243 Sr. 13.610.2 --
34 Hasheen Thabeet F/C 7-3 263 Jr.13.910.9 --
Additional Information:
Big 12 Conference: http://www.big12sports.com/
Big East Conference: http://www.bigeast.org/
NCAA: http://www.ncaa.com/
Series Notes
*The series is tied, 1-1. Connecticut posted a 69-63 victory in Storrs, Conn., in 1982-83. The Aggies beat the Huskies, 92-81, in the opening game of the 1989 Great Alaska Shootout.*The 1989-90 Aggies were coached by the late Shelby Metcalf, who retired as the winningest coach in Southwest Conference history that season. A&M guard Lynn Suber made 7-of-8 three-pointers in the win against Connecticut, finishing with 33 points in one of the top individual performances in school history. The Huskies advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight later that season under Coach Jim Calhoun.
*A&M is 5-10 all-time against current members of the Big East Conference, but has won three straight, all in postseason play -- a 75-72 win at DePaul in the second round of the 2005 NIT, a 66-58 victory against Syracuse in the first round of the 2006 NCAAs, and a 72-69 win against Louisville in the 2007 NCAAs.
Tournament Notes
*The winner of Saturday's game will advance to the NCAA West Regional March 26-28 in Glendale, Ariz
*A&M is making its fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Prior to this streak, A&M had never played in consecutive NCAA Tournaments. Prior to 2006, A&M had not been to the NCAAs since 1987.
*A&M has been eliminated from the NCAA Tournament by heart-breaking losses in each of the previous three years with each game decided in the final three seconds. In 2006, LSU's Darrel Mitchell hit a long three-pointer with three seconds left to lift the Tigers to a 58-57 second-round victory in Jacksonville, Fla. In 2007, Memphis's Antonio Anderson made two free throws with three seconds left for a 65-64 win in San Antonio. Last year in Anaheim, UCLA came from behind to secure a 51-49 victory in a controversial finish in the final moments.
*A&M is one of just 16 schools to appear in the last four NCAA Tournaments. Coming into this year's tournament, A&M was one of just eight schools to win at least one NCAA game in each of the last three years. The others are Memphis, North Carolina, Tennessee, Pittsburgh, Georgetown, UCLA and Texas. Georgetown went to the NIT this season, while A&M, Memphis, North Carolina, UCLA and Texas won first round games on Thursday. Pittsburgh and Tennessee played first round games on Friday.
*With the win against BYU on Thursday, A&M is one of just three schools to have won a postseason game in each of the last five years (1 NIT, 4 NCAAs). The others are North Carolina (5 NCAAs), and Memphis (1 NIT, 4 NCAAs).
*A&M is making the 10th NCAA Tournament appearance in school history. The Aggies are 8-10 in NCAA Tournament play, advancing to the Sweet Sixteen in 1969, 1980 and 2007.
*The Aggies are 5-3 in NCAA play in the last four NCAA Tournaments years. Prior to the 2006 first-round win against Syracuse, A&M's last NCAA Tournament win was in 1980, when the No. 6-seeded Aggies beat No. 3 seed North Carolina, 78-61, in double overtime in Denton, Texas. A&M then fell in the Midwest Regional finals to eventual national champion Louisville, 66-55, in overtime.
*In that North Carolina game, neither team scored in the first overtime as UNC went into its famed Four Corners Offense, but A&M broke loose in the second overtime, setting NCAA Tournament records for most overtime points (25) and largest victory margin in overtime (17).
*Prior to this year's tournament, A&M had played basketball in Philadelphia just once in its history, falling to then-No. 10-ranked Temple, 60-44, in 1957-58.
*The Aggies are 3-2 this season in neutral site games. A&M beat Kent State (77-71) in the South Padre Island Invitational, downed LSU (72-61) at the Toyota Center in Houston and thumped BYU (79-66) in Thursday's opening round NCAA game. The losses were to Tulsa (67-56) in the South Padre tournament and to Texas Tech (88-83) in the Big 12 tournament.
*A&M is 7-5 this season against teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The Aggies have notched four wins against teams that were ranked at some point this season.
Mark Madness
*A&M's Mark Turgeon is making his third appearance as a head coach in the NCAA Tournament and has won a first-round game each year. Turgeon is 4-2 in NCAA games.
*In 2006, he led Wichita State to the Sweet Sixteen, where they were eliminated by eventual Final Four participant George Mason (63-55). The Shockers beat Seton Hall (86-66) and Tennessee (80-73) in the first two rounds.
*Last year, Turgeon's A&M team went 1-1, beating BYU (67-62) in the opener and falling to eventual Final Four participant UCLA (51-49).
*Turgeon was the first player in Kansas storied history to play in four consecutive NCAA Tournaments (1984-87), including a Final Four appearance in 1986. He played in 12 NCAA Tournament games, helping the Jayhawks to an 8-4 record.
*As an assistant coach at Kansas under Larry Brown, Turgeon helped the Jayhawks to the 1988 NCAA Championship. As an assistant at KU under Roy Williams (1988-92), he participated in three NCAA Tournaments in four years, including the 1991 national championship game.
*As a player, assistant coach and head coach, Turgeon has compiled a 25-10 NCAA Tournament record (8-4 as a play, 13-4 as an assistant, 4-2 as a head coach).
*Turgeon also participated in the 1995 NCAA Tournament as an assistant coach at Oregon under Jerry Green. It was the Ducks' first NCAA appearance in 34 years.
Sidebars
*Like Coach Turgeon at Kansas, senior Josh Carter is the first player in A&M history to appear in four NCAA Tournaments. Carter's A&M teams have gone 5-3 in NCAA tournament play, winning at least one game every year. No A&M veteran player has played on a team that has failed to win at least one NCAA game.
*As a player at Tulsa, A&M assistant coach Alvin "Pooh" Williamson led Tulsa to the 1994 and 1995 NCAA Tournaments, averaging 38 minutes in six career NCAA games. Tulsa beat Illinois and Old Dominion in 1995 before being ousted by Massachusetts. In 1994, No. 12-seed Tulsa upset No. 5 UCLA (112-102) in the opening round, then edged Oklahoma State before being eliminated by Arkansas.
*A&M staffer Byron Smith played in the 1990 NCAA Tournament as a member of the Houston Cougars, but his team lost in the first round.
*A&M Director of Student-Athlete Development/Basketball Barry Davis is a member of the A&M Athletics Hall of Fame. As a player, Davis played on the Aggies' 1975 NCAA Tournament Team, which lost to Cincinnati in the first round. As an assistant coach at A&M under Shelby Metcalf, Davis helped the Aggies to the Sweet Sixteen in the 1980 NCAA Tournament, which included memorable wins against Bradley and North Carolina. The Aggies were eliminated in overtime by eventual champion Louisville.
*Davis is the uncle of A&M junior forward Bryan Davis.
*Assistant CoacgBill Walker was an assistant coach under Don Monson at Minnesota when the Golden Gophers played in the 2005 NCAA Tournament. They lost to Iowa State in the opening round.
*Video coordinator Stephen Gentry helped Gonzaga to four straight NCAA tournaments as a player from 2003-06, including a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2006. The Zags advanced to the second round in Gentry's other three seasons.
*Turgeon was an assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers under Coach Larry Brown in 1997-98.
Hoops Success
*A&M has posted its fifth straight 20-win season. Before the 2004-05 season, A&M had only six 20-win seasons in its entire history. The Aggies' 24 wins tie for the fourth most in school history.
*A&M is 119-46 (.721) in the last five years and 76-27 (.738) in the last three seasons.
*A&M, Kansas and Texas are the only three Big 12 schools that have won at least 20 games in each of the last five years. Only 23 schools in the nation won at least 20 games in each of the previous four seasons (2004-08).
*A&M is makings its fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance. Prior to this streak, A&M had never made consecutive NCAA appearances. Including the 2005 NIT, A&M has advanced to postseason play five straight years.
*A&M is 5-3 NCAA Tournament play in the last four years. Prior to that, A&M was just 3-7 in NCAA Tournament games in its history.
NBA Presence
*A&M has produced three NBA Draft picks in the last four years, including first round choices Acie Law IV (2007, Atlanta Hawks) and Antoine Wright (2005, New Jersey Nets). DeAndre Jordan was an early second-round pick by the Los Angeles Clippers in 2008.
*Prior to 2005, A&M had not produced an NBA Draft pick since 1987. A&M's never had more than one active NBA player before now.
*Law, Wright and Jordan have each started and had 20+ scoring games this season. Through games of March 15, Wright had started in 40 of 50 games this season for the Dallas Mavericks and has a career-high 24 points against Indiana in November. Law has appeared in 52 games for the Hawks, starting once, and scored a career-high 22 points against Cleveland in November. Jordan has played in 42 games for the Clippers, starting 11 times, and scored a career-high 23 points against the Los Angeles Lakers in January. He also posted a 20-rebound game against Golden State and had 6 blocked shots against Minnesota in January.
Making the Grade
*When the NCAA adopted the Academic Progress Rate (APR) as its standard for measuring the academic success of its member schools in 2004, Texas A&M did not meet the minimum score of 925 and lost a scholarship for the 2004-05 season. The program's APR for 2007-08 improved to a perfect score of 1,000.
*All nine Aggies seniors have graduated in the last two seasons and seniors Josh Carter and Bryson Graham are on schedule to graduate this year.
Coach Turgeon
*A former player and assistant coach at Kansas, 44-year-old Mark Turgeon is in his second season at Texas A&M. He cut his coaching teeth at Kansas under legends Larry Brown and Roy Williams.
*Turgeon's 49 wins at A&M are a record by a Big 12 coach in his first two years at a league school. The previous mark was 47 wins by Kansas' Bill Self (2003-05) and Iowa State's Larry Eustachy (1998-00). Others near the top of the list are Texas Tech's Bob Knight (45), Texas' Rick Barnes (43) and A&M's Billy Gillispie (43).
*Turgeon led the Aggies to a 25-11 record last year, the third most wins in school history. The Aggies 24 wins this season are the fourth most in school history. A&M advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, dropping a close 51-49 decision to No. 1-seed UCLA.
*In 12 NCAA Tournament appearances as a player, assistant coach and head coach, Turgeon has lost a first-round NCAA game just once (Oregon in 1995 under Coach Jerry Green).
*Turgeon's 25 wins last season were the most by a Big 12 coach in his debut and tied for the most by a first-year coach in the history of any Big 12 school. Tom Penders went 25-9 in his first year at Texas in 1988-89 prior to the Big 12.
*Turgeon has led his teams to at least 20 wins in five of the last six seasons (His WSU team won 19 games in 2006-07). His teams have advanced to postseason play five times in the previous six years. His record in the last six years is 136-64 (.680).
Player Notables
Josh Carter: Second-Team All-Big 12 (Dallas Morning News) ... Third-Team All-Big 12 (Coaches and AP) ... All-District (USBWA) ... has scored in double figures in three straight NCAA Tournament games ... has played in eight career NCAA Tournament games ... has played in 134 career games, breaking Dominique Kirk's (2004-08) school record (132) ... Carter is the winningest player in school history with a 98-36 (.731) record since he came to A&M ... Carter has started in 103 career games ... scored a career-high 29 points (7-of-10 three-pointers) vs. Iowa State ... made game-winning three-pointer at buzzer against Nebraska ... has scored in double figures in 13 straight games ... has made 25-of-47 (.532) three-pointers in the last eight games ... has made at least one three-pointer in 17 straight games ... the only player in A&M history to score at least 1,500 points (1,558) with 500 rebounds (506) and 200 assists (239) ... owns school record for career three-point field goals (298), No. 4 in Big 12 history ... seventh in career scoring at A&M and needs 36 points to move into top five ... second in Big 12 in season free throw accuracy (.853) and in three-point field goals per game (2.6) in league play ...A&M is 68-16 (.810) when he scores in double figures, including a 21-5 mark this season ... has just 38 turnovers in 1,018 minutes this season (one every 26.8 minutes).
Bryan Davis: Scored a season-high 21 points with 9 rebounds in first-round win vs. BYU ... effort was a career-high for a regulation length game (his career best of 30 was in a five overtime game vs. Baylor in 2008) ... three blocks vs. BYU tied an A&M mark for NCAA Tournament play ... second on team in rebounding (6.5) and blocks (43), and is third in scoring (10.7) ... ranks ninth in the Big 12 in rebounding, fifth in blocked shots ... has scored in double figures in three straight games, averaging 15.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in that stretch ... had 12 points and 10 rebounds in win against Missouri ... earned all-tournament honors at the South Padre Island Invitational, where he scored 15 points with 13 rebounds in the final-round win vs. Kent State ... ranks seventh in A&M history in career blocks (93) ... team is 27-6 in his career when he scores in double figures ... leads team in free throw attempts (160) ... tied for team lead in three-point plays with nine.
Donald Sloan: Scored 14 points with 6 rebounds and tied his season-high with 7 assists in first-round win against BYU ... has averaged 16.5 points while making 54.4 percent from the field in the last four games ... scored a career-high 22 points against Texas Tech in Big 12 tournament ... had 14 points and 5 assists in win at Colorado, scoring 7 points in final four minutes to lead rally ... scored a team-high 16 points in win against Missouri ... leads team in assists (3.1), ranks second in scoring (11.8) and is fourth in steals (23) ... has just 54 turnovers (with 103 assists) in 1,001 minutes of action this season (one every 18.5 minutes) -- last year, he averaged a turnover every 13.3 minutes ... is 30-of-36 (.833) on free throws in "crunch time" this season (games within 10 points in the final two minutes) ... shooting 73.9 percent from the free throw line, a marked improvement over last season's .673 mark ... Aggies are 29-3 in his career when he hands out at least 4 assists.
DERRICK ROLAND: Big 12 All-Defense Team (coaches and media panel) ... scored 10 points in first round win against BYU ... has scored at least 8 points in five straight games, averaging 9.4 points in that stretch ... scored 12 points (8-8 FT) in win at Colorado ... added 9 points in win against Missouri ... has made 86.2 percent (25-29) from the free throw line in the last nine games ... one of the country's top defenders ... normally guards the opponents' top scoring guard ... in Big 12 play, his primary assignment made just 38 percent from the field and 32 percent from three-point range ... opponents' top-scoring guard scored below his average in all but three Big 12 games ... held Texas' A.J. Abrams to a season-low 7 points on 3-12 shooting in win against Longhorns ... Abrams averaged just 8.0 points in two games against Roland this year ... Oklahoma State's James Anderson averaged only 9.5 points in two games against Roland ... team is 24-5 in his career when he scores at least 7 points, including a 12-3 mark this year.
CHINEMELU ELONU: Big 12 Most-Improved Player (Fort Worth Star-Telegram) ... Honorable Mention All-Big 12 (AP) ... Big 12 All-Improved Team (media panel) ... scored 8 points with a game-high 10 rebounds and 3 blocks in first round win vs. BYU ... three blocks tied A&M record for NCAA Tournament play ... averaged 1.9 points and 2.2 rebounds in 56 career games entering season ... in Big 12 play, he ranked third on the team in scoring (10.6) while leading in rebounding (8.0), blocks (26) and field goal accuracy (.644), the second best percentage in league play in school history (.650 by Rudy Woods in 1978-79) ... has had nine double-doubles (fifth most in the Big 12), including five in league play ... ranks second in Big 12 in blocked shots (1.6) and offensive rebounds (2.9) ... sixth in the league in rebounding (7.5) ... leads the team in field goal percentage at .668, an A&M record that ranks No. 1 nationally among players with at least 190 field goal attempts ... old school record was .622 by Rudy Woods in 1978-79 ... tied for team lead in three-point plays (FG+FT) with nine and leads in dunks with 38 ... younger sister, Adaora Elonu (uh-DOOR-uh) is a 6-1 freshman forward for the nationally-ranked A&M women's team who twice has been named the Big 12's Freshman of the Week ... Aggies are 28-6 in his career when he scores at least 6 points and are 30-5 when he has at least 5 rebounds ... his 53 blocked this season are the seventh most in school history and the most since David Harris had a record 108 blocks in 1989-90 ... his 26 blocks in conference games tied the school record for Big 12 play (DeAndre Jordan also had 26 last year).
B.J. Holmes: Scored 10 points (2-4 3-pt. FG) with 2 steals in first-round win vs. BYU ... Big 12 All-Reserve Team ... led Big 12 in three-point percentage (.470) in league play... ranked second in the league in free throw percentage (.860) in conference play ... has made 19-of-21 (.905) from the free throw line in the last eight games ... scored 10 of his 16 points in final six minutes to lead comeback win at Colorado ... added 13 points in win vs. Missouri ... one of the top bench players in the Big 12, he averaged 9.1 points in league play ... had a career-high 24 points in first win against Texas Tech, making 6-of-7 three-pointers (.875), tying for the fourth-best percentage in school history ... made his first six treys vs. Tech, tying Big 12 record for consecutive three-point field goals ... has made at least one three-pointer in eight straight games ... had streak of 20 straight games with at least one trey (third longest in school history) earlier this season ... has been the top scorer off the bench team-high 20 times ... scored 16 points in the win at Alabama and nailed a rainbow three-pointer with :02 left to send the game to overtime ... has had just 18 turnovers (48 assists) in 735 minutes, an average of just one every 40.8 minutes ... had only 8 total turnovers in Big 12 play (one every 41.9 minutes) ... A&M is 12-2 this year when he scores in double figures ...fouled out for first time in career against Texas Tech in Big 12 tournament.
B.J. Holmes tied it with :02 left ... also hit a "clutch" jumper in the final minute against Stephen F. Austin to ice the victory ... made a three-pointer with 7:32 left at Rice that gave the Aggies a six-point lead and the Owls never came close again ... grabbed 11 rebounds against Stephen F. Austin and pulled down a career-best 12 against UNC Wilmington ... scored 9 points against UNC Wilmington, just missing his first career double-double ... Aggies are 14-2 in his career when he scores at least 5 points and are 15-3 when he makes at least one three-pointer, including a 9-1 mark this season.
DASH HARRIS: Has emerged as one of the team's best defenders ... Aggies are 16-2 and have won eight straight when he has at least two assists ... team is 9-0 when he has at least 3 assists ... had two assists in first-round NCAA win vs. BYU ... equaled career high with 6 points (3-4 FG) and added 3 assists and 2 steals in win against Missouri ... tied career best with 6 points against Iowa State and made 2-of-2 from three-point range, his first treys of the year ... dished out career-best 5 assists with 0 turnovers in win vs. Texas ... had monster dunk and made free throw to complete key three-point play in comeback win at Nebraska ... also had 5 assists vs. Texas Tech, Rice and McNeese State ... had 4 assists and a career-high 6 points vs. North Dakota.
David Loubeau: Preseason honorable mention freshman All-America by Collegeinsider.com ... has two points in first-round NCAA win vs. BYU ... ranked second among Big 12 freshmen in offensive rebounding (1.9) in league play ... scored 8 points (3-3 FG) in win against Missouri ... had 11 points with 8 rebounds in first win against Texas Tech and added 10 points in win against Oklahoma State ... scored a career-high 12 points with 8 rebounds in the win against Kent State ... has been the first player off the bench a team-high 19 times ... scored 9 points, all in the second half, in close loss at Oklahoma ... Aggies are 7-1 when he scores at least 8 points (3-1 in Big 12 play), losing only at Oklahoma, when he helped A&M take a late lead with 9 second-half points.
Offensive Notes
Scoring: A&M is 17-1 this season with it scores at least 72 points, including 8-0 in Big 12 play ... the only loss was to Texas Tech in the Big 12 tournament (88-83) ... A&M is 31-2 under Mark Turgeon when it scores at least 72 ... the Aggies are one of the most balanced teams in the Big 12 with four players averaging in double figures and five averaging between 8.8 and 13.9 points ... five Aggies scored in double figures in the first-round NCAA win vs. BYU ... A&M has had at least four players reach double figures in four straight games ... A&M is 6-0 when five players reach double figures in scoring, 14-3 when it has four or more players score in double digits and is 20-4 when three or more reach double figures ... five players reached the mark against Missouri and nine scored at least 6 points in the win ... A&M is 15-2 in the last three years when the trio of Carter, Sloan and Davis each score in double figures, including an 11-2 mark this year (the only losses were at Oklahoma and to Texas Tech in the Big 12 tournament) ... the Aggies average 19.8 bench points and have had at least 10 bench points in all but the loss at Baylor ... A&M is 9-0 when it has at least 8 fast break points this season and is 19-1 when they reach that mark under Mark Turgeon.
Production in Wins/Losses: In its Big 12 wins, A&M averaged 79.0 points while making .492 from the field and .438 from three-point range ... in its league losses, the Aggies averaged 62.0 points while making .398 from the field,.325 from three-point range and .644 from the line ... A&M averaged 14.9 turnovers in its Big 12 losses, but only 12.4 in its conference wins ... A&M averaged 23.8 bench points in its Big 12 wins, but only 15.0 in its losses.
In the Last Eight Games: A&M is 7-1 in its last eight games and in that run has averaged 79.2 points while shooting 50.6 percent from the field, 42.1 percent from three-point range and 69.6 percent from the free throw line. Five players are averaging at least 9.8 points in that run, while Derrick Roland has averaged 8.1 and Nathan Walkup has added 5.9.
Field Goal Shooting: A&M made 57.7 percent from the field in the first-round NCAA win vs. BYU, a school record for NCAA Tournament play ... the Aggies are 19-2 when they make at least 43 percent from the field ... A&M is 5-7 when it shoots under 43 percent ... under Mark Turgeon, A&M is 41-6 when it makes at least 43 percent from the field, with a 22-0 mark when it makes better than 50 percent ... A&M ranked third in the Big 12 in three-point accuracy (.388) and was fourth in field goal accuracy (.452) in league play ... A&M made a season-best 62.0 percent in the win against Missouri, its best since it made 62.7 percent last year against Colorado.
Efficiency: The Aggies handed out 20 assists in the win vs. BYU, a school record for NCAA Tournament play ... it was A&M's most assists since they had a season-high 21 against Kent State on Nov. 29 ... A&M is 17-0 when it has just 11 assists or more this season ... the Aggies are 15-0 when they have a positive assist-to-turnover ratio, including a 6-0 mark in Big 12 play ... A&M is 39-7 when Donald Sloan has at least 3 assists in his career, including a 16-3 mark this year ... the Aggies are 16-2 and have won eight straight when Dash Harris has at least two assists are 9-0 when he has at least 3 assists.
Turnovers: A&M averaged 12.0 turnovers per game in non-conference play, second fewest in the Big 12 ... A&M had 16 first-half turnovers at Colorado, but had only three in the second half of comeback win ... The Aggies had 14 turnovers against Missouri, which came into the game forcing an average of 19.5 ... The Aggies had 14 miscues against BYU on Thursday ... A&M is 19-3 when it has 14 or fewer turnovers ... under Mark Turgeon, the Aggies are 37-11 with 14 or fewer turnovers ... the Aggies are 18-1 when their opponents have fewer than 14 points off turnovers, including a 6-1 mark in Big 12 play (only loss was at Oklahoma) ... A&M has allowed an average of 17.7 points off turnovers in its losses, but only 10.3 in its victories ... under Turgeon, A&M is 30-4 when it has more points off turnovers than its opponent ... the Aggies had 16 assists and only 4 turnovers against Arizona, their fewest turnovers in a game since the statistic was first maintained in the mid-1970s.
Dominating Inside: A&M has been outrebounded just once in its last 13 games and has had an average margin of +8.4 in that span ... the Aggies have had double-digit rebounding margins in 13 games, including seven of the last 13 games ... A&M had a +14 rebounding margin in the narrow loss at Oklahoma, the Sooners' largest deficit of the year ... A&M is 20-3 when out-rebounding its opponent this season and is 4-6 when being beaten or equaled on the boards ... A&M posted a +7 rebounding margin against LSU, which came into the game leading the nation in rebounding margin ... in conference play, the Aggies ranked third in the league in rebounding margin (+5.1), setting a school record for a Big 12 season ... the Aggies had 38 points in the paint in the win vs. BYU ... A&M is averaging 29.8 points in the paint and has scored at least 18 points in the paint in every game ... the Aggies are 19-2 this season when scoring at least 27 points in the paint, but are only 5-7 when scoring 26 points or fewer ... under Turgeon, A&M is 41-6 when scoring at least 27 points in the paint.
From the Line: A&M made 71.7 percent from the free throw line in non-conference play, but ranked last in the league in Big 12 play at 66.2 percent ... the Aggies rank 11th nationally in free throw attempts with 839 and is the only Big 12 team that has made more free throws (583) than its opponents have attempted (550) ... that fact also holds true for Big 12 games as A&M made 275 free throws and its opponents attempted 273 ... A&M has made 69.6 percent from the line in the last eight games, going 7-1 in that stretch ... the Aggies were a dismal 30-of-51 in the win at Texas Tech, resulting in a relatively close game, and were just 3-of-10 at Nebraska ... free throw shooting cost A&M dearly in the close losses to nationally-ranked Oklahoma (twice), Texas and Kansas State ... the Aggies were 14-of-23 (.609) against Oklahoma in College Station and were just 10-of-18 in Norman, losing both games by just six points ... A&M made a season-low 12-of-24 (.500) in the loss at Texas and was just 19-of-30 in the five-point loss to Kansas State ... In its Big 12 losses, A&M made just 64.4 percent from the line; in their league wins, the Aggies made 68.5 percent and out-scored their opponents by an average of 8.9 points from the line ... ironically, the Aggies set Big 12 and school marks for free throw accuracy by making 20-of-20 (1.000) against Florida A&M ... A&M made 18-of-21 (.857) from the line in the win against Texas and 13-of-16 (.813) in the win against Iowa State... A&M is 94-of-115 (.817) from the line in the last two minutes of "close games," defined as games within 10 points ... as a team, the Aggies shoot almost 10,000 free throws per week in practice ... A&M has made 583 free throws, 12th most nationally and a school record (old mark was 582 set by the 1968-69 NCAA team) ... the Aggies' 411 free throw attempts in conference play led the league and was a school record for Big 12 games ... A&M averaged 25.7 free throw attempts per game in Big 12 play, 8.6 more than its opponents ... when it has more free throw attempts than its opponent, A&M is 23-7.
Defensive Notes
Scoring: A&M is 16-1 when its opponent scores 66 points or fewer this season (only loss was to Kansas State, 65-60) ... Aggies are 11-0 when opponent scores 64 points or fewer ... the Aggies are ranked third in the Big 12 in scoring defense in league play (69.8) ... one of the nation's top scoring teams, Oklahoma State (82.2) scored a season-low 64 points in A&M's win on Jan. 31 and averaged just 68.0 points in two games against the Aggies ... high-scoring Baylor averaged just 72.5 points in two games against the Aggies ... all but three Big 12 opponents scored under their season average against A&M (ironically, those were A&M's final three opponents of the regular season and all were victories) ... under Mark Turgeon, A&M is 41-9 when its opponent scores 70 or fewer points.
Field Goal Shooting: BYU made just 39.0 percent against the Aggies in Thursday's first round ... the Aggies are allowing .430 field goal accuracy for the year and .449 in Big 12 play, sixth best in the league ... A&M is 16-3 this season when its opponent makes under 45 percent from the field and is 8-6 when the opponent shoots better than that mark ... the Aggies are 13-1 when their opponent makes under 41 percent ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 31-2 when their opponent makes under 41 percent from the field.
Production in Wins/Losses: In their Big 12 wins, the Aggies allowed an average of 69.1 points and their opponents made 44.6 percent from the field and 35.5 percent from three-point range ... in its league losses, A&M allowed 70.7 points on 45.4 percent shooting, including 38.5 percent from three-point range.
Blocked Shots: In Big 12 play, A&M ranked fifth in the league in blocked shots with 3.6 per game ... Bryan Davis ranks fifth overall (1.3) and sixth in conference play (1.1) ... Davis ranks seventh on the A&M career chart (93) while Elonu is ninth (78) ... the last time A&M averaged more blocks in a season was in 1989-90, when the team was led by shot blocking ace David Harris, who averaged 3.5 by himself.
Additional Notes
Stay in the Game: Prior to the Big 12 tournament, A&M players had fouled out just five times this season and one was in overtime at Alabama (Bryan Davis) ... but against Texas Tech in the tournament's opening game, a season-high three Aggies fouled out (Davis, Elonu and Holmes) ... opposing players have fouled out 24 times this year ... in Big 12 play, A&M players fouled out just twice, tying the school record set in 1959 (Southwest Conference) ... A&M has had a total of eight players foul out this season ... the school record for fewest foul outs is eight in 1958-59.
Close Games: A&M is 14-6 in games decided by 10 points or fewer ... four of A&M's seven league losses were by six points or fewer ... the Aggies' last four losses were one possession games in the final minute ... A&M is 21-2 when it has the lead going into the final five minutes, losing only at No. 2 Oklahoma and to Texas Tech in the Big 12 tournament... the Aggies are 41-4 when they have the lead going into the final five minutes under Mark Turgeon.
At the Half: A&M is 38-5 when leading at halftime under Mark Turgeon, including an 18-1 mark this season. The Texas Tech game in the Big 12 tournament marked A&M's first loss of the year after leading at halftime.
Aggies at Neutral Sites: A&M is 3-2 in neutral site games this season, beating LSU in Houston,Kent State at the South Padre Island Invitational and BYU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Philadelphia... the losses were to Tulsa at the South Padre tournament and Texas Tech in the Big 12 tournament... under Mark Turgeon, the Aggies are 8-4 in neutral site games.
Comeback Kids: A&M came back from an 18-point deficit to win at Nebraska, the largest known comeback victory in school history ... A&M rallied from 14-point deficits to beat Arizona and Alabama and came back from 11 down to win at Colorado ... after trailing by 18 at Baylor, A&M pulled within two points in the final minute before losing ... A&M also rallied from a 15-point deficit at Oklahoma to take a nine-point lead before falling ... last season, A&M rallied from 10-point deficits to beat UTEP and Washington in the Dock's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off.